Penthouse Living

At the end of my regular riverside walk into town, I pass these appartments, just before I come up onto Skeldergate Bridge. Look at the penthouse flats on both of them!

For a long time, I have thought of these penthouse flats as my dream home. Imagine the views! Well funnily enough, while browsing houses online, I have noticed that there are appartments in the penthouse suite for sale at the moment - so I don't have to imagine the views any more, I can actually see them: Lookee here!! Click number 5 to see the view - WOW!

£485,000 for a lease on a 2 bed flat though? How bout no! Weirdly enough I almost like the houseboat moored below it just as much. Says she, trying to convince herself ...

Scary Soldiers

On Friday afternoon I walked round a practically empty York Castle Museum. Under normal circumstances I love the Castle Museum, but I have never been there before when it's so quiet. Empty, it is slightly creepy in parts. And in the room with the display above, I was actually scared. The figures are enclosed in a glass case, but they look like they would just smash through it and come an' getcha, given half a chance. And they look SO REAL!

"Our display shows a group of York soldiers gathered on Heworth Green, ready to join the army marching against the Scottish rebellion of 1570."

Heworth Green ... the Chinese/Fish and Chip Shop in Heworth was recommended to me earlier in the week. Imagine going to the chippy and seeing that lot loitering on a grass verge. Maybe modern day hoodies aren't too bad after all.

Political graffiti on glass

Walking down Micklegate with my cousin at the weekend, a street most noted for being infamous pub crawl territory, (the "Micklegate Run") she noticed that the old church along there was open as part of the national Heritage Open Days. We went in, and discovered that this rather beautiful building, the Church of St Martin cum Gregory, has been shut up since the 1960s - hence a quite musty smell as we entered!

The church has impressive stained glass windows, and windows with graffiti on, dating from the 14th to 18th centuries. The Church is going to become "The Stained Glass Centre," a national resource for the discovery and interpretation of stained glass, comprising a gallery, workshop and meeting spaces.

Photo: Political graffiti on the window of the church, from the 1700s, which refers to the battle of Collodon.