WHITBY, ENGLAND

                                         An Interesting City

          A large whale bone archway, near the harbor, greets visitors to Whitby, known as the gem of the northeast coast.  From 1750-1850 it was the sixth most important seaport in the UK primarily transporting coal to London. The Esk River runs through the city. A swing bridge provides passage from the populated side of the city to the abbey side.

            At one time there were three ship building yards in Whitby. In fact, Captain Cook’s Endeavor was built in Whitby. Rope making, fishing, whaling, and alum mining were once important industries.

            Whaling provided oil for lubricating machinery, softening leather, and making soap and candles. Whitby was one of the first European cities to have gas lamps—with whale oil.

            William Scoresby, a farm boy, attended school until age 9, then he worked on the farm until 16 when he broke family tradition of following in his dad’s footsteps and went to sea. He sailed on the Speedwell and was captain of many ships. In 1753 he started whaling. He is credited with inventing the crow’s nest.

            At age 10, William Scoresby Jr. stowed away on his father’s ship. At age 13 he apprenticed, at 18 was a mate, and a captain at 21. He invented the marine diver to measure salt and temperature of water at different depths. He did over 300 experiments of the effect of magnetism on a compass and on a ship.

            He left the sea at age 33 pursuing the ministry. Leaving the sea meant a huge pay cut for the young Scoresby. However, he continued experiments and scientific studies publishing many scientific papers. In 1825 he studied the effect of pollution on the air and environment, but his studies were short lived, no doubt because of industry pressure and influence.

              St. Hilde, a 7^th century abbey, dominated Whitby.  After wandering around the town we tackled the 199 steps up to the abbey and the nearby St. Mary’s church. We had a nice view of the harbor once at the top. The abbey is much smaller than Rievaulx but a gorgeous gothic structure.

            England is full of old churches, abbeys, and castles. One can visit only so many and, although each has its own history and background, that is usually enough.

NIJMEGEN, HOLLAND

NIJMEGEN (ny men gen)

Romans had a military camp in what is now the city of Nijmegen, the oldest city in the Netherlands. Close to the German border, the city is situated on a range of hills near the River Waal. The surrounding area of hills, woods and polders, creates a varied countryside. The waterfront set against the backdrop of the city center is a splendid sight. Past and present gracefully mingle where historic buildings are interspersed with fine examples of modern architecture.

We were docked in the Waal River. Modern apartments lined the river front. We walked through flood gates that were installed after a 1982 flood.

Before starting up the hill our guide told us, “During Operation Market Garden in WW II, 20,000 paratroopers were dropped into the city to secure the bridges. It was a very foggy night, and with the troopers everywhere it was pretty much a fiasco, but they did secure one bridge. Later Allied bombers mistaking the city lights for Cologne bombed the city killing 3000 people and leveling one-third of the city.”

Everywhere we went we found a clock on each side of the towers in the cities /villages. The double eagle goes back to Roman times.

The hill was not a steep climb. We stopped at a wartime Jewish memorial at the equivalent of a small traffic circle on the narrow cobbled streets.

With a university and a higher educational vocational school much of its 160,000 residents are young.

Stopping at St Steven’s Church, it was explained, “Notice there is no statuary on the church façade. When all the churches were being destroyed the priest removed all the statues and buried them. Years later they were recovered and put on the school/ monastery across the street. See the twelve apostles standing proud there.”

Construction on St Steven’s Church began around 1254. The building started in Romanesque style but was completed in Gothic style. The Renaissance-style tower was built in the mid fourteenth century and has dominated the city skyline for centuries.

Along the way the guide stopped in front of a coffee shop with sign of a marijuana leaf over the door. I immediately recalled on my first trip to Amsterdam that we were told, in Holland pot and soft drugs are legal. But beware--you buy coffee in a café and pot in a coffee shop, where there is no coffee.

In the pedestrian square we stopped by a statue across from the weigh house. The statue is of a young orphaned girl who lived with a stepmom and sister in the woods. Each market day she was sent to market to sell goods they had scrounged in the forest. One day she was told not to return until everything was sold.

Going through the woods a highwayman robbed her of the goods. She sat down and cried. Then suddenly the devil appeared and gave her money. She ran off and lived with him for seven years. She returned to the village one day to see a play that turned out to be a religious one, and she realized what a sin she had committed. She went to the priest to confess and was sentenced to wear a chain around each leg until they fell off. Seven years later the chains fell off, and she spent the rest of her life as a nun.

The Dutch seem to have stories or legends for many of their statues.

Behind the statue is the ornate Gothic 15^th century town hall. I understand the inside is not remarkable.

After the walking tour we spent some time wandering the huge Saturday market that extended for blocks. Showers were intermittent, so we scooted into a store or two along the way to wait them out. The main street ran parallel to the harbor, so at any perpendicular up street we had a nice view of the harbor below.

One vendor gave us a stroopwafel sample. They were yummy, and we each bought a package to bring home. I actually managed to get them home unbroken to share with friends.

Nijmegen is an interesting and sweet little town where we found very friendly people.