Nothing like a deadline to make things happen. For this reason, G and I headed out of town on Friday for a bit of R&R in Keswick, in England’s Lake District in the far north (bordering Scotland). We arrived to our beautiful, slate Bed & Breakfast, the Berkley (highly recommend it) along the Heads (neighborhood) late Friday.
We had amazing weather Saturday-we took a boat about the lake, hiked to Ashness Bridge and beyond in search of the “Surprise Panorama View”, rented canoes to row about Dertenwater (the lake), hiked to Lodore Falls, had afternoon tea at High Lodore Cafe (a little farmhouse with a cheery front yard for tea-seekers) and finished the day with sheep–of course. Here, the parks are groomed by eager sheep…no lawnmowers necessary. Apparently Keswick just won the “England in Bloom” award for 2007 and we definitely understand why. Everything is blooming up a storm with their cool weather and frequent rains.
I loved the look of the mountains. They were clear-cut centuries ago and now, in place of trees heather and and a shrub grow. These plants lend the mountains beautiful purple and orange/brown hues. Gorgeous.Today, Sunday, we ventured out the front door for a bit of English-style miniature golf. It’s just like real golf with greens and tees (sans the cartoon characters, mystery trap doors and fire spitting dragons…), but the distances are much shorter than on a normal course. And this one was only 9 holes. We were, unfortunately, stuck behind a very slow 5-some. But, that kept us to a leisurely pace and we enjoyed the round. Then, we toured a few local art galleries (no luck) and took a taxi out to see the Castlerigg Stone Circle. Apparently, it’s one of the oldest–dated 1300-2500 BC. Now, that’s old.Hmm…that brings me to an interesting story. I was out with my friend Lottie a couple weeks ago and someone remarked that the bottle design for the beer they were drinking was older than our country (America). Now that’s perspective.
Now, back to work. I present my dissertation to the client tomorrow morning. The prints are bound and ready. The presso slides are complete. But practice makes perfect…Click here to see additional photos from the Lake District.
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