So, a bit of a small blog today as I mostly traveled home, but first things first! Breakfast! I headed downstairs and grabbed my last breakfast from Hampton by Hilton! Overall, it has been good; however, I wished they would do fried eggs! The waffle machine was excellent, too! I only got a picture today, but they have put these little motivational messages up over the last few days!

After breakfast, I ensured I had packed everything and was ready to check out! I used the app to check out as it’s convenient and easy! I had somehow acquired more bags to take to my car!! Unfortunately, the car park is about a 5-minute walk from the hotel, so having to carry all these bags on my back was quite painful and trying to navigate the car park! And when I got there, I needed a QR code to open the car park door! It was a chore!

With that done, it was time to hit the road! Although it is great that the A1 is one straight road, I wish they had more proper services! I ended up having to go all the way to Peterborough to stop! It was a long drive! Anyway, I stopped at the Extra and grabbed lunch and a coffee, ready for the last part of the journey!

It was a smooth ride, which was good! I got home and unpacked everything, and just chilled for the afternoon, ready to go back to work tomorrow!

A mini York review!

Overall, I was pretty impressed with York; although there weren’t many things for me to do, there was enough! It was great to see the history and the city walls, I was a little disappointed with the castle museum as I wanted to see castle history, not really what they had on. But that is not to say that some people loved it!

The hotel was OK, and I would rate it at about 3/5. It was costly for what you got, and although the room was nice and comfortable, it could use a bit of a change-up as I had to sit on my bed to watch TV. I feel like the TV should be able to be moved to face the sofa chair. Room cleaning was hit and miss as they missed me one day, which is a little frustrating!

The staff were friendly and helpful, and the shower was really good! The breakfast was OK, although it could get very busy! Overall, I was impressed with the hotel, but there are just a few things I would improve! I probably won’t return to York anytime soon as there isn’t anything to do that suits me!

My next trip is only two weeks away, granted only for two days, but it should be fun! I will be heading to Barcelona with my friend which should be awesome! I will be sure to blog and take you along with me! Until next time, see ya!

It was not quite what I had planned for today, but nonetheless, it was enjoyable! As I said yesterday, I initially planned to go to the gym and head to the castle museum. I didn’t head to the gym today as I was exhausted from yesterday’s exploration and had been pushing myself too hard. I did do a walk, though! So, first things first! Breakfast! I had a waffle today; it was awesome. They had a limited edition batter, which was blueberry, and it was lovely! It didn’t quite go according to plan, though!

After breakfast, I headed back to my room. I was going to book a castle museum, but I was shocked to learn it wasn’t actually a castle museum… it was a Victorian, ’60s, and war walk around. Now, usually, this would not bother me as I love my history, but I was expecting it to be more like a, well, castle. I am unsure why they call it the castle museum when it has nothing to do with castles! Plus it was £17! which is a lot really! So, I decided not to go ahead with the visit. I decided to walk over to Floss Island and complete the wall!

I saw where I went wrong this time, as I should have continued on, but now I can officially say I conquered the York wall! It was a nice walk with good views of York, and it seeped with history! Once I had done the wall, I headed over to a big B&M (yes, I know, I have one at home!) and bought some snacks. It started to rain, so it was obviously time for coffee! There was a Starbucks in this retail park, so I stopped there and had coffee while waiting for the rain to pass! My coffee!

With that done, I headed to Morrisons, got some lunch and dinner, and returned to the hotel. All in all, I walked 9700 steps and about 3km. It was a nice walk, but I was exhausted! I was disappointed to see that room service had missed my room, though! But oh well! I relaxed in my hotel room, playing some games for the remainder of the afternoon and evening. It was awesome!

Tomorrow, I head home! I have to check out at 1100 tomorrow, which isn’t too bad. I had a brilliant time and really enjoyed myself. I needed this break, which has worked wonders for my mental bandwidth. Hopefully, that will help me get through the coming weeks! I will do a mini blog tomorrow, but there won’t be much! My next trip is in 2 weeks, going to Barcelona for two days! See you tomorrow briefly!

