Jorvik Viking Centre & Quilt Museum

We were so glad to leave Nottingham and come to the beautiful town of York. Better town, better museums (in my opinion).

Our first stop was the Jorvik Viking Museum. I can’t get over how fun it was. The first room you walk into has some archaeological finds and a few other bits and pieces. You then literally go on a ride through the museum. I’m not even joking. You get to sit in a viking-ship style car. As you are transported through the Viking village of Jorvik, the car talks to you – it explains what you’re seeing and how the settlement would have looked. I love it when museums get this interactive. You learn a little something and you enjoy yourself immensely. I loved going down the “main street” and seeing the stalls on the side of the road. It was packed full of information and provided the most fantastic introduction.

When you exit the ride you come face to face with heaps of displays. There are viking coins, bits of pottery (some of which you can touch) and human skeletons. The skeletons were amazing! Forensic testing etc has allowed archaeologists to gain an insight into how each person died. One died during battle and one from old age.

This is a really great museum. Especially if you are interested in the Vikings or in the ancient history of York (“cough” or if you watch the Vikings on the history channel “cough”).

The next museum we walked to was the Quilt Museum. Loud and proud quilt lover here. I just love the patterns and the intricacy of the shapes fitting together. There were some beautiful quilts from the 18th and 19th centuries on display. It’s not like the Viking museum, a museum for everyone, it’s more if you have a specific interest. Luckily I do and luckily the museum was excellent to see. There were about twenty quilts on display. The staff were so helpful and obviously passionate about the textiles which made the experience even better.