The Long Journey Home

After two wonderful weeks in England, including three nights in the Lake District, we left Crofton Cottage and began our journey home.

Before making our way south toward Manchester, we made a stop at Holker Hall - the home of Lord and Lady Cavendish.  The family still lives in the home so in addition to the gorgeous furniture, paintings, and tapestries you would normally find in a stately home, we also got to see their family photos - all without any barriers allowing us to explore the entirety of the rooms.  Holker is known for its gardens and Ava was able to run around and see some of the flowers beginning to bloom.

As we approached Manchester, we made a brief detour to walk around the Reebok Stadium, the home of Bolton Wanderers, and the site where Chelsea clinched its 2005 championship (their first in 50 years).  The Reebok is located right next to a massive retail park and we stopped in at Asda (sort of like the UK version of Wal-Mart or Target) to get some sweets and other groceries that we can't find at home.

After a night near the Manchester airport, we made our long journey through O'Hare and finally to LAX.  Even though we were stuck in coach on old 757s without individual TVs, and even though Ava's DVD player ran out of juice, she was a great little traveller.