Journal name change and lake district trip!
Hi, anyone who is reading this, I've changed my lj username from larkspur778 to larkspurlazuli! Please unfriend this journal and friend larkspurlazuli instead! Sorry for the inconvience!
Well, I suppose this is now the time when I talk about how my weekend was!! In short, it was short, but great. ^^ We only had one full day there, but it was a very full one. I've only traveled to London, York and Aberdeen within Great Britain so I'm glad I got to see another side of England. We spent Friday night at a pub and hiking around the lake. We stayed in Windermere, which was about 1 1/2 miles walk from Bowness, which was actually on the lake. We stayed in a 'backpackers' hostel' over the weekend, which was actually very nice, and very similar to some of my accomodation in France and Italy.
I loved the Lake District's natural beauty best-- which is most people's reason for visiting, right? For those who don't know, Cumbria is located in Northern England on the western side of the island. It's covered in mountains (or hills, I don't know which) that provide the range of terrain to create its many lakes. The entire area reminded me strongly of Seattle or Washington State -- doubtless because the climate is very similar -- coolish and very rainy. Azaleas and other unidentified bushes were prevalent in the area and just covered with fragrant blooms. We spent a lot of our time hiking, both around the lake and from Ambleside to Rydal Mount, Wordsworth's home - which was an extremely enjoyable activity. The house itself didn't really offer much remarkable to anyone who's not a Wordsworth afficionado, but the grounds were absolutely gorgeous. The place was absolutely not crowded, unlike how I know the Dove Cottage, his other house, would've been. Erica mentioned how she felt that she had stepped into a storybook, and I felt the same. The lush greenery, climbing vines and ivy and the history behind the place made it feel otherworldy. We were hoping to visit the home of Beatrix Potter as well, but I think all of us felt fulfilled after a day spent hiking through hills dotted with spring lambs and lined with hedge fences and exploring Wordsworth's garden. We booked a small "sunset cruise" for that evening, which provided a perfect time to just spend time with each other and enjoy the calming effect of being on the water.
The sun is setting so late these days -- about 10:00 pm. I've never lived in a place where it sets that late. And it's not even the Summer solstice yet. The late daylight hours are kind of throwing my rhythms off, so it's easy for me to eat dinner as late at 9 or 9:30. Plus, the sun rises at around 4:30am, I believe, so it's fortunate that I have a heavy curtain over my window. Although it does catch quite a bit of sunlight in the morning... but more sun is almost always better than none. It's just strange, though...things are going to be so different at home, in so many ways. I have a little more than one month until I fly back across the pond.
Well, I suppose this is now the time when I talk about how my weekend was!! In short, it was short, but great. ^^ We only had one full day there, but it was a very full one. I've only traveled to London, York and Aberdeen within Great Britain so I'm glad I got to see another side of England. We spent Friday night at a pub and hiking around the lake. We stayed in Windermere, which was about 1 1/2 miles walk from Bowness, which was actually on the lake. We stayed in a 'backpackers' hostel' over the weekend, which was actually very nice, and very similar to some of my accomodation in France and Italy.
I loved the Lake District's natural beauty best-- which is most people's reason for visiting, right? For those who don't know, Cumbria is located in Northern England on the western side of the island. It's covered in mountains (or hills, I don't know which) that provide the range of terrain to create its many lakes. The entire area reminded me strongly of Seattle or Washington State -- doubtless because the climate is very similar -- coolish and very rainy. Azaleas and other unidentified bushes were prevalent in the area and just covered with fragrant blooms. We spent a lot of our time hiking, both around the lake and from Ambleside to Rydal Mount, Wordsworth's home - which was an extremely enjoyable activity. The house itself didn't really offer much remarkable to anyone who's not a Wordsworth afficionado, but the grounds were absolutely gorgeous. The place was absolutely not crowded, unlike how I know the Dove Cottage, his other house, would've been. Erica mentioned how she felt that she had stepped into a storybook, and I felt the same. The lush greenery, climbing vines and ivy and the history behind the place made it feel otherworldy. We were hoping to visit the home of Beatrix Potter as well, but I think all of us felt fulfilled after a day spent hiking through hills dotted with spring lambs and lined with hedge fences and exploring Wordsworth's garden. We booked a small "sunset cruise" for that evening, which provided a perfect time to just spend time with each other and enjoy the calming effect of being on the water.
The sun is setting so late these days -- about 10:00 pm. I've never lived in a place where it sets that late. And it's not even the Summer solstice yet. The late daylight hours are kind of throwing my rhythms off, so it's easy for me to eat dinner as late at 9 or 9:30. Plus, the sun rises at around 4:30am, I believe, so it's fortunate that I have a heavy curtain over my window. Although it does catch quite a bit of sunlight in the morning... but more sun is almost always better than none. It's just strange, though...things are going to be so different at home, in so many ways. I have a little more than one month until I fly back across the pond.