Spring break, part two: York, England.

For my first part of spring break, which I spent in Paris, read here: Paris!

I was not prepared for the weather that England threw my way. In Paris, with a cozy 13 degrees centigrade, England's bitter -1 was very unwelcome. I was met in Manchester by my dearest friend Mauri, and a couple of her friends from school. The drive back to York was quite adventurous. I'm happy we survived. Upon arriving at Mauri's flat, I dropped by bags and touched up my makeup. (Early morning flights are quite brutal.) Then we went to explore York!

We got our first round of tea and scones and began to catch up. As we always do, we picked right up from where we last left off. I appreciate our friendship so very much, and Mauri is such an encouragement! Besides, there's not a thing that brings you together like scones and tea.

To be honest, the majority of our time together was spent catching up. It was equally pleasant that I had already visited York, because there was no added pressure to see the city again. She took me to a lovely coffee shop called Spring, which had incredible coffee. I've begun to forget the concept of "large cups". The Italians are very particular about their coffee, and you can't usually find coffee in sizes larger than 8 oz. 

The first evening I was there, Mauri, her friend Hunter, and I went out to Indian food. (The one food I've honestly been missing since I left New York.) It was delightful. Then, we went and played pool. On Monday, we explored as much as we could without freezing and had more tea and scones. 

This was at Goji, one of Mauri's favorite coffee shops. They have amazing scones. 

Part of the York wall and the Barbican: 

The Shambles - a street with great little buildings that over hang. Some buildings date back to the fourteenth century. The Shambles would have once been a market, specifically a meat market, the street being lined with butcher's shops. 

The York Minster: 

On my last day in York, I met up with my brother Sean, and we got lunch. After lunch, we headed to Leeds, because our cousin's band, The Silent Comedy, was playing at Brudenell Social Club in Leeds. You can (and should!) check them out at their website here. 

We got to chat with them for a while. It was like a mini family reunion. 

Afterward, I headed back to York, where I caught little to no sleep and a headache, and packed up for Vienna. Bright and early the next morning, I flew out of Manchester, spent a grueling 4 hours in the Frankfurt airport, pacing to entertain myself, and finally landed in Vienna, Austria around 6p.m. You can read about Vienna here: Vienna!