So, welcome to Day 2! I slept really well last night, which was good, as I haven’t slept very well in the last few weeks! First things first – breakfast! As you may remember, when we travelled to Florida, we stayed at Hampton by Hilton and were disappointed with breakfast, so I wasn’t exactly looking forward to it! But to my surprise, it was really good! It seems I had a bad experience at Gatwick! The food was hot, and there was plenty on offer! It wasn’t as good in Nottingham, though!

After breakfast, I headed upstairs; only one lift was working, so I walked upstairs… I am on the 5th floor… it was a tiring walk! Anyway, I took my vitamins and headed up. I was lucky today as we had a really good morning. It was probably my best weather day, as the weather looks rough in the next few days! So I started to wander around, and it is a lovely place! It seeped with history! Here are a few pictures of my walk!

After walking around, I saw that the city walls were open, so I explored them! It really showed that history I loved. I explained to my friend that it actually helped me with my imagination when reading! It turns out I need source experiences to help! It was a long walk. I couldn’t go all around as I got a bit lost, but I did walk about 1 mile and a half of the wall! It was a great experience! Here are some pictures from the wall.

Once I had finished my walk, I explored the cathedral; I did not go in but took some awesome pictures of the place! I also learned that York Cathedral has its own police force! It was interesting!

Next, I stopped for coffee; all in all, I had walked about 4 miles, which is crazy; no wonder I needed a coffee! I walked 12,500 steps, but it was worth it!

With my walk done, I headed back to the hotel as I wanted to chill for the afternoon; as I said before, this trip is more of a relaxed trip so it was nice to relax! I didn’t actually have any dinner today, either! I suppose I need that for losing weight, a fasting day if you will!

Tomorrow, I will first be heading to the gym, which is about a 10-minute walk from this hotel, and then, for the rest of the day, I will go to the castle museum, so follow along tomorrow! Good night!

As mentioned in my update post the other day, today marks my first day in York. I spent most of the day travelling, but let’s talk about that! So, first things first, I headed to the gym this morning; as I have mentioned previously, I am working on getting my weight down and going to the gym is a priority for me! I had a good session and enjoyed it! I intend to go to the gym here in York, too! I stopped at BP, grabbed fuel and a coffee and was on my way!

I had packed the night before, so I had not much to do in the morning. I did my checks to make sure I had everything, and off I went! The journey was about 3 hours and 30 minutes, so it was not too bad. It was pretty much straight down the M11, then A1(M). Overall, the journey was fine and smooth. I think because it was a Sunday and England was playing, the roads weren’t too bad! I stopped once at a small Welcome Break, but it suited my needs!

I ended up having a later lunch since there really aren’t many services along the way! I should have stopped sooner, but I thought I could press on! It wasn’t great! I need to pay attention to services in the future! There are more things to learn as I travel more! I had a Burger King, which admittedly wasn’t the healthiest choice, but I enjoyed it!

At this point, I only had about an hour and a half left, so it wasn’t too bad! I arrived in York shortly after 16:10, and what a lovely place it is! It was cleaner and brighter than I thought, and it oozed of history, I can’t wait to explore it over the next few days! I parked at a Q-Park and grabbed my stuff. The hotel I stayed at does not have parking, but they have a discount and Q-Park, which I took! It was about a 3-4 minute walk, but it was tricky due to how much I carried! It was also busy on the streets for a Sunday, but that would be the England Euros final, which did that!

Finally, I arrived at the hotel, and it looked lovely! I am staying at Hampton by Hilton. It seemed modern and slick! I had a slight issue with my digital key as it wouldn’t open my door, so I grabbed a key from reception! Here is a picture of the front

Continuing with tradition, here is a room tour of my room! It should be pretty comfortable to stay in, plus breakfast is complimentary!

Now that I had settled into the room, I headed to Tesco Express before it shut as it was shutting early today for the football match, so I didn’t have much choice on dinner as I didn’t want to get tangled in the England fans! So I just grabbed some milk, water and a meal deal which will be fine for me!

For the rest of the evening, I chilled and relaxed it was nice to finally feel relaxed and chilled I have been highly strung lately! Hopefully, these next few days, I can relax!

Tomorrow, I do not really have many plans! I want to explore York tomorrow, so it might be a tourist-heavy blog, but follow along with me tomorrow!