Lancaster

My day off and so it was off to the nearby Town of Lancaster for a day out, some great shops and buildings in Lancaster with lots of little cuttings and alleys, I love the one in the photo, Bashful Alley what a name wonder were that comes from? Some great pubs too Ye olde John O'Gaunt still retains a lot of the best features of a typical local boozer. Finished the day on a tour of Lancaster Castle which is still in use as a prison and a working crown court. They still hold the record for a public hanging, seven seconds from the condemned cell to the gallows and pronounced dead! Public hangings carried out there include the nine Pendle witches as well as countless public floggings. Australia benefited from the many petty criminals sentenced to be transported there since transport was free going ,but they had to pay if they wanted to return after they had served the sentence. It's a strange feeling being locked in one of the old cells and then the light being turned off for a minute or two no wonder many went mad or died in the many months they had to wait for trial.