A day in Lincoln part 2.

After my bimble around the Cathedral I took a stroll down a very steep hill. Boy is it steep. You have to step very carefully because if you trip you might find yourself going arse over tit all the way to the bottom, ha ha. It's a very narrow cobbled street lined with small independent specialist shops and cafe's, selling all manner of giftware, chocolates, old fashioned sweets, books, antiques, and vintage clothing.   

 A trendy pink boutique.

At the bottom of Steep Hill you reach the High Street, which widens out into a shopping street with larger traditional buildings, a lot of which are homes to coffee shops and eateries spilling out onto the pavement.

After sitting for a while, listening to the jazz band and eating my packed lunch, I strolled a bit further to The Collection, which is an art gallery and museum. It's a very modern building of an irregular shape, with plenty of light streaming in from the glass ceiling.

The Usher Gallery is next door, I didn't spend much time in there because I have seen it before, and there is hardly any modern or contemporary art to see. I'm not one for peering at old paintings for ages, even though they might be a valuable part of our history. It just doesn't appeal to me.

I wanted to see the River Witham which runs through the centre of the city. It was a lovely summers day and people were shopping and strolling about. This stainless steel sculpture looks quite impressive as it spans the river.

The swans know where a good place to be is when they are after something to eat. I popped into the nearby Wilko and spent 65p on a packet of biscuits and fed them to the frenzy of ducking and diving birds.

I took a short stroll up to the Broadgate Bridge and crossed over to the other side. The Green Dragon is another white half timbered building.  

I have to say there was quite a lot of litter strewn about, which sadly made the place look a tip in some parts. Outside the market was a particular blot on the landscape. With a very high student population who don't seem to care where they leave their drinks cans and bottles and fast food wrappers, it's a shame that Lincoln City Council don't do something about it. There was a few litter bins, but these were in a filthy state, not something you would like to put your hand into.

I followed the river until I came to Brayford Pool, and took a stroll along the wharf. New modern buildings now line the waters edge where the dock warehouses once stood. There's a couple of hotels, a cinema, and several big name coffee houses and restaurants.

 You can sit on a balcony over the water to take a drink.

Or you can get on a boat and eat your lunch or evening meal. Bookings now being taken for Christmas. 

I walked up the north side, on the left of this picture, and crossed over on the Brayford Way road bridge, to walk down the south side, on the right. I think most of the University is on the south side, it was buzzing with students. I had a nosey inside the university library, a huge massive place. It was interesting to sit for a few minutes, watching them go about their business. No books on the ground floor, just rows and rows of computers and printers. Apparently, so the nice young man who let me in told me, there are 11,000 students because most of the outlying campuses have closed, moving it all to Lincoln.

 Swans waddle about amongst the people. Mummy swan giving lessons to her brood on grooming.

There are a lot of narrow boats moored here. I can imagine that this would be a nice place to stopover while on holiday, or maybe even live on your boat if you should so wish.

I followed the river back to the High Street. This is where it goes underneath the road.

 Just to the right of the arch are some steps to get back up onto the street.

Then retrace my steps back up that chuffin Steep Hill, pretending to look in a shop window while getting my breath back, ha ha. Another pic of the Tourist Information office.

It was a lovely day out, I'm glad I made the effort. Too much time mooching at home is bad for the soul, it needs uplifting from time to time, and a day out is just the tonic.
Toodle pip