My Weeknd in Keswick, Lake District.

Hi there,

How you doing so far. 

My weekend went really well, but the week went really quickly. It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was up in the Lake District enjoying time away in Keswick with David just having a really nice time wandering around the lake, catching the water boat, lounging around the hotel and eating gorgeous food whilst enjoying lots of fizz. 

Our weekend break started on Saturday morning. Quite an early start as we wanted to get the most out of our time away. The journey tool roughly 6 1/2 hours so not too bad. We didn’t even need to stop en route which I’m actually quite proud of. You see for years I’ve suffered from irritable bladder and am always in need of the loo, or so I thought. It seems it’s mind over matter, as when I’m sitting down or in a different situation my mind is occupied elsewhere and I don’t even need the loo! I was the same for the return journey on Monday, so I’m trying to practise not going to the loo unless I REALLY need to go. 

So back to Saturday morning. We left home at 7am with a car packed up with everything we’d need for our two night stay (yes I know I packed for a week in all honesty).

David had studied the route and worked out we’d be passing Appleby, which is the well known gathering point for gypsies and travellers to gather for the annual horse fair. It’s got more personal meanings for David as his Dad had many friends that went there and as he’d visited a few times in his later live meant it was a bit of a holy grail for David to go to. We dropped in that afternoon. With lovely hot weather and a quiet setting we spent a wonderful hour wandering the riverside and pathways which, I’m sure, David’s dad had walked. We saw horses being washed in the river, horse deals being struck and horses with carts being run up and down the little roadways. It was quite a spectacle and very humbling. It turned out to be really emotional and a big reminder of my beloved father-in-law and his exciting events. 

Items marked with * have been gifted to me, however these are 100% my own honest comments. 

Our little detour meant so much to both of us. I’m so glad we visited Appleby and it seems it was meant to be as when I booked the surprise for David’s birthday I had no idea it would be on the same road!

We arrived in Keswick about an hour later around 3pm. I’d booked the Keswick Country House Hotel, rather like a pin on a map as I didn’t know the area and just plumped for a decent hotel. It was everything I thought it would be. Beautifully decorated, had friendly staff, plenty of spacious sitting areas, lovely rooms and a quality outdoor sitting area. We headed straight to the check in desk and found our room was ready and waiting. We decided to have a drink in the garden first - which was heavenly. It had lots of outdoor tables and chairs, beautiful gardens and even had rabbits on the lawn. I immediately felt right at home. 

We decided to eat in the town which was only a ten minute walk away Steaks of the Lakes was wonderful. The staff were so friendly and were on hand to help with any of our questions. I ended up having the halibut, which was in the specials menu, David had steak, which is no surprise as it’s his favourite. I even had a dessert, I didn’t need one, however the deconstructed Eton Mess was delicious. We returned to the hotel having a nightcap before heading off to bed. The porn star martini was everything and more!

The next morning, after a fantastic buffet breakfast comprising of traditional English fare and continental breakfast, we headed out to find Derwentwater, the lake that was situated on the edge of Keswick. It was raining, which we had expected, so taking shelter under the umbrella and a big tree we sat doing some sketching. Now neither David or I are any kind of artist, but I thought I’d be a laugh to take sketch pads, pencils and watercolours with us to ‘have a go’ at drawing the surroundings. It really was funny to show off our exhibits, especially when we’d drawn each other and both resembled Marge and Homer Simpson!! Our drawing period didn’t last long and we soon took refuge in the coffee shop up the road before taking the boat trip across the lake. 

Our boat trip took us across the lake in mixed weather of cloudy dullness with occasional sunny patches. We saw people right at the top of Cat Bells, one of the hikes I remember my soon to be son-in-law had told us about along with seeing it on Countryfile. I’m never going to be the type of person to climb the hill, but was pleased to have seen it from afar. Once we’d dropped passengers off to climb the hill we headed for Lodore. 

We’d decided to have a look inland so alighted the boat there and headed off to the spa hotel. After a quick pit stop we took a short walk into the woodland. I’m pleased it was a short walk because I wasn’t wearing the right footwear and learned how difficult it was to step uphill on stones and through tree stumps! I managed to get to the waters edge and took a few photos in the clearing, it wasn’t as impressive as I’d imagined it would be but a feat to have got there nonetheless!

It wasn’t too long before we were settled down again in a hotel garden enjoying a drink before boarding the boat back to Keswick. The walk back to the town through Hope Park was delightful. The gardens were beautifully set out with flowers, shrubs and trees dotted all around. We headed back to the hotel through the town stopping off in a couple of shops and another restaurant where we shared scampi and chips with a cold beverage. That evening we’d decided to eat in the Italian restaurant which was called Casa Bella. Again I had the fish which was a delicious sea bass on smashed new potatoes and David had, yes you guessed it … steak! It had turned out really hot so I couldn’t wait to get out once we’d finished our meal. The cold air after being in such a hot restaurant was welcoming and the short walk back to the hotel was lovely. We found these stunning gardens to take photos of the co-ord I bought in Matalan the previous week.  Sold as separates this stunning two piece looks right at home worn with trainers and a tee shirt underneath as well as dressed up for an evening out with heels, a cami top and fancy jewellery. 

I’d mentioned on previous post I’d taken a capsule wardrobe based around my new Teddy Blake bag. Isn’t this a gorgeous suede beauty in sunshine yellow. 💛 Amelia *, such a pretty name isn’t it. 😉 It really is a beautiful bag and I’m so pleased to welcome it into my hands. It’s big enough to hold lots of essentials, but small enough to look very chic. I love the shorter handle that can be worn on the shoulder or in the hand and th side pockets have been essential for me, definitely somewhere I can keep my phone and lipstick with my purse and makeup safely tucked inside. They’re offering this beauty in a host of other colours ranging from classic chic black to the bright and bold bright yellow or pink! Head over to the website for full details and you can also view the rest of the stunning collection there too. X

Our short weekend away was over way too soon and our journey home in the rain was quiet. We’d both had such a super time away and were sad to have it finished so quickly. We’ve a few weeks to wait until we get away to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary, before that David is on the stage weekend to Tenerife, so good luck to them!

Great to have you here, hope your weekend went well, chat again on Thursday for the linkup. 

Bye for now. X