A weekend at the Lakes

Last weekend I needed to get away. I was in desperate need of a change of pace and change of scenery. Schools were finishing up and I didn't have any work so I headed off to the Lake District.

I love the lakes. It was one of those incredibly picturesque places where everyone seems conscientious and welcoming, the lakes are deep and the mountains high.
I headed over to Aunty Pauline and Uncle Ian's for a bit of R'n'R. I spent a lovely weekend sunning myself in the continued glorious weather as well as visiting a few sites that I haven't seen yet.
Aunty Pauline and I went out to Brougham Castle. It is different to the other castles I have seen so far if only because it is made of red stone. It seems quite a soft stone too, given the wearing on the stone.
There were lots of nooks and crannies to explore and a few gaderobes to look down the shoots of.
There was one room in particular in the castle which was worth seeing and I was surprised by the peace and how well it has survived. On the very top floor of the castle, to which the only way up is via a steep spiral staircase, there is the remains of the family church (but that is not the word for it. I can't think what it is at the moment). Anyway, it is beautiful with the remains of the stone work patterning still remaining, as well as the stone roof and arches. There is even the remains of the holy water bowl dug out of the stone and a face carved from stone that looks down from the centre of the ceiling's arches.

Leaving Brougham castle we made our way out towards Long Meg and her daughters. However, on the

way up we briefly pulled up to King Arthur's Round Table which was a neolithic settlement. I didn't actually get to see it though. It was set in the middle of a farmer's field and there were huge, gorgeous eyed cows in the paddock. When I stepped into the field to have a look at the information plaque a few of them started staring at me then ambling towards me, then speeding towards me. I walked back out. They were cows, not bulls, but nevertheless I wasn't feeling safe. If there was a fence between me and the cows and they approach I would give them a pat but I get the feeling being trampled by said cows might not be nearly as much fun. They were territorial - must have had their cow-PMS.
We headed on up to see Long Meg and her daughters. It is a huge standing stone circle. There is one long stone, Long Meg, that stands outside of the circle an is made of red stone. It has the remains of early man patterns that were etched into it. They were circles upon circles. It was very beautiful. The daughters are the 70 large boulder-like rocks that form the stone circle. I couldn't actually get far enough away to get all the stones in, it was wide spread. It was interesting to see that the farmer respected the circle too. Instead of moving the stones out of the way to that they could put a road through, the road actually splits in two. It still goes through the middle of the stone circle, but the dirt tracks actually go between two sets of stones.
Up at Long Meg there was an overwhelming sense of solitude and tranquility, the same comfort one gets from knowing your mother is there looking over you. I felt very safe and could have stayed longer. As it was, we sat on one of the rocks and had some lunch before popping down the road to a farm house for some very rich hot chocolate made with full cream milk, fresh from the cows, and real chocolate. It was, in a word, decadent.

The next day with the sun bearing down, Aunty Pauline and I went out to (I think this is right) Crummick Water. We walked around a bit of the lake, stopped and had a orange while looking out across the fells and the rich blue lake water, before heading back for a chilled out afternoon in the sun.

On my way back up from the Lakes on the Monday, I made a stop off at Lanercost Priory. It is a place with

a rich history. It was built in the 12th Century and amazingly, despite the fact that it is slap bang in the middle of nowhere, a part of the church is still in use by the local villages and the village hall is the same hall that it was 900 years ago. Parts of the priory have been left to ruin which I walked through. I sat and did a bit of sketching and took a few photos. One of the things I remember most about Lanercost is the tomb to the baby. Obviously in the 1800's lots of children died but I have never seen a tomb to one. The father of the child was a member of the art movement and he designed the tomb lid to reflect the child. It is sweet and very sad to see a child cast in stone, forever sleeping.

I ended up splurging a fair amount of money at the site as well. There was this stunning tapestry of a lady giving her favour to a knight who was about to ride off into battle. The scene is extraordinary in the details and I hummed and haahed over it for the better part of two hours before going back to the shop and buying it for a whopping 115 pounds. I knew, in my soul, that I would regret it if I didn't buy it. And this being the year of no regrets... well, it is now packed away in the suitcase, awaiting return to New Zealand.

On a side note, I can't believe that I have been over here for 6 and a half months! I only have 4 months left. It's going so fast.