We opted for a cheap breakfast at Weatherspoons, pancakes for four of us, naturally, and bacon and egg wraps for Grant and Marni. It was not too bad either, and filled a void before our next eating experience.
I had discussed with Grant that we should stop at Leeds, so I could go to the Apple store, to get my iPad fixed, on our way to Bakewell, but he didn't seem that keen about driving in the centre of town. I must admit, I haven't even attempted to drive at all yet, let alone in the city centres, and we think Albany has too many roundabouts, well England is absolutely full of roundabouts!! Everywhere you look there is another roundabout, and they don't have islands in the middle like ours, they just have circles on the ground! However they are all well signed, and the majority of English drivers are very, very polite! Anyway it was decided that Leeds would not be a good idea (sorry Karen!), and we typed Bakewell into "Gertie" and off we went, hoping that she would take us the correct way!
Driving down the M1 was excellent, we came across no roadworks, we travelled around the outskirts of towns such as Leeds, Dewsbury and Barnsley, before we turned off onto the A6178 and "Gertie" kindly took us right through the centre of Sheffield, a rather large industrial city, with plenty of roundabouts, and lots of cars, the one thing that Grant was trying to avoid!
However, he managed it amazingly well, no arguments, and as we started to wind our way out of Sheffield we could see that we were making our way into some beautiful countryside. Then the fog came... Which made it even more difficult to drive, but the feel became very majestic, and we all started to feel like we had discovered a part of England, that would be etched into our minds forever.
We arrived at our destination, just before lunch, we parked and embarked from the car to find a very radical change in the weather. It was now 8c with a very cold wind, and drizzling with rain. However this didn't dampen our spirits as we knew we had come to a lovely town in Bakewell right in the Peak District, and for all Pride and Prejudice fans, we were not far from Chatsworth House, the setting for the well known Pemberley Estate, the home of Mr Darcy, in the 2005 film.
Hungry and ready to eat, we did a quick "trip advisor" check, and came across the third best cafe in town, which was right across the road from us, called The Lavender Tea Rooms. Lots of lovely cakes, and mismatched china, I had the smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel which was delicious, the coffee... not so good, and we are still to find coffee as good as the coffee at Three Anchors, the Spring Espresso in York was close, but doesn't even really compare!
From here it was a quick walk around, as we were sure it had dropped another 2c. I had spied a little alley filled with shops, and to Grants great delight as he walked around the corner, there was a whiskey shop! It was very nice inside, and warm!! The lad on the other side of the counter was very chatty, picked up on the Aussie accent, and was quick to say, "You must have family in Great Britain, as this is the only reason you would be here!", followed by a bag out of the English cricket team. Lots of laughs and a quick sample of the whiskey on sale, Grant made his purchase, and we were on our way again, reluctantly out into the freezing cold!
A quick photo opportunity of "the cherubs" to send to Mum and Dad via Whatsap, and we were back in the car, punched Penkridge into "Gertie" and we were on our way. I must say "Gertie" has been good to us so far, but boy did she take us on some back country roads as we weaved our way home. We definitely felt like we were in "All Creatures Great and Small" country, with the rock walls, rolling hills, with ewes and lambs, and dairy cows everywhere. Through little places such as Ipstones, Froghall, Cheadle and Stone we drove, then onto the M6 bypassing Stafford and then home into Penkridge.
I had been checking on my phone, train times to Birmingham, as I still desperately wanted to get my iPad looked at, and the nearest Apple Store was at the Bullring Shopping Precinct, right at the New Street train station. So we quickly dropped off our bags and got Gary to drop Grant, Marni, Ashleigh and I at the Penkridge train station, and we caught the 4.16pm train to Birmingham. We quickly walked through to the Apple Store, which was absolutely manic, people everywhere, but I persisted, and finally after waiting nearly an hour, someone helped me. As it turned out it was my charger that was causing the problem, so after purchasing a UK charger, and a quick stop in a fantastic shoe store (where I bought my new boots), a quick grocery shop at Tesco, and we were back on the train at 7.09pm and home again to Penkridge by 7.30pm!
After what was an exhausting day, it was time for bed, and hopefully a sleep in for us all!!
Highlights
* Grant driving through Sheffield
* Bakewell (Home of the Bakewell Pie)
* The many back country roads that Gertie took us on!!
* Getting my iPad fixed!!
Lots of Love,
Chrissie xx
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