Celebrating Our Independence in England!

 We packed our bags, said goodbye to Jamie and left Cheltenham and headed to york. We arrived by train and once we were at the the York railway station we called York Calvary Bible College. They were kind enough to let us stay for 3 nights for a small price. We actually arrived the 4th of July and when we showed up they also invited us to their fourth of July BBQ later in the evening. It was an amazing to be able to have hamburgers and potato salad and celebrate our independence with a random mix of Germans, Australians, English, Scottish, and a few more.

While we were waiting for the bbq to start we took a couple hours to explore the town. While wandering around we got caught in a downpour and ran to the nearest coffee shop... Surprisingly this wasn't the first time this has happened on our trip ;)

After wandering around we enjoyed the bbq with our new friends as well as church service afterward. Amanda joined us on a walk afterward and we toured the city at night. 

The next day we decided to stay in town and explore even more. We went to Cliffords tower and walked around. It was pretty small but such an amazing structure surviving from 1100or 1200! We were able to climb to the top and walk around enjoying a birds eye view of the city. Another cool thing about this tower is that it sits on this hill right in the middle of the city. 

We walked around exploring the shops and the Minster. So many fun places to go into!

On our second full day there we headed out to Howards Castle which was about an hours bus ride. P.s. these british bus drivers amaze me! They are like super heroes with how they can maneuver around on these streets!

The castle or very large house was amazing. One of the most beautiful I have seen. Part of it had actually burnt down so some of it was still damaged by smoke, but it was amazing how they were able to preserve so many amazing pieces of art and architecture. 

We also visited their rose garden which was the most beautiful I have ever been to. I don't know how many different types of flowers they had but they seemed endless. You could weave in and out of the different arches getting lost and enjoying every minute of it. 

After the garden we made it back to the castle and had tea and lunch to warm us up from the cold outside. After we warmed up we headed outside again to see more of the grounds. It was amazing and the rain and wind just added to they mystery of it all! 

On a couple of mornings during our stay in York we ran the wall! Or ran it when they opened it... we found that things begin much later over here. The city of York is actually surrounded by a wall with part of it dating back to the middle ages! It was a fun way to get some exercise and enjoy part of the history.

Well I got my hat... :) I decided to go ahead and splurge. I have always wanted an English hat from England and on my last morning there I bought one. I am so excited!!! (however it has made the trip a bit more interesting when traveling. Nevertheless it is a great conversation starter!)

At the train station leaving York Emily bought orange juice and we made a terrific discovery! It is not called pulp in the UK, they refer to it as Juicy Bits! I just had to add this on here. :) 

Well, again I am leaving many things out but trying to do a quick summary. I miss you all and hope you are all having an amazing summer! I will update you more soon (I am a bit behind at the moment. We went to Edinburgh after York, then on to Fort William, and are spending our last night in Skye. I will add more adventures soon!)