| Back to main page | October 2011 | July | Suomeksi | Latine |
Durham, Sunday 2nd March 2014
We have lived in the northern city of Durham for a month now. (Location on the map.) Durham is an ancient cathedral city, whose historical roots extend far into the Middle Ages. In 995 AD, monks rescued the remains of St Cuthbert from the attacking Danes, and decided to remain in this place, where a century later a magnificent cathedral was erected.
After the cathedral, the most conspicuous item in the centre of Durham are the students. The University of Durham is possibly the third oldest university in England. This is not that much to say, however, since after Oxford and Cambridge (and rather short-lived Northampton), new universities were not founded before the 19th century, that is, not in over six hundred years! In any case, the centre reminds one especially of the just a little larger city of Cambridge, as all the fanciest buildings (including the castle) belong to diverse colleges, and approximately a fifth of the town's 88000 inhabitants are university students.
The city is small but beautiful. River Wear and its tributaries meander among steep hills, and the centre is located on top of one of these hills in a bend of the river. The name of Durham is based on the words Dun Holm, the first of which is Old English for 'hill', and the latter Old Norse for 'island'. The coast with its quaint little seaside towns is only about 15 miles east from here, and in the west there is the North Pennines' “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty” (AONB). A little further in the west one can find the famous Lake District National Park.
In Durham the countryside starts immediately where the city ends. My workplace at the Department of Mathematical Sciences is about half a mile from the centre, but I take my way home amidst fields and horse enclosures. When we were living temporarily in another part of town, I could actually take a shortcut through one of these enclosures, while the animals just stood there staring at me and munching their hay. Concerts and other entertainment can be enjoyed almost exclusively — apart from the cathedral and the colleges — in the highly adaptable Gala Theatre, where we have already seen a musical, a comedy show, various films and latest today a classical concert featuring Sibelius and Tchaikovsky.
Of the larger nearby cities the most familiar to foreigners is probably Newcastle upon Tyne, which has made the world a happier place with its beverages. Another pleasant detail, which is also clearly audible in Durham, is the local dialect, the so-called “geordie”. It's recognisable from its tendency to leave out the 't' sound, and from its substandard way of pronouncing vocals and diphthongs. For example, in the shop the total price for our items was given as “ye' twen'y-ye”, that is, 8.28.
In general it's not very difficult, however, to understand what people are saying. The locals are also very friendly and like to engage in small talk. Moreover, customer service is clearly much friendlier than for example in London. People are always ready to help out, and even the numerous courtesies do not seem altogether superficial. All in all, we have enjoyed our first month here, and I'm sure the place won't lose its charm in a year. And if the city starts to feel a bit too small, we can take a train to York in under an hour, to Edinburgh in just about two hours or to London in only three.
“See yee lye'ah!”