November 26

Weather is overcast and it stayed that way mostly though we did see the sun for about 20 minutes while we were driving through some really gorgeous back roads in the Lake District. First, though, we had to get there. We were on the road by 8 and it took awhile to get through some of the congestion on the roads but eventually we got onto the M6 and zipped up north. The hills got higher and the sheep more plentiful, even those little white dots on the high hills overlooking the road... more sheep!

Our first destination is the Lilliput Lane factory in Penrith. Lilliput Lane is 25 years old this year and all the production for their products are created here and it's all done by hand by about 100 craftspeople who work in various areas, learning all or most aspects - sculptors, molds, metal work, painters, fettler. We arrived with a bit of time for a quick cuppa in the tea room before a tour would start and as it worked out, we were the only two on the tour which was free. The woman who took us around has worked there a long time and has done pretty much all the various jobs over the years. She explained the history of the company then the procedures from the concept of deciding on a building or structure to the wax sculpture to the rubber and silicone molds and the resin master product used to create the others. They always have one master that they save but it will be destroyed when a model is discontinued, usually after 2 to 3 years in production.

It was very interesting even hearing about how they make the packing material! The visitor center looks like an old storybook thatched cottage but it's only 12 years old and is a replica of a cottage in Hertfordshire. It's not the original one that was there. One side of the visitor centre has loads of cottages and buildings and models from the 25 years of the company's history and the other side has items for sale, some discontinued, some only available there at the visitor centre. You can also join a session to paint your own cottage or you can buy an unpainted one to do yourself with acrylic paints if you want. I bought four cottages. One was actually a Christmas tree ornament, two others are small as well. One is a replica of Bridge House in Ambleside which we're going to see later, and the other is a small slate cottage typical of the Lake District. The larger piece is a Vicarage that's L-shaped and still only a medium sized piece. The whole bill was only 84 pounds and they gave me the VAT refund form but in the end, I didn't pass it in at the airport. I didn't see the desk and was not feeling all that well to try to hunt it down.

Ullswater, the Lake District

Lilliput Lane visitor centre

Ambleside's lovely slate buildings

We decided to take the scenic route down through the lakes, past Ullswater and over the Kirkstone Pass to Ambleside. It was a gorgeous drive, with winding roads and some spectacular views. We stopped a few times for photos and to stretch our legs.

We made it to Ambleside, found the car park and the pub, the Golden Rule, where Michelle and Rosie were waiting by the fire. We had a drink there but they didn't have much for food at that pub so we walked down into the town looking for a suitable place to eat. We found a basic cafe and had lunch there and then walked around the picturesque town for awhile. Many of the shops cater to sporting goods and outdoor clothing as hiking and walking is quite popular in the Lake District. We all found something to drool over in a chocolate shop. There's a lot of places to eat and quite a few pretty Bed and Breakfast establishments.

Ambleside is very quaint with many old houses and buildings made of stone or slate which is mined in the Lakes District. We saw Bridge House, arced over a little stream by a building that was probably a mill in it's prior lifetime but is now an Inn, I think. Bridge house is one of the smallest houses in Britain though the one in Conwy is the smallest. This isn't much larger but it was closed so we didn't get a look inside. It was a tourist information centre for the National Trust now. It was originally thought to be storage for apples.

From Ambleside, we drove into the busy town of Windemere by the famed lake of the same name. We went to a large, modern store called Lakeland which is by the train station. They sell gifts, kitchen and household gadgets and small appliances. All very interesting to have a browse through. We parted company after that with the other two ladies and headed out. We did get a bit turned around in the dark back roads but found our way back to Windemere and the correct road that got us back to the motorway. We got home for the evening and had homemade burgers with the meat I had forgotten to add to the lasagna sauce yesterday. Shopping tomorrow, I think.

November 27

Another grey day. No change there, then. It didn't really matter since I had planned to shop my way through the grand Trafford Centre looking for a new purse. My old one is knackered. The bits that the straps hook into have broken off as did another loop I had used so the strap is now hooked precariously into another of the loops and it won't last. Too bad, though. I liked that bag! It was fine until the trip but it gets heavier with more stuff when I'm traveling around and I guess it was pushed a bit too far.

Could I find a shoulder bag with a long strap? Could I heck! I went to every place possible in that huge mall and all I could find were bags with larger straps that maybe could be used over your shoulder. But then the actual purse would be up under your arm and it most certainly wouldn't go over a winter coat sleeve. I guess what I wanted was far out of fashion. We women are very particular about our bags and it has to be just right. We saw all kinds of bags and purses, some of them pretty ugly too. One particularly god-awful one was a mustard colour and was all ruffled! There was one I did like but it was a bit too expensive even for me!

