Smell Ye York

The North Sea Ferry Terminal in Hull is a hive of activity when the overnight ship arrives to dispense on British soil its compliment of car-driving visitors, foot passengers, a few intrepid long distance cyclists and the mass of freight lorries and miscellaneous commercial vehicles bearing the identity plate of as many European nations as you could imagine.

The dual carriageway from the Eastern Dock complex suddenly fills with nervous and mostly blind-spotted left hand drive foreigners or ex-pats struggling to remember to keep to the illogical and somewhat selfish English side of the road. Any passengers, involuntarily become the eyes and ears of the person behind the wheel in exercising any movement between lanes or in negotiating the many roundabouts and junctions. Matters are complicated by a befuddled mind and bleary consciousness often a consequence of the all night sailing on a super-ship with every conceivable luxury for entertainment and pleasure, not to mention the smorgasbord buffet with no restriction apart from the force of gravity on an overloaded breakfast plate.

As for the sights and sounds of the Port Town of Hull. These go largely ignored apart from, perhaps, the impact of the old copper roofed Prison just beyond the dock entrance, the strikingly angular profile of The Deep Submarium, the imposing Princes Quay Shopping Centre and immediately on the drivers side the attractive Marina full of tall masts, audibly rattling in any breeze. There is so much more just a roads width away.

The A63 trunk road heading west serves its purpose of swiftly evacuating the central city area of Hull of its commuting workforce who have spent their week contributing to the local economy but unfortunately also encourages the overseas visitors to speed away and head for the usual first choice destination of the walled city of York.

This is a great shame given the interesting history of Kingston Upon Hull, to give it's formal name. If only a small proportion of those passing through could be enticed to stay a while and see for themselves the Old Town, The Museum Quarter, William Wilberforce's house, Hepworth's Arcade, The Fruit Market and the delights of the soon to be UK City of Culture in 2017.

There is a lesson for Hull to take on board from the illustrious York whose Tourism department have just released a guide to their area and attractions which works on the principle of "scratch and sniff".

That is my interpretation of the innovation. I am sure that there is a bit more of a scientific and technological explanation to the product and I apologise to what is after all, another Yorkshire place doing their bit to promote God's Own Country.

The actual description of the item is an odour infused travel guidebook entitled "Smell York". The publication, a nice chunky one, is apparently free of charge but full of good scents for the visitor. It is based on a month by month collection of the photographs of the best features of the City with suitable representative olfactory stimulation. These are listed as follows;

1. York’s Antiquities: a musty infusion of leather, old books, gold, silver, wood and dust
2. York in blossom: floral scents including daffodils
3. Afternoon Tea: the appetising aromas of loose leaf teas, spices and cakes
4. Chocolate heritage: the indulgent scents of cocoa, butter, sugar and nuts to represent York’s status as Britain’s Home of Chocolate
5. Railway heritage: a nostalgic infusion of coal, steam, engine oil and iron to represent York’s rich railway history
6 Rural Yorkshire: the scent of fresh wild heather as it grows on the North York Moors (the backdrop to many films and television programmes, including Harry Potter), the grasslands of the Yorkshire Dales and fresh country air
7. Gardens of York: the relaxing scent of York and Yorkshire’s lavender gardens
8. York Racecourse: a combination of horse hair, hoof oil, grass and fruit punch
9. Foodies favourite: a mature smell of strong Yorkshire cheese
10. Spooky scents: as Europe’s most haunted city York isn’t short on ghosts, and many of them are said to leave a melancholy aroma in their wake. The guidebook has been infused with strong smells of sulphur and roses that are frequently associated with two of York’s eternally restless spirits
11. Guy Fawkes’ legacy: York is the birthplace of the notorious Guy Fawkes, a man who is now forever associated with the smells of gunpowder, fireworks and burning wood and straw.
12. Seasonal scents: a traditional Christmas aroma of burning frankincense, mince pies and Advent candles in Britain’s Christmas Capital.

Sounds about right for the attractions of York  but it got me thinking about the strength of a case that Hull could put together to produce its own version of a sensory guide to entice the otherwise elusive tourist spending power...........to be continued tomorrow.