That area of the North West of England really teaches what the English landscape is capable of.
It had been a while since my last trip out of town and it was really ‘refreshing’ to visit the Lakes in autumn (not only for the colder temperatures out there) because living in London is exciting but, at times, it can be hard to live in such a frantic place.
One needs relaxation and contact with nature every now and then.
The Lake District is a land that has taught me how much England can be beautiful, welcoming, explorable in a sustainable way and sometimes even low-cost.
Many poets in the North have found inspiration and many people fought so that this piece of England would not become a ground for the Industrial Revolution.
I arrived to Windermere by train (very comfortable journey, directly from London) on a Friday.
During the weekend Windermere often suffers from overpopulation because it is a very popular destination for trips out of town.
My advice is to get there on a weekday or to spend a little time there because it’s very touristy.
Not bad but the melancholic and poetic atmosphere of the place loses with hordes of people who are waiting for nothing but an ice cream cone.
You instead can take a local bus and start with the exploration of the area.
The Lake District can take you a month or a day depending how much you wish to explore but it is cheap and nice to get around by public transport.
Keswick (which is pronounced chesik) is a beautiful and small village in the Northern Lakes area.
It was an excellent home-base for me, although it was located north of the Lake District, due to the ease of transportation and services that the village offers.
Here you can drink and eat until late in the evening, the pubs are great and the prices are more than good because they are outside the tourist horde of the south of the Lakes.
The famous poet Coleridge lived here for a while and when you arrive to walk around the lake near the village you will understand why.
We took a bus early in the morning from Keswick to the mountain pass to admire the beauty of the windblown mountains by the Lake District.
There is a slate mine one can visit there but we didn’t.
From here the road will take you to Borrowdale, for me the most beautiful valley in the whole of Britain.
Eventually you will arrive at a cluster of houses on the homonymous lake where the poet abovementioned loved to walk.
An absolute wonder of mother nature!
You will often find the suffix "thwaite" at the end of many words around here.
It is always part of the toponymy of the area, which has been influenced by the Viking invasion.
Returning to the lake, the area around it is a real natural paradise and it’s breath-taking to follow the low paths around the lake.
Some say that Cumbria (the name of the region where the Lake District is located) offers some of the best made in England dishes.
What is certain is that there is something for everyone, even if it is a bit difficult to be vegetarian here, but it is not impossible.
Most dishes are made with wild game such as venison and they include the traditional Cumberland sausage with mashed potatoes and the Steak and Ale Pie, a beer stew in crispy puff pastry.
The lake area is magnificent in the summer but, with the right clothing, it is perfect in all seasons.
In the spring it becomes a carpet of yellow daffodils while in autumn it is tinged with warm colours thanks to the foliage.
I came in winter and this season makes the Lake District sleepy under the snow but it is always something magnificent.
Believe me, it is worth to discover England outside of London!
