the flat

i will post pictures soon. i promise. once i can get my computer and the internet to be friends...

meanwhile, this blog seems to be turning into the 'people who are nice' blog. today: the mardale guest house and my new landlord.

when i found out that i was getting my flat on saturday i was super-pumped, but also a touch nervous. my booking at the mardale only took me as far as thursday night (checkout by 10 on friday...) and it was already thursday afternoon. trouble. so. i sent the good folks at mardale a quick email saying i'd chat with them once i'd returned that evening, but might they be able to keep me for one more night, please please please? i remembered that when booking online they had not had vacancies beyond my three nights, but i hoped.

when i returned later that day owner dougie and his wife popped out of their suite as i entered. hi hi! all very friendly. they explained that they had received my email, and hadn't planned on having anyone in the hotel over the weekend. they had a family wedding (their eldest daughter, i believe) on friday. they had much to do, and so on. but, BUT, they'd be more than happy to have me stay the night all the same. they very very sorry to say they couldn't promise me breakfast on saturday morning, because, well... wedding the night before. didn't actually require any explanation. yay! so i settled up my bill after breakfast on friday morning, and wished them well with the wedding. that night i came home to a fully tidied room. (they really didn't have to. i'm sure they had planned not to deal with hotel stuff at all that day, and lord knows i can stay in the same room two nights in a row without needing things refreshed.) they also left a little breakfast - granola bar and banana, along with the daily provided shortbread biscuits. all very thoughtful. so. if you're ever in town. you should stay with them. they're great. thanks dougie and wife (sorry i never learned you name...)

and my landlord(s). technically jim is my landlord, but his sister handles a lot of the house stuff, too, and was the one who showed me the flat. they had arranged two (two!) big bouquets of lilys in the windows for my arrival. and. a loaf of bread. half pint of milk. butter. packet of tea. (actually two packets. one caffeine free.) box of biscuits. sugar. and a brand new, still in the packet set of bedding. sigh. i'm waiting for the horrible landlords i hear about all the time. i'm waiting and i'm scared. because i've had two years in a row of awesome landlords, and before that uncle peter who we can't really call a landlord, but was great to rent from for sure... it just seems too good. but i won't complain.

the bike station was also full of nice people. but sadly not full of (available) bikes. i didn't get there till about 11:20am, and they open at 10:30. seems you have to be there around 10 to get a decent place in the que, to allow for any option at all... next week i will be there by 9:30. just to be sure. because man i have the most sore of shankles from all this walking.