Halfway There

My favourite city is, unsurprisingly, Lincoln.       I know the old cathedral quarter quite well,  I also have slightly more than a passing acquaintance with the shopping areas. 

Up the hill and down the hill.   

These old houses always charm and delight me, so much so that I have to stop and take photographs.  Strangely, they seem to exert maximum charm when we are huffing and puffing our way up the hill.  I usually stop to photograph them.

The one with the colourful door used to be a very dusty antiquarian bookshop.   One of those places which was rarely open, but a peer through the windows revealed the interior to be filled with heaps and piles of dusty temptation, books everywhere. 

To the right, the cobbled road runs down and out towards a slightly more industrial side of the city.

The other direction gives glimpses of the cathedral.     Huff and puff right up to the top, an excellent workout.

The photograph above is taken looking back down the hill, in the distance you can just see where the halfway houses in the first photograph are located.

This one is looking up to the top of the hill.

The shops are mostly small cafes, handmade chocolate and fudge shops, pubs.     A clever marketing move, by the time people make it this far up they either need oxygen, or refreshment of some kind.

The real reward for climbing up this far is that you have Lincoln castle on one side.

Step through the arch and you are inside the castle.

Walk through this arch and you are right in front of the cathedral.

Cathedral square is lined with charming old buildings, but the main event is the cathedral.

Most of the West Front is covered by scaffolding, part of the ever ongoing restoration and preservation work.   The work should be completed by 2023.

A potted history:

Work on building the cathedral began in 1072, it was consecrated in 1092.   In 1124 it was ravaged by fire, then in 1185 it was partially destroyed by an earthquake.   In 1237 the central tower collapsed, was rebuilt, only to be blown down in 1548!  Right now they are spending the £12.4 million pounds which has been allotted to them by the Heritage lottery fund.

The shops up here are independents, farm shops, fabric shops, shoes, clothing, art galleries, etc.

This is where I turn off and head back to the car park by the castle.

More courtyard cafes and shops selling shoes, bags, expensive clothing.