I have made the most of the last few days. I went to Durham
a few days ago. It was as lovely as I remembered and there was a bonus to going
alone. I went up to Durham Cathedral and spent over two hours there. The
weather outside was bitterly windy and cold so it was a welcome relief. I was
excited to see that they had the tower open so I paid my 5 pounds to go up the
370 spiral steps to the top. The people at the bottom asked me if I was going
to brave it, not so much for the steps but for the fact that it was blustering
and raining and completely open to the elements on the roof. I figured – why not!
It is part of the experience. If I decided not to do things because it was cold
and rainy here I wouldn’t be going anywhere. So I trudged all the way to the
top and it wasn’t that bad. I think all the AGGS stair-master training helped.
When I got to the top I buttoned up and took my first step
out and was almost pushed over in the wind but at least the rain had stopped.
The tower roof is completely enclosed with fencing which I had a death grip on
but it was worth it. The views overlooked the entire of Durham. I could see the
castle and the grounds and the beauty of the medieval city. I could also see
where Neville Longbottom had fallen off his broom and where Harry Potter had
flown about. It was a super-geeky moment of which I took many photos. I stayed
up there for around 15minutes and after being up there on my own for a bit a
few others braved it. I headed back inside, the change in temperature quite
extreme.
I walked around the
cathedral for a while, my hand and face frozen then I took up a pew and tried
my hand at sketching a bit of the architecture as you are not allowed to take
photos inside. My goal over this year is to master the charcoal pencil so I
spent a bit of time on it. There were a few school groups about, including a
group of French students who made me feel pretty good when they told me how
good my drawing was. By the time I had finished it, most of the students were watching
me. It was a bit awkward but I thanked them anyway.
I learnt a new word called a ‘Fennel’ from a rather nice man
on the street. He was trying to get people to have lunch in the restaurant and
he pointed me towards it. Apparently it is a narrow path with buildings on either
side. The guy was quite funny too when I
was talking to him. I told him that he needed more layers on in this weather
and he laughed and began to upzip and show me just how many he had on. My mind
was saying ‘Oh, that’s quite nice. Oh my...!’ Anyway, I headed down the little
path and came across a cafe that the locals must go to. It was warm, cheap and
clean and hidden. It cost me 8 pound for soup, crusty bread, a massive chunk of
cake and tea. Not bad at all.
Feeling warm and full I headed back onto the streets and
down to the banks of the river. I walked the both sides of the bank, taking
photos as I went. I was quite taken with the old bridge and the trees.
I headed back to grandad’s after that but not before meeting
a British guy who told me that he was going to Otago uni to study for a year.
Small world. I chatted with him while I was waiting for my bus. People here are
very friendly but every single one has started off with, ‘So, where abouts in
Australia are you from.’ Sigh.
Yesterday I went to Newcastle again in the afternoon. The
protocol agency was having drinks which gave me a chance to meet some others my
own age. I met a local called Nadine who works as a teaching assistant with
special needs kids. I also a Canadian called Mariah who did her teacher
training in NZ, met a Brit, married him, then moved here. She has only been in
Newcastle for few months. I said to the girls that I was new and didn’t really
know anyone so we exchanged numbers so that we could go out for dinner and movies
and the like. Mariah in particular was keen as she was in the same boat. She
was very friendly, even checking to make sure I got to the bus station okay and
gave me some useful websites to use for checking bus timetables and things like
that. I am starting to feel a bit more settled now.
I am off to Edinburgh on Monday. I have three nights booked
in a backpackers then I will decided where to go next.
Aunty Jen is coming over tomorrow to pick up me and Hayley
then we are off for a girl’s night out.
xxx
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