Windermere, Lake District

England's (or maybe the whole of UK as well) bank holidays start on the day we were supposed to head to Windermere from Manchester. Many people used this opportunity to get out of the city for the long weekend ahead; and this meant that the trains were very crowded, in fact, it was so crowded that we didn't even manage to get a seat on our way to the transit station, Preston.

It started raining along the way and it didn't stop even after we've arrived. Due to our unsuccessful attempts to book us a room for the night in Bath, we did a last-minute booking at the tourist information centre (we paid an additional 15 pounds for this booooooo *dislike*).

where we slept for the next 2 nights

A 10-minute walk later, we arrived at Clifton House, a quaint little B&B (Bed and Breakfast) place. The male owner showed us to our room. It was on the highest floor and I remember feeling just a little @#$%^& because we (okay actually just me) over-shopped and our backpacks weighed 20 stones and we had to climb up so many flights of steps now.

Then I saw our room. And I felt that the steps were well worth the effort. 

LOVE! Can stargaze at night!

I was secretly wishing that I can come home to a cosy room like that everyday!

We took a super long break in our room, and slept a fair bit each before finally heading out for dinner. It was drizzling slightly as we walked along the streets. We found a little shop selling takeaway fish and chips; F and I  each got a set of cod and chips, then found a dry and and sheltered spot on some steps in front of a furniture shop across the street and made ourselves comfortable.

our first dinner in Windermere.

before tucking into our roadside dinner

After our dinner (oh, and it got cold enough to see our breath when we exhaled), we decided to take a walk nearby. Looked at the map that we got from the tourist information counter and followed a route that would lead us down to the lakeside. 

I'll remember to crop my flower pictures next time

After walking for the longest time along the most deserted road (that we've been on in UK so far), we finally arrived at the lakeside. There were some tents pitched on the shore, and I could smell some of the food that were being barbecued by the campers. I suppose it'll be really nice to spend a night sleeping in a tent by the quiet lakeside. 

pictures were taken at around 8 plus in the evening...

We trudged slowly back to Clifton House, up the steps and into our cosy little room where I spent the night looking out of the window trying to spot stars from my pillow before falling into a deep sleep.

The next day, we woke up to a sumptuous English breakfast before setting off to Orrest Head, the highest viewpoint for Lake Windermere. Among all the little treks that we took on this trip, Orrest Head was probably the easiest of all. We met many friendly English people (and their pet dogs) along the way, and exchanged hearty morning greetings. It was a great way to start our day.

View of a section of Lake Windermere

Stayed at the top for a bit, so I'm just going to leave you with some pictures of the views taken.

rolling greens

fisheye #1

fisheye #2

fisheye #3

#fisheye 4

I loved that it was sunny, but we didn't feel the heat in the strong wind up there.

on our way down

After our little walk to Orrest Head, we went back past the town centre, and headed to Bowness (30 minutes walk if memory hasn't failed me). 

okay I will remember to crop my flower pictures in future

I saw almost everyone holding an ice-cream cone in their hands, and even though I was about to fall sick, I told F that we must have an ice-cream cone each too. With a cone each in hand, we took a leisurely stroll along the banks, looked at families come together and little children holding onto tiny nets that they used to scoop the waters. Oh, and the swans. There were so many of them that it's become a really common sight; unlike the only two swans that we have here in Botanical Gardens.

Anyway, we bought two cruise tickets to Ambleside (another town) and hopped on board. On our way there, we saw people sailing in keelboats and dinghies, as well as men fishing in little boats.

tacking...

tacked...

and heeling!

I've sort of forgotten what we did at Ambleside, but I do remember walking to their town centre (of sorts). And once again, more pictures of the place!

Life was as slow as we took it to be throughout our stay in Windermere. I enjoyed the pace and place, even though Windermere itself was crowded with many tourists, both locals and foreigners. I guess I now know of alternatives to avoid crowds...