Mini Food Festival

There's a mini food festival on in York at the moment. The Autumn Harvest Mushrooms stall in particular caught my eye because of the wide variety of mushrooms on offer there, both fresh and dried. They're based in South Yorkshire, and can often be found at farmers' markets across the county.

A Tranquil Oasis

The photo of the benches I posted yesterday overlooks this public garden, which is off Peasholme Green opposite the Black Swan pub. The building in the foreground on the right is the School House Gallery which exhibits contemporary ceramics, and behind it is the Quilt Museum and Gallery. The garden was recently redesigned by the York Conservation Trust.

Peaceful Spot by the City Walls

Can any Yorkies out there guess where these benches are? They're pretty hidden away and off the beaten track. A photo of the view they overlook is coming up tomorrow.

That's part of York's medieval city walls in the background, with the luxury of a railing to make people walking around it feel safer. Not all parts have railings, but I think those bits are mainly where there's a grassy landing on the other side!

Penny Lane

This is one of York's snickelways, called Penny Lane, which I nipped through today taking a short cut across the town centre. I love the medieval brick on the left, and the wavy line of the Victorian wall on the right.

Having just looked Penny Lane up in Mark W Jones' Snickelways of York book, I've found out there are supposed to be hub-height indentations in the walls made by the wheels of hand carts people once used to wheel through here. I can't see any on my photo, so will have to go back for another look!

Low Petergate

A classic York street scene, with the Minster in the background. Low Petergate has a mixture of chain stores and independents.

Explicit Language For Sale?

Sign in the door of Give a Dog a Bone, another one of my favourite shops on Fossgate which sells all kinds of funky gifts and fun bits and pieces.

1950s Lounge in York Castle Museum

History meets nostalgia in many of the recreated rooms in York's Castle Museum. This is one of them - the 1950s lounge. I could feel quite at home in here.

A Fossgate Favourite

"The Hairy Fig, purveyors of fine fodder" a gorgeous little shop on Fossgate, right next to the entrance to the historic Merchants Hall.

Boat on the Ouse

Thanks to those who left a comment yesterday and welcomed me back. After blogger's misbehaviour today they all seem to have vanished.

Clifford's Tower before a storm

Poppleton Station

Look, my village has a station where the man pops out of his little house to open the barriers when a train is coming.

The village I live in is called Upper Poppleton. Nether Poppleton is a little further down the road. The station is just labelled Poppleton, probably so that neither village feels left out.

York Village Challenge

I currently have the best of both worlds. I moved in June to a village on the north west outskirts of York, with the city on one side, and open countryside on the other. It takes me literally only 5 mins by train to get into the city centre.

The photo is of a section of my village's name, from the station platform. Anyone want to guess what the whole thing is? (A clue: There are 2 villages next to one another with "POPP" in the name. Say them both out loud. Mine is the one that sounds like bubble wrap popping).

The FuTuRe of Travel

The number 4 from Acomb to the university and Science Park is the poshest bus in York. It is called the FTR which immediately made me think farter. But no, the letters ftr are actually a reference to the FuTuRe of travel.

The FTR is a bendybus, with spacious seats, plenty of standing room, and a TV screen which displays messages such as "For the comfort and safety of FTR passengers, please do not eat, drink or smoke in the FTR." This one kept coming up a lot last night, which was irritating, because I had a vegetable samosa and bottle of diet coke in my handbag, and was trying to suruptitiously pic-nic. Not straightforward. The FTR is the only bus in York to have a conductor, who comes to take your fare once you've sat down. Every time he got up, I had to quickly freeze my jaw in whatever chewing position it happened to be. Which is why I hadn't finished before the end of the journey.

I justified my samosa-eating recklessness by telling myself that despite the FTR TV warnings, my samosa didn't actually pose a safety threat or inconvenience to any of the other passengers. This was before a pea fell out though, and rolled right into the middle of the sparkling purple FTR floor. I must have jolted in horror because the pea was closely followed by a potato cube and several other peas. Fortunately my stop was coming up, and I was able to exit quite speedily.

For some rather better pictures of the FTR than mine, do check out this gallery)

Ruby un-hibernates

I have been hibernating. Right through the tail end of last winter, right through summer and most of autumn. Then for some reason I decide to tentatively poke my camera through the back door in the middle of a rainstorm.

It's slashing it down in York today. This view of the remaining apples on the tree in my garden is the best I can do.

Things have changed since last I blogged. I now live in a village to the north-west of York, with Mr Ruby, Erik (my eldest son), and the two younger ones who are now not so young. Life continues. And I am still Ruby :-)