The Peak District

Half-term again! Time for the kids and I to go on our annual holiday with Edward's sister, Eleanor. This year's destination was the Peak District - a beautiful National Park in the heart of the UK.

Day 1
We set out on Saturday morning, after Tabitha's ballet class, and stopped off at Warwick (pronounced War-ick) Castle along the way.

Warwick has got to be Britain's most Disneyfied castle. It's full of costumed actors, parades and castle-themed demonstrations (our favorite was the massive trebuchet fireball).






The castle was all decorated up for Halloween.











The spook alley was excellent.

















I need one of these in my yard!








I like to maintain a tough-mama image in front of the kids but, I have to admit, when I turned a dark corner and came face to face with a scary live actor... I screamed. And the sad thing was, he didn't even jump out at me or anything, all he said was, "Hello". Great!! The kids will never let me live this one down!




However frightened I may have been, it was nothing compared to the fear in Dakota's eyes when I asked him to accompany us to The Princess Tower. It was the girliest thing any of us had ever encountered... x10! Here's a description of the attraction:
Here lies the Princess Tower,
An enchanted place with magical power.
Fairy tales, princes and dressing up is the way,
Enter all princesses you’ll have a wonderful day
But it wasn't all bad because watching Dakota's reaction (a mixture of disbelief, pain and nausea) made for great entertainment! Seriously, he looked like he was choking on pink, frilly lace tied into double bows and sprinkled with My Little Pony glitter! At the end of the show all the little princesses were asked to write their heart's dearest desire in a magical wish book. Dakota wrote, "I wish I'd never come to this stupid Princess Tower. And I wish for an iPhone."

After Warwick we headed to Peak District but, by the time we got to the cottage we'd hired, it was dark - so we got a little lost. It didn't help that the place was located on a road that was CLOSED for repairs.

The cottage was cute but had horrible pre-Victorian Euro-plumbing. The shower had zero pressure. We ended up having to use a jug to wash our hair. And I had to buy some of that dry shampoo stuff too!

But at least there was a nice, cozy open fire - even if it did almost kill me when I accidentally threw a lighter in with a wad of paper. I got some sparks to the face when the thing blew but, luckily, my hair didn't catch fire - probably because it was too greasy. Stinkin' shower! I was a little annoyed that Dakota found the explosion the funniest thing ever! I'm going to have to work on that kid's sensitive side.

I took this photo of the cottage keys to prove to Americans that things like this do still exist.







Day 2
We started the day with a visit to Cromford Mill in the famous Derwent Valley. It's a World Heritage Site (along with places like the Egyptian Pyramids and the Acropolis in Athens) because it was the birthplace of the industrial revolution.





Next stop was the Crich Tramway Village. It's a painstakingly restored period village with old fashioned trams and a comprehensive tram museum. And, yes, it IS as dull as it sounds. The old signs in the trams were amusing though.






Moving swiftly along, we stopped to have a look at Haddon Hall. They filmed Jane Eyre here. It was LOVELY!














It's described as the most romantic house in Britain. I believe it!











Last stop of the day was the adorable town of Bakewell in the center of the Peak District. I LOVE Bakewell. And I love Bakewell tarts too. The town is famous for them. We bought one of each of the three varieties and took them back to the cottage for a serious taste test. The first pan to be emptied would win. The verdict:
1st - Bakewell Pudding (top left) Least attractive but most traditional. Very yummy and more-ish!
2nd - Iced Bakwell Tart (bottom right) Least traditional but most widely available. Delicious!
3rd - Bakewell Tart (top right) Traditional but a bit dry. Didn't finish the pan - not even after a week.

Day 3
Today we spent the entire day at Britain's largest theme park, Alton Towers. This was Dakota's choice. He's what we like to call a "rollercoaster bore". Even so, he very sweetly took some time out from the big-boy rides to go on a few kiddie rides with his little sister. Awww.





Eleanor was a great sport to tag along with us all day!












Here's Dakota on one of his insane rides. He's somewhere on the right:



Day 4
I really gotta get one of these contraptions for the kids!



Eyam is a quaint little village with an amazing history. We visited the local museum and here's what I gathered: Back in 1665 when the Black Plague was sweeping through Europe, a tailor from the tiny village of Eyam ordered a box of cloth from London and got more than he bargained for - it came with the plague!




Here's a photo of the original plague cottage.

When the 350 villagers realized they had the plague they isolated themselves with a self-imposed quarantine. I don't even think they allowed doctors in. People from the surrounding area would bring food to the outskirts of town and leave it for the poor villagers but, sadly, only 83 people survived. Talk about self sacrifice!







Just outside the village we visited the Riley Graves where, in 1666, Mrs Hancock buried her husband and six children all within the space of a week! So sad.








After Eyam we needed cheering up. What better than a factory tour?! So we headed to a local Cutlery Factory. It was only a DIY tour but it was still pretty interesting. Dakota stayed in the car. He was having a teenage moment. Or maybe he'd had his fill of factory tours - if that's even possible!! Anyway, when we got back to the car Tabitha said, "Dakota, there were loads of teenage girls and YOU missed them!" In fact, there weren't any teenage girls whatsoever but the girl is her father's daughter and can't let an opportunity like that pass!




The last stop of the day was Castleton, an adorable little town famous for its caves.












This one is called "The Devil's Arse!"















We went down an old flooded lead mine for a spooky, claustrophobic boat ride. Believe me when I say that this tunnel is a lot smaller than it looks.






It was lucky we all had hard hats on because the only one of us who didn't bash their head was Tabs.






Day 5
We kicked off the day with a visit to Arbor Low. They call it the Stonehenge of the North - but these stones have a much more relaxed approach to life.






Next up was Chatsworth. I've wanted to visit this stately home for AGES and, evidently, so has everyone else because it was PACKED! When Jane Austen wrote Pride & Prejudice she was staying in the Peak District and used Chatsworth as her model for Pemberley, Mr. Darcy's house. They even filmed the Kiera Knightly version of Pride & Prejudice at Chatsworth. Here's Tabs in front of the dress that Kiera wore in another movie they filmed here, The Duchess.

And here's Tabs dressing up as a Duchess herself:








Tabitha painstakingly followed the kid's Halloween quiz trail all around the house but was slightly disappointed when the prize ended up being a glimpse of a signed Harry Potter broomstick. Whoop-de-do! She much preferred the adventure playground and farmyard.



Day 6
Today we dropped Dakota off for another day at Alton Towers while we took a scenic drive through Dovedale (famous Compleat Angler fishing spot) and up through Castleton again.













We also drove through Chesterfield where we caught a glimpse of the famous crooked spire. They say it's crooked because the devil wrapped his tail around the spire but the real story has to do with unseasoned wood and a poorly supported understructure.









Day 7
Today we visited two villages...
1) The lovely village of Tissington, famous for well dressing (the practice of decorating wells with flower-based pictures as an offering of thanks for never running dry). Obviously, it's the off-season here.

2) Longnor was adorable. They used it as the set for Lambton in the excellent BBC version of Pride & Prejudice. Can you spot a theme developing here!

And two grand houses...
1) Hardwick Hall was a bit spooky, smelly and absolutely FILLED with tapestries.








2) Sudbury Hall was used for the interior scenes of BBC's Pride & Prejudice. Yes, I'm obsessed! It also had a really great Museum of Childhood. Dakota stayed in the car again. His stately home upper limit had been reached! Heehee.

Then it was time to go home. What a great trip to a LOVELY area of Britain. We'll definitely be back.