On Saturday we left Edinburgh and traveled to Keswick (pronounced Kes-ick).  It is in the Lake District of Cumbria, famous for its lakes (of course), mountains, hiking, and ale. There is so much hiking near us, it’s a bit overwhelming. This morning we went on an 8 mile hike and only got halfway around the Derwent Water lake. We took some beautiful pictures. It’s hard to really capture how big the sky and mountains are.

On Sunday we went to Buttermere–all the place names here seem to sound either vaguely profane or just plain adorable. Buttermere. The rain was intense and made for a less than ideal experience at the end, although we had a great time in the beginning and, even in the rain, it was very beautiful and worth the amble.

There was some kind of swim race going on. The water must have been freezing.

Keswick is famous for its dogs–it has been voted the most dog-friendly city in the UK on many occasions. For my part, I have never seen so many affluent dogs in my life. I’ve even seen some wearing little plaid mackintoshes to keep the rain off them; all they would need is a couple pairs of wellies to complete the outfit. Dogs are permitted in all the buildings–store signs like “Dogs allowed with well-behaved owners” abound and there are even dog menus at restaurants. For those of you who know your oldies, I’ve been stupidly singing “Surf City” by the Beach Boys with “Dog” substituted in whenever possible (e.g. Two girls dogs for every boy…). Makes the song a little less heteronormative. 🙂

There are also a lot of domestic animals in general. Look at them Buttermere sheep staring at us. Makes you want to watch “Babe,” doesn’t it?

And some happy pigs by the side of the road, snuggling together against the rain.