the BEAUTIFUL lake district

portobello market (on sat morning) turned out to be not as wonderful as i expected. but we did enjoy venturing to many of the vintage and antique shops there, ooh-ing and aah-ing over intricate silverware and ornate vases (and their equally shocking prices!!!), and left very very satisfied with our loot of a set of silver tea serving ware! =D I can't wait to invite some girls over and serve them TEA using my new silver tea pot, cream jug, sugar bowl and cake server! =)

They're all old silver, so I need to give them a good wash in hot water and polish the outside (as advised by the seller). The cake cutter is pretty new - dated in 1965 - but the other items are early 1900s i think.

The drive to Lake District was almost 6 hours. But the journey was far from boring, as I had my new book to read, we had chocolate sultanas to munch, and all around us were beautiful verdant green hills, brilliant blue skies with cotton wool clouds, rows of hay, pastures of peacefully grazing cows and sheep, and the occasional horse along the way.

Our guesthouse is a lovely B&B with 6 rooms. Our's is so pretty! The wallpaper are white and peach striped, there is a marble sink and fireplace in the room, the towel rack is heated (!!!)... and the English Breakfast is HUMONGOUS! Sunny side-up egg, hashbrowns, fried tomatoes, sausages, bacon, toast, cereal, fruit and mushrooms! And tea and coffee and orange juice! After the first day, I thought that would be enough to last me a full day. But by noon, I was starving again =b Mel says it's the cold air here - it's a whole lot colder than London, and the breezes at night are seriously freezing!

So, not much time left, cos we are using internet cafe. So here's what we did the past two days.

yesterday:

1. Visited The World of Beatrix Potter attraction in Windermere
2. Visited Low Sizergh farm near Kendal, and walked a 2 mile farm trail (exhausting but beautiful at parts and mucky at some...)
3. Took a cruise on Windermere lake
4. Explored the towns of Bowness, Windermere, Ambleside
5. Huge dinner at The Jumble Room Cafe in Grasmere - fantastic place with cool sketches and colours and textures all around

today:

1. Visited Wordsworth Cottage in Grasmere. I saw my first wash stand - what the English used before sinks and taps were invented.
2. Went to Sarah Nelson's Gingerbread Cottage and came out with an armful of her delicious home-made gingerbread!!! =D And Rum butter =)
3. Visited Wordsworth's childhood home in Cockermouth. (terrible name eh? =b) Beautiful gardens there, and I saw apple and pear trees for the first time! Quite enchanting, the little rooms and all the antique furniture still around.
4. Drive down to Keswick, and spent the rest of the evening exploring this town (Still here...) We had a wonderful afternoon tea just now - scones with jam and clotted cream, and finger sandwiches, and cream cakes, and fruit cake, and tea... so I don't think we'll be eating dinner =b

Tomorrow morning after breakfast we leave for Heathrow again. Another long drive, but we are leaving way early so that we can afford to stop along the way to take pictures and admire the view.