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Mike Ward 4 |
| Gender: | Male | | Lives in: | United Kingdom | | Registered: | 05 September 2002 | | Last visit: | 16 April 2007 |
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| Windermere Review: Rain, chintz and chips | | Written by Mike Ward 4 on 09 Sep 2004 about a trip in Aug 2004.
| Rain, chintz and chips
In the Lake District it rains. I mean it rains a lot. I have been there three times in my life and it has never not rained. Located in Cumbria in the North West of the UK, this is a land of sturdy footwear where the kagool is king. Hill walking and rambling are the key activities, trekking over a terrain of lakes, streams and hills. The Lake District National Park is 855 square miles in size, and the largest English National Park. The area around Grasmere, Ambleside, Coniston & Windermere forms the hub of the tourist activity. These towns appear not to have moved on much since the 1970s. Pubs with wood chip on the walls and men with beards who drive MGs and refuse to drink anything unless it has twigs in it. Signs for B&Bs that enthuse about ‘colour television’ in your room and Beatrix Potter still rules supreme over Disney.
In the towns every other shop seems to be an outdoor clothing shop, which is understandable as anything that isn’t waterproof won’t last five minutes in this part of the UK. If you’re not one of those hardy souls who enjoys nothing better than donning all weather clothing and wandering through bracken into a rainstorm then the Lake District is probably not for you. There isn’t that much else to do here. There are things like lake cruises, slate mines to visit and steamboat museums, but it is all a bit twee and to be honest, dull.
In the towns, aside from the outdoor clothing shops, there is the usual touristy array of tat on sale - novelty confectioners, gift shops and so on - and fast food. Now the fast food shops are indicative of the philosophy of the Lakes. You will not find McDonalds, Burger King or Pizza Hut here - I’d imagine because the powers-that-be refuse them licences on the grounds they aren’t in keeping with the area. So, apart from the ubiquitous fish and chip shops, we are left with an array of rather second rate fast food outlets serving their own distinctively poor style of burgers and pizzas. I’m no fan of fast food but if you are going to allow outlets at least allow the good ones and cut the pretentiousness about tradition.
If you are a foody and willing to explore, there are some great eating establishments at reasonable prices to be found, and I’ve written some reviews in the restaurant guide. Because of the tourist trade a number of high class restaurants were established and over the years the people who worked in them have branched out on their own, resulting in lots of nice eating establishments dotted all over the area at what can be termed the mid-price range. Indeed most of my long weekend was spent either eating or sheltering.
The Lake District tries so hard to be traditional and retain its chintzy charm that it is sadly endanger of becoming a parody of its self. By detaching from what it perceives as the vices of 21st century tourism, it may well transform into the theme park it so desperately wants to avoid becoming. |
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