Reading, schmeading.

Thank goodness for reading week. "Reading Week" has actually been a bit of a misnomer for what I've actually been up to for the past seven days -- "Obsessing over Personal Statements Week" would be much more appropriate -- but I have managed to make some headway on coursework, and to make a quick trip to York on Wednesday!

It was going to be a whirlwind trip to begin with, but it ended up even more so because my train up got cancelled. Grrr. I got on one an hour later, which got me there at 1:45, so I had six hours to explore the city before heading back. York is very, very charming, with the medieval buildings and pretty Yorkshire countryside combining to give it a real fairy-tale feel. The city centre is very compact and a quick walk from the train station, so I had no trouble finding the Minster, which is just as amazing as everyone says. Daylight was burning, so after a preliminary gape I wandered out to the city walls (which stand on the old Roman ones), which you can walk along the top of for a great view of the Minster through the back gardens surrounding it. Next I found the Yorkshire Museum, in the middle of some really charming gardens by the river, because my guidebook said it had some impressive Roman goodies...eh, not so much. There was, though, a pretty gratifyingly grisly head of still-styled 4th-century woman's hair on display, which justified the price of admission. I headed back east and South afterwards to see Clifford's Tower, what remains of York Castle, and an old, narrow street called The Shambles which used to be packed with merchants and flowing with filth but is now lined with chocolate and tea shops. Speaking of which, possibly the highlight of my day was having proper afternoon Yorkshire cream tea in a little tea room just off the Shambles. Two thumbs up for scones with clotted cream and jam! Just after dark, I went back to the Minster for evensong. The inside really is spectacular, although in the dark I couldn't really get a good look at the stained glass windows, which are made of the biggest pieces of Medieval glass in Europe. It was a treat to see the girls' choir singing with the men's choir -- some of these little girls must have been 6 or 7 years old, but the sound was amazing! After evensong, I had a quick chips & cheese dinner at supposedly the oldest pub in York, then scurried off to the train station to come home. Not a bad tour for six hours, eh? See York for yourself here -- I took lots of pics.

Other than York, it's mostly been work this week, with breaks for a few fun things like going ice skating with some of my coursemates and, of course, forcing some of my housemates to watch the X-Factor last night. Now, I'm counting down to Lindsey's arrival on Tuesday -- two weeks of fun coming up, along with a proper American Thanksgiving and a trip to Edinburgh for St. Andrews Night!