Katherine + me
The Yorkshire Moors are a vast expanse of what we would maybe call prairie or grasslands in the United States. But it's actually like an endless meadow covered in heather, which is a soft purple plant when it blooms. In the fall and winter, right now, it is a dark purpley gray color that isn't super beautiful but very captivating. I could just imagine Mary, the protagonist of The Secret Garden, in a carriage looking out over the moors as she rode up to Misselthwaite Manor. We drove through a forest, then onto the Moors where we could see valleys on either side of us, and then through some small cute little Yorkshire towns. Finally we reached Whitby!
We parked overlooking the Whitby Harbor. I just couldn't stop saying "Wow!" as we got out of the car because even the Harbor was beautiful. It had a ton of boats moored in it, and the water was very bright because of the sun. The walls of the harbor were very high, which I thought was cool.
We walked from the car park onto one of the main shopping streets of the New Town.
It had lots of fish and chips places and touristy seaside attractions, but it wasn't gauche. On the contrary, they felt very quaint. From everywhere there was a view of the water, both the harbor and further beyond, the sea!
After walking along the Main Street for a little while, we passed the Whitby Fish Market! I have seen a few fish markets in my life and I think it's cool to document them. I saw the one in Ensenada, Mexico, the one in Tokyo, Japan (which is the famous Tsukiji Fish Market), and now this one. Maybe others as well...now it strikes me as funny that I can't remember there being a specific fish market in Baltimore, but I've been to Lexington and Hollins Markets so maybe those fishmongers count :)
From boardwalk to sea looked like a football field long. My eyes followed its length all the way to the next town a few miles away! I could see the white buildings tucked into the cliffside, with the beach stretching from Whitby to that town. More than a few brave souls were on the beach, including a group of schoolchildren. It was already frigid in October, so I was amused to see people frolicking about in their winter gear, happily oblivious to the gusts of gale-like wind, seemingly as content as if it were a hot day on a Caribbean island.
We walked to the end of the pier and stared out at the walls of the barricades and the sea stretching beyond it.
It's impossible to capture in words or images how amazing this view was! Isobel, Katherine, and I could have watched the water hitting the barricade walls for hours. Sometimes a huge wave would swell up and slap the barricades far below us and there was something very wild and thrilling about it.
After walking out and back on the pier, we went to lunch at a famous Whitby place. I wish I'd taken pictures but we were so hungry we just waited impatiently for our food. I had griddled hake with a lemon butter sauce, chips (which are french fries at home), and a small salad. It was delicious!
The harbor splits the town into two halves. The side that we started on, where we walked out onto the pier and got lunch, is the New Town. On the other side is the Old Town, which is on a hill. At the top of the hill is Whitby Abbey and the parish church.
After lunch, we crossed the bridge and climbed through the Old Town. The Old Town reminded me a lot of the small Italian cities and towns I've been to, like Santa Severina in Calabria and Bari in Puglia. The cobblestone streets were narrow but cars somehow still make their way through them occasionally. Mostly it was just packed with pedestrians.
The center of the old town has this stone pavilion and tables in the piazza. I loved it. It looked so community oriented. After having been to a ghost tour here in York, I really wanted to go to the one in Whitby that starts every night at 8 pm from this pavilion! Maybe one day.
There are tons of shops, some for food or necessities for locals, but mostly shops for tourists. There are a lot of jet shops. Jet is a black jewel that was mined near to Whitby for many years, and thus Whitby is famous for its jet jewelry. I think it's nice-looking but kind of depressing; in Victorian times wealthy people used it as mourning jewelry and had cameos of their deceased loved ones engraved on it. Jet is where the term jet black comes from.
So we saw a lot of jet jewelry shops and went into a mini-museum about the creation of jet. We were going uphill as we meandered, surrounded by the many tourists. We finally made our way to the base of a long set of stairs - 191 to be exact - that led to the top of a huge hill where the Whitby Parish Church and the Abbey are located.
At first Derek said he wasn't going to go up with his, but he went up partway and we continued onward. Then he did end up coming all the way up because it was too beautiful not to!
On the left side of the stairs was a cobbled road that was extremely steep. Katherine and I wondered how anyone could drive up that. I hate driving on hills, it's a pet thing of mine, so even the idea gave me anxiety.
At the top was just marvelous. At the top of the stairs you come out onto the graveyard of the church and you walk through it to get inside the building.
I should mention here that this town is where Bram Stoker is from! And Whitby Abbey is the inspiration he had for Dracula. In the book, Dracula comes ashore in Whitby. As I crested the stairs, I could see why in the best way. It seemed like the setting for a literary masterpiece. The graves rose majestically from the earth, their surfaces worn and unreadable. The church itself was medium-sized and backed by the breathtaking views of the ocean beyond it.
From one direction, the church, the graves, and the sea. From the other, the white buildings of Whitby with their red roofs, the glittering harbor, and the hills of the Yorkshire Moors beyond it all.
We went into the church. It had closed pews, which I've never seen before. That made it feel maze-like.
Surprisingly, the walls are painted white, which made it feel more modern than many of the parish churches I've been in so far. The pulpit is a three-decker one that reaches high above the seats. I wandered around and then lit a candle for 30 pence. I figured I could spring for that to keep the church going for another thousand years or so.
Afterwards, we walked over towards the Abbey. We decided we didn't want to go in because it costs over seven pounds, but we walked through a fantastic garden.
The gardens are maintained and a cafe is run by the Whitby Youth Hostel, which is one of the most attractive buildings I've ever seen for a hostel!
On a small hill at the top of the garden, we had a great view of the Abbey and yet another astonishing view of the town and hills below us.
Isobel and me
My favorite view came while walking back. The graves stretched over a grassy expanse and the sea dazzled behind it all.
From the front of the church, I could see the church building, the graves, and the sea all in one. This path looks so inviting - I think I could spend hours meandering along it taking in the views - but I didn't get to walk on it. Yet another reason to return to Whitby.
We left Whitby and were going to stop for tea at a cute tea shop that Derek and Isobel like in a neighboring town.
Derek and Isobel
Unfortunately, it was closed for the season. So we took a winding way home which ended up giving another perspective on the York Moors. We drove through more small villages and saw the town of Pickering, which I'm hoping to go to soon, as well as other cute small quaint clusters of dwelling places and shops.I admire how the English treat their land - farming and countryside - as precious. They don't see the continuous need to use the land. They don't see the need to always be building, building, building on it. They don't need to have a McMansion for two people that eats up acres of meadow and demands to have its grass mown and watered. It's just a more sensible, resourceful, economical, and environmentally-friendly way of living. It's the opposite of what I've always thought is one of the biggest flaws in our US culture. We can be just as happy with less.
We got back exhausted but so content. It was such a lovely day spent in great company. I can't wait to return to explore more!
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