Our drive was only 2.5 hours but true to British form we drove through rain for at least half the trip and we drove some ridiculously small roads of the edges of very steep gorges. Several quaint towns were bisected and a few larger towns were bypassed. We think that Google maps may have lead us astray again, to save us a few minutes of driving, while taking a few minutes off of our lifespan simultaneously. We got an early start so we were ready for lunch by the time we arrived. The host met us when we were parking the car and told us that it would still be a few hours before he was ready to let us in. No matter, we walked through town and found Mr. H's tearoom. We ordered some hot sandwiches, hot tea and hot soup, do you see the theme? We did get warmed up in Mr H's and once we left, we saw that there was a chocolate shop next door. More milling around in with all the chocolate. The room was still not ready so we cruised the town the old school way, driving the same few roads over and over. The museum where we stopped was closed, the parking in town was non-existent and we eventually drove down to the lakeside. Here we looked over our lake excursion possibilities for the following day. We got a ferry timetable that the couple in front of us did not receive. Kindness counts! We got the message that our place was ready so we headed back, settled in, started our standard chicken soup and relaxed.
The country started off flat in the east
But gradually got steeper as we made progress to the west
We drove through a few passes
Saw multiple old church buildings
Of every denomination known to man
The sheep filled landscape was very reminiscent of New Zealand
Attack of the sheep eating hawk
Finally at Windemere we were in a steep valley
And the rain continues...
Lots going in in the town of Windemere
A quick lunch in Ambleside
So many signs and knick knacks and
Hat lights with tea cups all along the wall
Such fancy teapots. The square one is a scene with tennis playing
Leslie had a fox hunt scene
A few very wet dogs came in for a break
The next shop over was a chocolate shop
Sheep
Sheep dogs
Crunchy Frogs
Hedgehogs
Lovely series of buildings
The museum was closed
We are in!
We had to wait a few hours to get into the AirBnB
It is big and relatively fancy
Nice beds
back out into Ambleside while we had a break in the rain
Eclectic decorations
We found the Catholic Church
Not as grand as the other churches, still a hold over from Henry VIII?
The surrounding hills herald a return of the rain
Tiny Ampleside
We are joining the Brits ands Aussies and are now adding tea towels to our travles
Tintin's shrooms are kicking in
