Tuisku's Teaching and Travel Tidbits: The Lakes District

I'd been wanting to travel up to the Lakes District for a long time now, and a couple weeks ago, I finally got my chance. Tessa, one of the US Fulbrighters, lives in the north of England not far from the Lakes District, so another Fulbrighter, Susan, and I took the train to Tessa's home in Bentham for the weekend.

Tessa had told me there were more sheep than people in her town,
and she was telling the truth.

Our first stop on the way to the Lakes was Castlerigg Stone Circle, which was built 4,500 years ago in the

Neolithic Period.

Castlerigg Stone Circle

Dancing among the stones

Susan, Tessa and Me

Next stop, The World of Beatrix Potter in Bowness. I'm a kindergarten teacher through and through, and love the Beatrix Potter books filled with darling illustrations of the woodland creatures, so I was really excited about visiting here.

Tessa and I enjoying High Tea at the World of Beatrix Potter.

The most Famous of Beatrix Potter's Characters, Peter Rabbit,
with his Mother, Mrs. Josephine Rabbit

Jemimah Puddle Duck soars over the Woodland Glade

Statue at the World of Beatrix Potter

Mr. MacGregor's Garden
Can you see Peter's little blue coat in the background?

I joined in the scene with my personal favorite of the Potter characters,
Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, the Hedgehog Washerwoman.

This was our lucky day! When we left the World of Beatrix Potter and walked to the shores of Lake Windermere, we found that the last tour boat of the day was about to leave, so we hopped on. There were only 2 other people on the boat, so we had front row seats right up on top. Here are some photos taken from the boat.

My friend, Geri, from California, had sent me two Beatrix Potter-related books which were a major part of my inspiration to travel to this part of the country. One of the books was a book of hikes in the Lakes District, so I really wanted to take one of the trails while I was here. Below are some photos of hike near the shores of Lake Windermere.