Friday 26 July 2013

My Yorkshire Holiday - Part II

At the end of my previous post, I said "more to come - Ripon tomorrow". Well, it is not the "tomorrow" from the day I wrote that, but I guess nobody was quivering with anticipation and felt let down because it took me a bit longer to actually write this post.

If you have been following my blog for a while, you may remember that I have family in Yorkshire (namely in and near Ripon) and visit there every year. There have been several posts about Ripon already, for instance this one. Although I do not spend as much time there as I would like to, I feel very much at home in Ripon and could actually imagine to live there - if circumstances were different. But they are as they are, and I love my hometown of Ludwigsburg and my life here (which should be quite obvious from my blog, too).

Ripon's best known feature is, of course, the cathedral. It is huge for such a small city (the fourth smallest in England, and over 1.300 years old), and always well worth a visit, no matter whether one considers themselves a Christian or not.

 Kirkgate is the road leading from the cathedral to the market square:

 The market square:

 Townhall:

The ruins of a small church in Low St. Agnes Gate can be seen in the back of this beautiful garden:

 View of the cathedral from across the river:

 River scenery:

Every time I walk past this very handsome house, I wonder what it must be like to live there. I will never find out, I know, but I can dream, can't I!

Excellent nosh at a relatively new restaurant in Ripon, "The Terrace":  (My main course was a vegetarian Lasagne with goat cheese and a brownie with vanilla ice cream for dessert.)

Box Tree Cottages, the B&B where my sister and I have stayed twice in the past. I can really recommend them; their website is here if you want to know more.

The Leper Chapel, a place of serene beauty I have only discovered last year and really wanted to revisit this time. The website says it dates from the year 1115.

There is so much more I could write about Ripon, and I took more pictures than the ones I am showing you here, but I hope this snippet gives you an idea of what it is like.

More to come - a walk along the river next!

14 comments:

  1. Simply beautiful all those old buildings! My favorites are the cathedral and thE leper chapel. That one looked so peaceful! Thanks for sharing!! xo Silke

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    1. Maybe one day I'll muster up enough courage and actually knock at the door of house no. 42 or 44 to ask for the key to the leper chapel and go inside... There is a note on the door that says "visitors welcome", and tells you where to go for the key, but I somehow feel it would be inappropriate for me to disturb people at their private home simply because I'd like to look around inside the chapel...

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  2. I think your photos of Ripon are just beautiful! I look forward to more photos of the river.
    And since I do consider myself a Christian, I like the Cathedral very much.
    There is such an atmosphere to these old churches in England that is hard for me to describe, but when the old doors are worn down from all the hands pressed upon them, and the steps are uneven from all the feet that have passed over them, it makes one very aware of past generations of the faithful.

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    1. Yes, Kay, I have that feeling about places that have been used by generations of people, too. How much more intense must that feeling be for those who know that their own ancestors were the ones who trod on these steps and sat in those pews before them!

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  3. It is a long time since I stayed in Ripon and it is lovely to be reminded, once again, about all that there is to see there. Your pictures this week have made me hanker, once again, after doing a 'grand tour' of England and Wales to remind myself of two countries I'm beginning to know less and less well.

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    1. Graham, every time I am in Ripon, I regret I don't have more time and occasion to get around, because I know there are still so many places worth visiting just on the doorstep. But I do try and visit some place where I have not been before every time, so I am gradually broadening my horizon.

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    2. Despite GB knowing Ripon it's one of the very few English cathedral cities I've never visited. Perhaps the two of us can rectify that some time, GB. And the leper's chapel looks especially interesting.

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  4. It's a part of England i've never gotten to see in person, but i'm enjoying the virtual tour you are giving us!

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  5. Love the tour of Yorkshire. The pictures make me want to go there so much. My father's family, surname was Weathersby, came from that part of England. They were in American before the Revolution, so it's been several centures since my direct ancestors lived there. I really hope to go some day; but in the mean time, I'm so grateful for your posts.
    I'm retired from the library, but I go every week for my stack of books. In fact, I've got three on hold and need to leave now to get them.

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    1. Hello Margie, thank you for visiting, reading and commenting!
      There is a place called Wetherby in Yorkshire, maybe your ancestors came from there.

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  6. I'm catching up with your Yorskhire holiday backwards. I don't think I've ever been to Ripon. Nice to be able to visit "with" you :)

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