Over the Border to Scotland

 This morning was our final one in the Lake District, and we bid fond farewell to Margaret, our hostess, and to the new friends that we met while staying at the Dower House.  Marty made one last drive along the walled curvy roads, into Ambleside, where we managed to find the Mater Amabilis Roman Catholic Church for 9:30 Mass.   We never did find the church parking lot, but settled on a Pay and Display Lot several blocks away. This resulted in us hiking uphill for those several blocks, but we still managed to get inside before Mass began.

Mass included some lovely prayers for the Royal Family, as well as the new King, as they cope with the loss of their dearly loved queen, who we must remember, was also their beloved mum and grandmum. 

Heading back down the hill to the car presented quite a challenge, as the roadsters were driving as if they were in the Great Race.  And, you know what?  This sign didn't even help us!

So much for that!  But we finally did make it to the lot, retrieve our car, and headed to Cockermouth.

It didn't take long for the roads to widen, making the drive a lot less stressful. 

In this village stands the childhood home of William Wordsworth, noted Scottish poet.  

The house stands from 1760, and was home to John Wordsworth and his family.  He was employed as a legal agent for the First Earl of Lonsdale, and it is quite obvious while touring the house, that this family lived quite a comfortable life here.

The kitchen was one of the largest that I've ever seen, particularly for such a modest sized house. 

The dining table was set with creations that would have been served in the late 1770s. I found the hedgehog to be quite entertaining. 

Note the ornateness of the bedrooms

John and his wife had separate, adjoining rooms.  Her's led to the hallway and was across from the parlor where the family would have entertained.

The wooden piece holding books in the right side of this room actually belonged to Wordsworth, and was donated by his granddaughter to the National Trust. 

The children's bedroom held some unique toys that would have been in fashion during the same time period.

A tiny child's chair stood next to the fireplace in the parlor. 

The back of the house featured a lovely large garden that led out towards the river.

We were told when we entered the house, that it was set up to reflect the same house that William would have lived in at the time.  But his time spent here would be short-lived, with his mother dying when he was at the age of eight.  At this point, he was sent to the school in Hawkshead, which we actually saw yesterday, but had no idea that there was a connection.

It was the white building on the left.

His childhood story was a sad one, with his mum dying when he was eight, and his father dying five years later.  At that point, he would never set foot in this house again.  But his fame is well known here as he helped to launch the Romantic Age of English literature. 

We took a few minutes to ramble through the village. There was a retired brewery

a castle ruins visible from along the river

and beautiful display of flowers leading up to the statue of the Earl of Mayo.

And there were the beautiful tributes to the queen displayed in shop windows.

Our final destination for the day was Moffat, but we decided to make a stop in Gretna Green, as we had plenty of time to do so.  

The village brings to mind those novels in English literature, where love struck runaways, too young to marry without parental permission in their English village, would escape to Gretna Green to be married in the Blacksmith Shop.   The tradition of marriage in Gretna Green continues, but only as a romantic gesture, and we were witness to many young men and woman dressed in wedding attire. 

There was a bagpiper for entertainment

and a horse and buggy to deliver the bride to the doorway.

All in all, it was great fun to watch and to just walk around.

But it began to rain, (no surprise there), so we opted to head onto our final destination, Moffat.

We checked into our B&B, where we were greeted with tea and lemon drizzle cake. 

Wasn't that a nice treat?

We then headed into the town for a stroll.  The village is nestled in a valley with hills rising up around, and is actually quite a bit larger than what I had anticipated. 

This unique statue stands in the center of town, adorned with colorful flowers at its base. 

I knew that Marty would enjoy this bench that had several eagles carved into it.

There was a WWI memorial

and a lovely clock tower.

I had reserved dinner at Brodies, and, once again, we were fortunate that I did so, because they were fully booked when we arrived. 

This was a unique restaurant, and far different from our usual venue, but I must say, I'm sure that it is the best meal that we have had on this trip!  The attention from the staff was excellent, and the food was fabulous.

The view was pretty nice as well

Once again, the village had the queen's image displayed in various shops, and here is another one that I had yet to see. 

We were returning to our B&B after dinner, when we spotted a crowd standing outside the town hall.  Tiny candles flickered in the dark, then we heard the chiming of the town bell, and a bagpiper began to play while the bell chimed on.  I then realized that there was one ring for each year the queen had served as regent. 

It was truly a touching and memorable experience to witness such a solemn event.  

Tomorrow is the state funeral for the queen, and nearly every establishment will be closed out of respect for her final ceremonies.  Who would have ever dreamed that we would be in this beautiful country for such a historic event? So, rather than fret over cancelled plans, we will make the best out of whatever the day offers us.