I did get a couple of tops in one store but mainly the Trafford Centre was not a success. Graham suggested a large market in the town of Bury instead of going into Manchester city centre. It was about a half hour to get there. There is a pedestrian shopping street and a mall as well but most of the market proper was closed. I suppose it's busier on weekends. There was one stall though, that actually was open and actually had purses and even had some with long straps! I found one I think I can live with. It's only 10 pounds and it's leather though probably not the best quality but it will do for that price and if I only get the winter out of it, I'll be happy.

Graham has a cold and is feeling rough so it's back home for us. If he's feeling a bit better tomorrow and the weather looks to cooperate, we're off to Chester Zoo

Mom and baby, Chester Zoo

November 28

Yes, another grey day. Sometimes it looks like it might rain and sometimes it looks like it might clear up a bit. We're going to try our luck with the zoo and see what happens. It's about an hour drive and it's well signed. It's a huge place with a lot of natural enclosures though many of them have chain link fences which makes it a bit of a pain for photos. They also have specially built pavillions to feature some animals like the Orangutans, the jaguars, the monkeys and a few others.

We started off with the elephants. I'd never seen one in the flesh before and was really looking forward to it. They have quite a few here of various ages and sizes. They are amazing animals and can move quite quickly if they want to. We walked around to see the lions and tigers and took refuge in an aquarium to warm up a bit. Into the Orangutan house, where there are tanks with snakes and lizards and cages for birds along the walls. The apes have a huge deep "pit" where they can climb and swing and they can also go outside into enclosures as well. We could see a few of them and one in particular kept hiding under a big piece of canvas. It was hard to watch them though as there were a number of people trying to share little windows that looked down into the indoors part of the enclosures.

Outside again to see the giraffes and a lovely animal called the Okapi which is apparently distantly related to giraffes though not long and leggy. It's striped in it's back end like a zebra but has little knobby horns on its head like the giraffe. It's also very shy but we did get a good look at it. We saw a few other birds and animals and then retreated to the cafe to warm up again. When we came out it had started to rain and it was a cold rain so we decided not to see if it was going to let up and cut our visit short.

Indeed, it rained all the way back to Manchester. We drove through the city centre a bit and I got a bit of a look at the Christmas decorations by the Town Hall where the Christmas Markets were but no chance of getting to those, not in the rain, and we had plans for tomorrow, my last day already!

November 29

Wouldn't you know it? The sun is out! Why couldn't it have been out yesterday for our zoo visit! We're meeting Graham's friend Malcom for a Chinese buffet at lunch and then going to the Manchester Museum of Industry to see the Doctor Who exhibit. It took us ages to find our way through the city centre one way systems to get to the buffet restaurant on Whitworth street and we found it more by chance than plan. The parking garage is right there, so we parked up and left the car there for the afternoon. Met Malc in the restaurant and had a nice meal.

Cybermen at the Doctor Who Exhibit

Our next stop was the museum. We caught the city's free shuttle bus that circles around the city centre passing by the museums, galleries and connects the train stations. The exhibition was supposed to end earlier in November but was held over so I was pleased! This one was different than the one we saw last year in Blackpool This one focused only on the most recent three seasons of Doctor Who, since the series' revival. The Blackpool exhibit showed more from the show's long history back to the 1960s. This had props and costumes, monsters and models that were used by the BBC. Photos were allowed, too!

After perusing it all, we had a coffee in the restaurant there and then walked back to the car park. We stopped at the grocery store on the way home and when we got to the flat, none of the overhead lights were working! There had been contractors from the council in that day poking about the lights, something to do with getting rid of or checking for any asbestos and it seemed like they broke the kitchen light which fused the system. It took awhile to figure out the exact problem and the council sent out an electrician to sort it with the specialized fuses they use but he wasn't long getting there. The wall sockets worked so we did have lamps so weren't in the complete dark.

It's our last night together for awhile. This is the hard part.

November 30

We had to get up at 4 a.m. to get to the airport because my flight is at 6:30. Graham will take the rental car back later this morning. This doesn't really get any easier and this was one of the harder departures I found. Being tired and not feeling that well didn't help. My cold is coming back and I've got a dry, nagging cough.

The plane to Heathrow was larger than the one I took from there to here and I had the triple seat to myself. I picked up some Bailey's and some tea in duty free in Heathrow and the plane to Canada was only about half full so everyone spread out. I had a double seat to myself so I could stretch my legs. The flight was fine, I got back in good time and my luggage came with me. I took the airport bus into Dartmouth and Mom met me there. I managed to get my new phone to work on the Rogers sim card but it seems a bit fussy about it. I guess as long as I can use it to make calls and texts, that's the main thing but I hope I can get some of the other features working too.

Anyway, that's another trip under my belt. We did Paris in three days and packed a lot in. We had lots of time just for us and reconnected with our friends as well. All in all, a great trip.