The Haunted City - Day 1

When Ro gave me the responsibility of picking a destination for the long weekend, I knew I wanted more than just scenic beauty. Ofcourse, we didnt need just the flowers and lakes, as we weren't keen on dancing around trees or staring lovingly into eachothers eyes..erm..souls! So "History" it was, yet around. York came with the promise of a lot of history. However, if I'd known the city was one of the most haunted places in this region, I'd have been even more enthusiastic.

The tickets and accomodation were booked, and I spent all of Friday ironing and packing our clothes. Armed with a bag, and a book for the journey, we set out to Kings Cross station, where a train would take us to York. In the station, Ro decided to have some fun at my expense.
"Seat No", he said. "That's what the ticket says."

"No must be Number", i suggested.

"It just means we have no seats", joked Ro in an attempt to shock me.
"Really" I asked with a barely disguised frown. I didn't quite enjoy the prospect of standing my way to York. Two hours was too long for someone who wanted a comfortable window seat, enough leg space, and the option of dozing off.

"Kidding! As this is a two-hour long journey, it just means that you can sit on any seat", explained Ro gently.

Relieved, I followed him to the train. We walked past six bogeys of first class luxury, before realizing that we actually didn't have seats. We had two standing tickets! The ticket collecter said, "You can sit, if there are vacancies.

"Vacancies? The whole world is on this train", i laughed! Now I was amused that Ro's joke wasn't just a joke anymore. Anyway, adventurous souls that we are, we climbed into a crowded compartment, stepped on a few toes, apologised to a few bags and snaked our way in.

I couldn't believe, we were standing and travelling in Britain. "This would never have happened in India", we joked. Once the train began moving, everyone started getting comfortable. Some sat on the floor, one sat inside the loo, and a few others (moi included) sat on suitcases. However, after an hour of patience, someone stood up to leave. I charged ahead and sat down. A few minutes later Ro found a seat as well, so we were able to sit, read, and nap before getting to York.

By the time we got to York, it was past 9.30. I was pleasantly surprised. Unlike in London, the inhabitants of York were friendly. They smiled, spoke, and helped. When we were pouring over a map, a young woman offered to help us find our way to our Bed & Breakfast. We got directions from her, and in true touristy fashion we walked to the guest house. It wasn't too far, and luckily I wasn't as cold as I feared.

We found the place easily.

Jenny welcomed us in with a warm, friendly smile, and a map of York. She told us how we could get to the city the next morning, and explore. However, before that we needed directions to a nearby restaurant.

If what I noticed most about the city were its friendly people, I had to think again. The teeny city was sprawling with Indian restaurants. The Taj Mahal, Viceroy of India, York Spice, and Lal Quila were just some of the many restaurants we'd walked past. On day one, we stopped by York Spice, for some rather delicious parathas and chicken. We poured over our maps, made a few plans for the next day, ate our dinner, and then it was time to sleep. We walked back to our cosy room, set the alarm for 6.30, and watched some TV before dozing off. When we did, little did we know just how much we would encounter in this exciting little city.