Exploring Newcastle
Yesterday was my one full day to explore Newcastle. I had kind of a rough plan of what I wanted to do, trying to keep a walking route that was efficient. I still walked over 6.5 miles.
Newcastle has more of a city feel than Durham did. It just feels like there are a lot of people. It's also more diverse than what I experienced in Durham. There seemed to be a lot of construction happening, as well. I was told by a couple of people when I mentioned that I was going to Newcastle that it's good for shopping and I can see why. I ran across a couple of large mall looking areas. It still has a ton of character.
First up was the Cathedral Church of St. Nicholas, also called the Newcastle Cathedral. After seeing Durham and Peterborough, this cathedral seems small, but still majestic compared to churches at home. I feel like this one's walls were super decorated with memorials.
Next up and right next door was Newcastle Castle. I was three minutes early to buy a ticket and even waited over five minutes to go in, but the guy seemed annoyed with me. Don't we all hate working the minute we get to work? Haha.
I feel like this castle isn't as imposing as what we're used to, but it has the look and feel of a proper medieval castle. William the Conquerer's son built this castle, no biggie. The great hall is much smaller than the one at Durham Castle, but still a large room. I saw some prison cells, soldier's quarters, and the chapel, which is one of the best preserved examples of Norman architecture. This is old stuff. I even got to go on the roof of the castle! It was cool to see a 360 degree view of the city and imagine what soldiers must've seen if they spotted an approaching enemy.
Next was an early lunch at Quillam Brothers Tea House. This was place was cute, quirky, and busy. Being alone, I got a table right away--a benefit of solo travel. Their tea menu was about 14 pages long, which was interesting to read through. I went with a pot of a kind called Ms. P., which is supposed to be similar to Earl Grey. I also ordered eggs hollandaise with sausage. This is one of the fancier meals I've had and it was scrumptious. (I'm running out of describing words for food.)
I tend to go for coffee most of the time instead of tea just from habit, but I really enjoy tea when I remember to order it! Tea sort of forces you to slow down because you have a whole little pot to get through, which is three cups.
Nearby was the Great North Museum, which is affiliated with Newcastle University and free. It was a pretty nice sized museum, with many exhibitions. Of course I flocked to the fossils and dinosaurs right away. It was interesting to see some dinosaurs that roamed this area specifically, ones I'd never heard of. There was also a lot of stonework and artifacts from the Roman era. It's cool that these things were all found nearby.
I wanted to head down to the river, so that was next. On the way, I went into Great British Cupcakery, because doesn't that sound pleasant? This was the cutest place inside and I got a white chocolate strawberry one to eat and a salted caramel chocolate one for later.
Just a little further down was the river was the Tyne Bridge and the more easily recognizable Millenium Bridge. I just strolled alongside the water, walked over the Millennium Bridge, and then back again.
At 5:00 I had planned to go to a talk about suffragettes at the Newcastle City Library. This weekend and next all over the UK there are free talks and tours, and this was part of that. This talk in particular was timely because 2018 is the 100th anniversary of women (over 30 who owned property) gaining the right to vote. All women (age 21 and over) didn't gain the right until 10 years later in 1928. I was one of ten participants and we had Ann Hobson, an outreach officer for Parliament, giving the talk.
It was really informative and interesting; I learned a lot not only about the crazy shit these women did for activism and publicity to get their point across, but how Parliament works (the House of Commons, the House of Lords, and the Queen and what their roles are).
For dinner I wanted somewhere nearby and saw a "Dat Bar" listed, so I knew I had to go there since that's the name of the bar we hang out at in Lexington where my sister-in-law works. I got one pulled pork slider and a half pint of something. My breakfast/lunch was so big that I wanted something lighter for dinner and this hit the spot.
Headed back to my AirBnB to gather everything up for the next day's travel to London!
Newcastle has more of a city feel than Durham did. It just feels like there are a lot of people. It's also more diverse than what I experienced in Durham. There seemed to be a lot of construction happening, as well. I was told by a couple of people when I mentioned that I was going to Newcastle that it's good for shopping and I can see why. I ran across a couple of large mall looking areas. It still has a ton of character.
First up was the Cathedral Church of St. Nicholas, also called the Newcastle Cathedral. After seeing Durham and Peterborough, this cathedral seems small, but still majestic compared to churches at home. I feel like this one's walls were super decorated with memorials.
Next up and right next door was Newcastle Castle. I was three minutes early to buy a ticket and even waited over five minutes to go in, but the guy seemed annoyed with me. Don't we all hate working the minute we get to work? Haha.
I feel like this castle isn't as imposing as what we're used to, but it has the look and feel of a proper medieval castle. William the Conquerer's son built this castle, no biggie. The great hall is much smaller than the one at Durham Castle, but still a large room. I saw some prison cells, soldier's quarters, and the chapel, which is one of the best preserved examples of Norman architecture. This is old stuff. I even got to go on the roof of the castle! It was cool to see a 360 degree view of the city and imagine what soldiers must've seen if they spotted an approaching enemy.
Next was an early lunch at Quillam Brothers Tea House. This was place was cute, quirky, and busy. Being alone, I got a table right away--a benefit of solo travel. Their tea menu was about 14 pages long, which was interesting to read through. I went with a pot of a kind called Ms. P., which is supposed to be similar to Earl Grey. I also ordered eggs hollandaise with sausage. This is one of the fancier meals I've had and it was scrumptious. (I'm running out of describing words for food.)
I tend to go for coffee most of the time instead of tea just from habit, but I really enjoy tea when I remember to order it! Tea sort of forces you to slow down because you have a whole little pot to get through, which is three cups.
Nearby was the Great North Museum, which is affiliated with Newcastle University and free. It was a pretty nice sized museum, with many exhibitions. Of course I flocked to the fossils and dinosaurs right away. It was interesting to see some dinosaurs that roamed this area specifically, ones I'd never heard of. There was also a lot of stonework and artifacts from the Roman era. It's cool that these things were all found nearby.
I wanted to head down to the river, so that was next. On the way, I went into Great British Cupcakery, because doesn't that sound pleasant? This was the cutest place inside and I got a white chocolate strawberry one to eat and a salted caramel chocolate one for later.
One thing I've wondered is, do these people work? Why are all of these shops and restaurants packed in the mid-morning and afternoon? It just seems super busy everywhere with people just enjoying their day at a leisurely pace.
Just a little further down was the river was the Tyne Bridge and the more easily recognizable Millenium Bridge. I just strolled alongside the water, walked over the Millennium Bridge, and then back again.
At 5:00 I had planned to go to a talk about suffragettes at the Newcastle City Library. This weekend and next all over the UK there are free talks and tours, and this was part of that. This talk in particular was timely because 2018 is the 100th anniversary of women (over 30 who owned property) gaining the right to vote. All women (age 21 and over) didn't gain the right until 10 years later in 1928. I was one of ten participants and we had Ann Hobson, an outreach officer for Parliament, giving the talk.
It was really informative and interesting; I learned a lot not only about the crazy shit these women did for activism and publicity to get their point across, but how Parliament works (the House of Commons, the House of Lords, and the Queen and what their roles are).
For dinner I wanted somewhere nearby and saw a "Dat Bar" listed, so I knew I had to go there since that's the name of the bar we hang out at in Lexington where my sister-in-law works. I got one pulled pork slider and a half pint of something. My breakfast/lunch was so big that I wanted something lighter for dinner and this hit the spot.
Headed back to my AirBnB to gather everything up for the next day's travel to London!