Rain and rest and shopping

I went for a run this morning, and in 15 minutes I was surprised to find that I had made it to Rydal, the next village up the Rothay valley. I'd been looking at maps and thinking that was a long way. The whole area strikes me as being remarkably like Princeton, where I grew up in New Jersey. Those of you who also grew up, or lived, there would recognize here the compact stone walls, the nicely finished houses, the deciduous trees, the green fields. Everything is very pretty and genteel. Simultaneously there's the feeling of exclusivity: most of the properties have walls to distance themselves from you and you hardly feel welcome going in a private driveway. Belying the idea that this is a "mountain" region, there was a sidewalk ("pavement") and bus service the whole way. However it being a Sunday morning I saw almost no one. Two other walkers. A farmer feeding his sheep. A heron and a pied wagtail.

Back home, the boys woke up and turned on the telly to find out what had happened in England versus USA. It had been a tie, 1:1.

It was a rainy day, as predicted, and we spent the day lazing about, shopping, figuring out internet and reading. It was lovely. It rained heavily at times, and at others it was almost clearing. But after 10:00, the town was full of people, some dressed in common rainwear, some with very serious outdoorwear, some in windbreakers. There were families with teenagers, groups from Japan, and elderly people. Amazing elderly people. They are almost always wearing backpacks and they are Here To Walk. Apparently the English do not give up when they get old.

I sussed out the wifi internet; there are many choices but the bar of the Queens Hotel is the thing. It's got the table with the outlet and the unencrypted network that the traveller wants. Kate meanwhile took advantage of the copious outdoor retail and sussed out rainwear. She replaced her famous blue raincoat with a lime green one. (She dragged the boys through about twenty stores and they were very good about it). She also did a little pre-birthday investigation regarding what presents she might want. Will found a paperback copy of Arthur Ransome's "Winter Holidays," which is the next book that we need to read in the Swallows and Amazons series. (These books are set here in the Lakes, for any of you unfortunately enough not to have read them. Before we leave I need to go to the lake called Conniston Water and see where Ransome spent his childhood holidays, and the landscape that inspired him to write these wonderful stories.)

In the house, Will and Galen have discovered a little toy roulette game. It has a wheel, chips, and a green felt betting area. I've taught them how to play, and they can't get enough of it. Galen turns out to be a terrible gambler, always betting on the wrong thing and soon out of chips. But Will, frighteningly, is a natural! He always comes away with a large pile of winnings.

The sky cleared at about the end of the day, and we had dinner at home. Started reading Winter Holiday aloud. (We're also in the middle of Prince Caspian.)