Sarah: Carlisle, Eng. - Old walls + flopsy bunnies
Trip Start
Dec 27, 2007
1
68
80
Trip End
Dec 28, 2008
Carlisle,
England,
United Kingdom
Saturday, July 12, 2008
We couldn't find any couchsurfers or hostels in the town so we had to go for a B&B. It was lovely, if rather expensive for us at 40 quid (NZ$100+) and run by a great lady called Caron, who was really friendly, cheerful and the youngest-looking grandmother I've ever seen! She even ran us into town a few times when we weren't sure of being able to catch a bus in time.
Our first day there we went to Carlisle Castle in the morning, a fort that has seen a lot of action, as mentioned above. It is still a functioning military barracks, and I saw some cadets training. The newer barracks are named after famous battles - Ypres, Arnhem, Gallipoli etc. The castle is built from red sandstone taken from Hadrian's Wall, as are the cathedral and citadel - hence you have to drive quite a few miles to see the Wall these days. It too, as with Cardiff, was built on the site of a Roman fort, was then a Norman castle, and used as a military headquarters ever since.
After lunch we took a hop-on/off bus out into the country to see Hadrian's Wall. It originally ran from the east coast/Irish sea, to the Tyne River in Newcastle, but as I mentioned, much of the wall around the main centres has been pilfered over the century. As it was a Roman fort, built in the first century AD, there are several Roman forts and outposts along its length. We stopped at the first major fort, Birdoswald, had a look around at the remains and exhibition, and walked along the wall. It was orginally 3-3.5m high and took 10 years to build. During the Roman occupation of Britain, there were 3 legions, or 3000 men stationed along it. It was the NW frontier of an empire that spanned 3 continents, and apparently the most heavily fortified of all thefrontiers. Incidentally, the Romans tried to take what is now Scotland 4 times but never succeeded. That's the spirit!
Our second day in Carlisle we took a train trip down to Bowness-on-Windermere (don't you love the names?!) in the Lake District. It wasn't something we'd planned on doing and were disappointed about missing out on what everone says is one of the prettiest parts on England, but we saw a brochure advertising The Beatrix Potter Attraction, and we had a spare day, so off we went.
Well, the lakeside town of Bowness-on-Windermere was enchanting. Lake Windermere is England's largest lake, but I only knew the name from Lady Windermere's Fan. The town centre and lakefront are almost exclusively old tudor buildings. It's like stepping back in time - apart from the damn cars. The lake is fringed with forest, sprinkled with sailboats and swans potter around the shore.
We went to the Beatrix Potter centre, which was the main purpose for the trip, and it was delightful. They've recreated the world of the stories - the woods, gardens, ponds, farmland, warrens, and of course, Mr McGregor's garden! - and created very good 3D examples of Peter Rabbit, Benjamin Bunny, Mrs Tiggywinkle, Squirrel Nutkin, the Flopsy Bunnies and all their friends. Just adorable. So you're walking through the woods, looking at the animals in various settings from their stories: Peter running away through the lettuce patch from the mean Mr McGregor, Mrs Tiggywinkle in her warren doing the laundry, Mr Jeremy Fisher on his lilypad, and the mice and squirrels in the homes inside the trees. I was like a little kid - it took me back to my childhood and how much I loved the Beatrix Potter stories. I had a tape of the stories that I used to listen to as well. "You'll know it's time to turn the page when you hear..." I got my photo taken with Peter Rabbit like a true groupie. The centre also told the story of Beatrix Potter with a very good exhibition.
I had to work really hard at resisting the impulse to buy her entire collection and worry about storage and carry space later but the 7-year-old-within had been spoilt and I left feeling all warm and furry inside!
