York-ers

TLDR; York is quaint, historic, picture pretty and laid-back. Wealth of stuff to see, clustered in a small area. Chocolate hub - home of KitKat. Spend at least 2 days.

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York was a brief weekend trip from London, to close off an eventful year.

Located about 200 miles north of London, it is one of the most tourist-ed cities in the UK.

The LNER train line got us there in a comfortable 2.5 hrs from Kings Cross.

The historic town center has remained structurally unchanged for thousands of years since it was laid out by the Vikings and the Romans before them. It's picture perfect. Even on a post Christmas bleak wintery day, the town was crowded and the shops bustling with activity.

Highlights:

A. The tour of the Chocolate museum. A well spent hour covering the history of chocolate and York's part in it. Did not realise till date that York is the home of KitKat. And Polo. And a lot of other chocolate brands that we take for granted.

B. The Shambles. The narrow streets may once have been used by butchers to sell their wares, but today they are bustling with Harry Potter trivia. A real world Diagon Alley with potions and wand shops. 

C. A walk along the walls of the city. A walk around the longest standing walls in the UK is a good perambulation around the historic areas. And great fun for the kids.

Londonium

We moved London-wards in 2019.

Ah, what a year it has been.

Even for someone who grew up moving to a new town every few years, and being used to a travel heavy consulting career, this was still a heavy lift. For we were comfortably pampered with familial comforts in Bangalore.

We have been lucky that things have worked professionally and at school. For that we are deeply grateful.

And London has been kind. Well, in most.

Society has been welcoming. There is an incredible multicultural diversity. Indian food and cultural activities are widespread. Infrastructure is comfortable and modern. And there is no dearth of places to see. Or parks, which the kiddo loves.

But, we do miss India. Family and friends. Sounds and smells. 

As they say, change is never easy. We will adapt. We are (if M's emerging Brit accent is any indication).

Onward and forward.