2021 Autumn Holiday Part Three - Fish and chips anyone?

After soaking in the hot tub both the night before and this morning, to try and continue to ease the pain in my back and spine, we decided to head to the coast for some fresh sea air - a very Victorian concept, to go to the seaside to improve your health, but why not give it a try? 

We headed to Whitby, looking for a ruined abbey, fish & chips, and to find dracula. We found two of three, can you guess which one we didn't? 

We got there ready for when the famous Whitby Abbey opened, as we expected it to be busy. And surprisingly, it wasn't. There was very few people there, and it only started to get busy when we were leaving the Abbey for the museum, so get there for opening if you can. 

Don't be deceived by the darker coloured stones, and the Abbey's more dramatic atmosphere, it's packed full of beautiful details and gives you some incredible views overlooking both the sea and Whitby. 

There is a lot still standing, and some of the walls are still at their full height, just to show you how high, heres James stood next to the Abbey for comparison! 

There is evidence for Christian worship on the site as far back as 657AD. The site was incredibly important, so much so, that the decision about the dates for Easter were decided here in the original Whitby Abbey. That shows you the level of importance that the Abbey had. However, following Viking raids, the site was abandoned some time in the 800's. The site was not abandoned for long. As the fishing village of Whitby grew in size, another attempt to found an Abbey on top the headland was made in 1078. The Abbey from then grew into a sizeable & wealthy community, and the Abbey complex continued to expand, although most was demolished during the suppression. However, the parish church just down the road survived. 

I love this picture, in the darkness, you can really see the bracing stonework in the windows that would have contained stained glass, some of which is in the museum in the former home of Sir Hugh Cholmey, who owned the lands around the abbey during the English civil war. 

During the Victorian era, whitby became a fashionable seaside resort, and visitors began to see the ruins in a new light. Much had collapsed by then, including the central tower in 1830. However, mentions of Whitby in Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, drew visitors far and wide to the town and to the Abbey, all hoping to catch a glimpse of the Count. 

Here you can see some of the wonderful carved stonework in the aches and the capitals. Unfortunately, more of the Abbey was damaged in the first world war, when the German navy shelled the town. Perhaps they were looking to kill Dracula, but instead further damaged this incredible monument.

Tickets for start at £14 for an adult, and as always English Heritages gives you a discount for booking online the day before. As CSSC members, me and James get in for free to EH sites, and so if you're looking to visit some of these places, then it might be worth getting an annual membership, it could save you money and you get a small discount in their gift shops too. 

The museum is housed in this building, former home to Sir Hugh Cholmey, which since we visited has undergone a large conservation program, as well as adding solar panels and using recycled materials to further future proof the building and the collections inside. 

A view over the harbour walls.

One final look through the arch at the Abbey church ruins. What an incredible place. We were quite lazy, and rather than walking down to whitby from the abbey, we drove back down and parked up a bit closer to the town centre. I could have walked down, but I think the walk back up would have crippled me with all those stairs!

Nothing like fish & chips on the high seas!

Whitby is full of little interesting things to watch, like the swing bridge opening up to let the fishing boats through

And this is a view along the harbour wall down towards the lighthouse. As you can see, the weather was starting to take a bit of a turn.

Here's James hiding behind a wall to make me jump!

And just before we got ourselves a (very) late lunch, we walked up the hill the other side so I could get a picture of the famous Abbey through the famous whale bones! The things we do for a good famous picture! I was in agony walking back down again, and spent time recovering every few minutes, or else I think I would have just keeled over.

We treated ourselves to fish & chips while in Whitby, and made a quick exit when the rain came thundering down. It was very atmospheric, the dark clouds and driving rain as we drove back to the lodge (glorified static caravan) we were staying in. When we got back, and sat ourselves in the hot tub to calm my aching spine, I noticed James had two bite marks on his neck...