We met David, who was our guide for the day, in the lobby right after breakfast.  For the first couple of hours, he drove on the back roads of the Lake District, explaining the area and stopping to let us see examples of the views.

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About an hour and a half into our ride, I needed the bathroom.  He stopped at the most unique rest stop we have ever seen.  His directions were to go down the hill and then under an old stone arched bridgeway.  I walked through the glass double doors into the most modern rest stop/mall I have ever seen.  He gave us 15 minutes to look around and explore.  Linda H. and I bought warm clothing from one of the stores.  

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Next, we visited the Hadrian’s Wall, an English Heritage Site: “Marching 73 miles from coast to coast, Hadrian’s Wall was built to guard the wild north-west frontier of the Roman Empire. Discover the remains of the forts and towns that once kept watch over the Wall. See rare Roman artifacts and take in spectacular views of the rugged landscape.”
We viewed parts of the wall along the road and then an area that once had been a fort before being turned into a variety of living situations. ​

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The next stop was the Lanercost Priory, the best-preserved monastery in Cumbria. We had lunch in the Priory Tea Room before going to the monastery.  It was only a few steps from the tea room, but it started to rain.  Since the monastery ruins were mostly outside, we elected to skip that and toured the old church before leaving.  I did learn something I hadn’t realized; a prior or prioress is in charge of a priory while an abbot is responsible for an abbey. I thought this very interesting.  

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We headed back to the Lake District. We were supposed to visit the Senhouse Roman Museum at Maryport, but time had gotten away from us.  The last stop of our tour was in Windermere to walk around the area visiting the cute shops along the main streets.  David parked near the public toilets which I thanked him for! He said you had to pay a 50-cent piece to use the bathroom.  I dug one out of my purse only to find the process was different from what he told us. It still cost 50 cents, but you paid it with a credit card.  After a quick walk up one street and down the next, we headed back to the hotel.
Dinner that night was at Gilpin Spice, two AA Rosette open kitchen serving pan-Asian cuisine. It was one of the restaurants associated with our hotel.   We met in the lobby for the walk across the parking lot and wouldn’t you know it was raining!  We borrowed hotel umbrellas and quickly made a beeline for the door. Once seated at a very long table, we placed drink orders and looked at some intriguing food choices on the menu.  The food was as interesting as the menu but for some meals, you needed a magnifying glass to see it on your plate.  I ordered a crab dish that was gone in three bites and cost £12.00 British pounds which is approximately $16.00.  
I got up to find the bathroom which took a few minutes.  At first, I had a little trouble figuring out which was the women’s room and which was the men’s. This is what I saw:
It took a few minutes to discern the M and the W, but isn’t it clever?
​Back at the hotel, it was time to pack.  Tomorrow was the next transition day, and we were headed to the Cotswolds. To get there, we rode on two trains changing in the middle of the busy station.