England and Scotland 2011

Last year at about the same time, I left the UK after spending a few months in my sister's place.  It was a much needed refreshing journey for me to put behind the frustration I had over the Tasmanian systems and establishments.

I love travelling and since having moved to Tasmania, this is one thing I miss a lot.  My sister has two kids, both secondary school age, and I took them to Paris and Barcelona.  In August, Mark, my husband, came to visit me and we took my sister's car and drove around in England and Scotland.

Ericka is a city kid and autistic. This trip was very challenging for her. I told her beforehand, it was going to be tough. She rarely exercises or gets close to animals; she has great difficulty balancing herself on rocky/uneven surfaces and she constantly fears that she will fall walking on grassy slopes. Credit to her, she managed well in the end.

This is my travel diary and I would like to share the scenic beauty and culture of the places I visited.

9 August 2011 (Tuesday)

Today, we were supposed to pick up one of Mark’s friends and her mom at the London Heathrow airport.  (They happened to travel from Tasmania to the UK at the same time.) However due to miscommunication, we did not manage and they had to arrange their own transport to their hotel.  This was fortunate as this saved us a trip to London, just to miss the riots. We left Leigh-on-Sea in the morning heading for the Lake District.   

Bowness-on-Windemere, Lake District

This is where we received a ₤60 parking ticket by post after our journey. They did not even bother to book our car on the spot. Once the ticket reaches you, they demand immediate payment or you will have to pay ₤90 within 2 weeks and ₤120 thereafter. Wherever we saw a parking sign, we would pay the fee but there is no sign or no ticket machines at all at where we parked. I did walk around to look for a parking sign or ticket machine.

My sister told me that in many places, there are no longer ticket machines.  You have to call a number to pay (like the toll charges in Victoria and Queensland). They monitor the parking by setting up CCTVs at various junctions recording when a car drove into the area and when it left. This is the case in supermarket/shopping centre carparks too.  If it says max 2 hours, you have to leave within 2 hours or you will get a ticket on the mail.

A friend of mine in London told me to contest and I wrote a complaint letter to the parking company and the British tourism office. The parking company responded by giving us a full refund and I reckon the British tourism office’s response was to bin my letter (as so far we have not heard from them).

Ambleside, Lake District

Ambleside Roman Fort

Kendal Castle


Mark showing off his rock climbing skill



After he had climbed to the top, he had a chat with the local kids



We had dinner in a nice Thai restaurant in Kendal. Food there is good and just look at how they fold the napkins.

好美啊。。我什么时候有机会去玩玩。。哎

Mao 发表于 2012-8-25 18:43
好美啊。。我什么时候有机会去玩玩。。哎

Save some money (these days it is cheap to travel in Europe) and apply for holiday and just go. Travel as much as you can when you are still healthy and fit.

ceciliachiu 发表于 2012-8-25 18:53
Save some money (these days it is cheap to travel in Europe) and apply for holiday and just go. Tr ...

For him, the first criteria is probably much easier to meet than the 2nd one. hahaha... holiday holiday holiday. :P