Advertisement
Published: March 19th 2009
Edit Blog Post
Whilst no longer in the wintery UK, I thought I should write a final entry to complete the blog of my UK travels.
My last week in the UK was more on the relaxing side, rather than non-stop sightseeing. It was nice to have a break, and it was even nice (dare I say it) to have some wet and wintery days to keep me indoors. Before heading down to London to fly home, I visited the spa-town of Buxton in Derbyshire. Distance-wise Buxton was around a 1.5hr bus journey from Wirksworth, or just over 2 hrs from Derby. The bus journey alone was rather scenic, and there was a noticeable change in the scenery upon leaving Bakewell. I felt the landscape was far more open, and vast. Once arriving in town I navigated my way into the main part of town, not realizing I’d got off one bus stop too early. First mission was to find the tourist information centre to see what I could do in what appeared to be a very pretty town (that might have something to do with the fact it was SUNNY for once!). Finding the tourist information centre really was a mission….as it
had been relocated a few times over the past year, so I was finding lots of signage that was leading me to its old locations. Eventually I found the place. There were lots of brochures, but nothing really stood out to me. I decided to keep with my original plan and find Solomon’s Temple in Buxton Country Park.
Before starting my journey to the temple, it was time for food. One thing I love about the UK is the abundance of so called ‘fresh’ ready-made meals. So, with a quick visit to Marks and Spencer I had myself a sandwich, packet of chips and a diet cola all for 2 pounds….a bargain for UK standards! I made my way back down to the towns’ beautiful park on the River Wye to have my lunch. Things were all good until I got around to opening the cola drink….my hands were so cold I could not get good grip to open it!!! I was looking forward to some caffeine too!! I even found the toilet block so I could wash my hands and warm them up under the dryer. Still no luck….so I took the drink with me in hope I
could open it back at Caz’s! (neither Caz or myself could open the bottle…so maybe it was nott my cold hands!)
It wasn’t much of a walk to get out to Buxton Country Park…although the signage was confusing….which is how I found a lot of the signage to be. I got out my hiking book and attempted to follow the instructions that would lead me to the temple. Things were not exactly making sense, so I just decided to wander for a bit, and see if I could find it. That hiking book was a little vague with instructions, although I later found out the set of instructions I was reading from were based on starting at another location in the park!...so no wonder they didn’t make sense! The temple was good to find, and it gave a great view of the area. There wasn’t much time to do anything else, so it was back on the bus for the journey home!
I also spent some more time in Derby…even got a few photos of the place…but I liked the Westfield Shopping Centre the most. It was indoors and warm….MOST IMPORTANT! So I spent part of my days
having a coffee at one of the many coffee shops in the centre.
I got to see Lauren one more time, meeting her in Loughborough (where she lives). We went to a nice cozy pub for dinner where I had a yummy open chicken pie and a raspberry and rhubarb crumble….and I was so full from eating all of that!!!
On my final weekend in Wirksworth, Caz drove me out to the Chatsworth Farm Shop….which was full of an endless array of gourmet foods! I got a few things for our lunch, and it was all really nice stuff…especially the Walnut loaf bread! Sunday was one of those wet days again….so I decided to make some scones! I was quiet impressed with my efforts, and I wondered what was so difficult about making good scones!
The journey down to London was ok. It certainly was not painless, however! My bag….packed with gear for all sorts of work was getting on the heavy side…plus it was a duffle bag so was not designed to be worn as a backpack for long periods! I really started to regret things when I was stuck on a packed train in the
London underground with the 20kg bag on my back, 7 kg bag in my hand and sweat dripping of my forehead. NOT FUN. With another 30 mins or so of agony, I’d made it to my hotel. The hotel which had just undergone renovations did not disappoint…I had a nicely renovated room, complete with an LCD TV on the wall, and best of all free WiFi internet. With a change of clothes and a quick shower I was out to explore the area! I was staying very close to Kensington Gardens, so decided to see the parklands and make my way into London (if I could remember how to get there!). It was a nice afternoon stroll…..Hyde Park even in the winter is very pretty, and I knew I had to come back for a run the next morning. I made it into the town, right through to Covent Garden. I spent the evening at a big shopping centre close to my hotel - Whitley’s I think it was called, just having a wander and a hot chocolate!
My final day in the UK started out brilliantly with a brisk run around Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. I loved it.
The rest of the day was wet and miserable. I had the intentions of getting out to the Museum…but never got there!! I enjoyed looking around some shops, and before I knew it, it was time to get back to get my luggage and make my way out to Heathrow for the journey home.
It’s now over a week since I’ve been home…it feels good to be back (even if it is just for a few months). I’ve submitted the paperwork for my teaching registration and hope to do some Casual Relief Teaching in the local area before I head over to the USA (via London) in late May. Things are looking up for having work for at least the summer in the USA, as I just had a phone interview with an Environmental Center in Aspen, Colorado.
Until next time……
Advertisement
Tot: 0.109s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 9; qc: 49; dbt: 0.0539s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb