So who came up with mornings, anyways? A character in a book I once read suggested that the only reason mornings exist is to keep night from bumping into the afternoon, and I tend to agree. Believe it or not, 7:30 came way too early again. And tomorrow we're off to Durham and then Edinburgh, which means its up even earlier at 7:00.
Today was the Minster tour, and it was amazing. We had a really cool guide, and he actually knew what he was talking about, which is always nice. But apparently, we got really lucky; I later saw several guides simply reading off of sheets, while Timo (our guide) was spouting everything off the top of his head.
The Undercroft was my favorite part. We got to see where the foundations of the old Norman minster (from Anglo-Saxon, a missionary post) were, as well as the remains of a Roman basilica that cut through the grounds. I got to touch walls over 1900 years old... that's not something that happens every day. I also had the opportunity to lay in a really old (14th century?) limestone coffin that fit me surprisingly well. Fortunately, I wasn't there long enough for my decomposed organs to slide out the conveniently located goo
-hole in the bottom, but it was still a very cool, very unique experience. Though I'm sure I'll be in a coffin again some day, it probably won't be hundreds of years old, and I won't really be able to enjoy it.
The tour was unfortunately short, even at two hours long. Timo had plenty to say and then some, but he had another tour scheduled at noon that he had to leave for. Chilled around the minster for awhile, then Rachel, Erin, Chelsea, Crystal and I ascended the 275 steps to the top of the crossing tower. It cost £2.50, and the climb was a pretty good workout, but it was well worth it. The view was incredible, and I got a few more good pictures, of various parts of the minster and the town.
After that, it was back to sketching stuff until 2, when we all met up again for tea at Little Betty's. It was good, but though I tried my best, I was totally unprepared for the etiquette involved in taking tea. Luckily, Nicole was sitting next to me, and was able to cover my more obvious blunders.
We finished up around 3:30, and really had nothing else to do till dinner at 5:30. Emily, Rob and I wandered around the world (d'oh... stupid subliminal suggestions from BBC) town, stopping by some antique stores & some other miscellaneous shops. I was tempted to buy either an Iron Cross for myself or an old Army Air Corps medal for a friend who's going to be an Army pilot, but decided against it because of the horrible exchange rate. Emily ended up buying some Roman coins from the mid-late 4th century, which were pretty cool. Rob eventually got bored and wandered off. Emily and I dropped our stuff off at the B&B and then meandered our way back to the old Roman Bath, where we were eating that night. Along the way, we had a fairly entertaining political discussion, mainly involving me trying to point out John Kerry's many flaws, and Emily worrying about me becoming another Napoleon.
After dinner, it was back to journaling, sketching, and getting distracted by the TV: in this case, Lethal Weapon 3 and some odd British commercials. And then Rob & I ended up switching rooms with Crystal, Nicole & Rachel, who thought there was a ghost in their room. They were afraid their sink was haunted, and were fearful of seeing a ghost in the steam of the shower, so they decided they needed to bathe/shave/etc. in our sink. That's it.
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