and off to the Lakes District

after a little bit of shopping in Carlisle, a visit to the PO and cup of tea with a scone

we travelled towards our next chosen stop - Ullswater, our home for the next 3 nights.

First to Cockersmouth, home of William Wordsworth.

unfortunately, his birth home was closed until spring. so yet another lovely lunch of potato and leek soup served with an herb scone, a good cup of tea and we headed toward Buttermere.

driving to Buttermere was beautiful, along those narrow roads that seem to us to be more like one way tracks. quite often we come across pullover areas so that oncoming traffic can pass, sometimes traffic even has to back up.

we drove along the sides of hills, over Honister Pass

through villages of only one or two houses. the road was icy and  the few times that I got out to take photos, Joe said 'be careful'... there were frozen puddles of water & ice crunching underfoot.

along roads with no fences, where sheep grazed on the road side edge..
 past signs telling us 'to tek care, lambs ont road'...

and on to our first glimpse of the lakes....

stunning

beautiful

breathtaking scenery.

we had booked into a self-contained cottage for 3 nights , truthfully, B&B's just aren't for us. we like our space and to be independent of others, so cottages are perfect.

the cottage that we chose is at Ullswater lake

'The Old Cop Shop'

 reminds us so much of cottages in Tasmania and is between villages of Patterdale and Glennriding.

the whole area actually, reminds us of Tasmania in many ways. Ullswater is actually referred to as England's most beautiful lake and it was no co-incidence that I chose to stay here.. more like serendipity.. I had only been saying to Joe, a few days before that 'Daffodils' was my favourite poem at school [I actually recited it at a school concert when I was 10 or 11] and now I find that here at Ullswater is where Wordsworth was inspired to write the poem.. and the lake is also linked to Arthurian legend. so then, is it any surprise that I find myself here? I think not.

arriving at the cottage mid afternoon, we opened the door to a warm, cozy cottage, with steep steps up to our bedroom. it gets dark quite early here about 4.30..

so we went for a quick walk to the local store to get some local home made bread, past beautiful, clear running streams

Ullswater

an area that reminds me so much of home, somewhere, I don't know where. the landscape especially, feels familiar, not in the same way as at Carlisle or even Amsterdam. no, this is not a past life memory.

Day 2 dawns.. a miserable wet day.. so after a breakfast of fresh raspberries, bananas, blueberries and  yoghurt AND a piece of that delicious home-made bread we were off to explore the towns of Keswick and Penrith.

it was raining at Keswick, so it was just a quick look around.. alot of roadworks going on and we just had a cup of tea with yet another scone, jam and clotted cream. oh, how this is affecting my cholesterol i have no idea.. but I told Joe I would die happy!!

then off to Penrith.. for more carbs - a chip butty, gravy and mushy peas.. then a look in some op shops where i bought a british tea pot.. chatted to the woman serving who was insistent that she knew me and told me that i would be back!!

Penrith, is actually quite a nice market town with some great produce shops.. oh, the cheeses that are available!!! and if i lived here, I would go quite crazy at Christmas time, with all that is available here. in the way of decorations and foods.

[for my own records: cost of 3 days in Ullswater at the Old Cop Shop - 175 pounds]

a year later - 2013
and of course, more memories that I will never forget.
the leek and potato soup with the cheese scone, will forever be a taste memory for me.
the road called Honister Pass and the divine scenery every moment. breathtaking.. the tiny villages with houses that I had only seen on postcards or tv shows.
The gorgeous cottage that we stayed in - The Old Cop shop. loved that one!
And Penrith! a gorgeous market town. I still have the teapot that I bought in the op shop..  when I read my memories.. I feel as if my heart will burst with an emotion that I cannot put my finger on.. is it love or yearning?
and here I sit today, a year later, back in Katoomba, looking out on a bright late spring day.. cicadas chirping, harsh sunlight that really does batter my senses and I am as far away from England that anyone could be. this is indeed a struggle for me.