Made it to the Starting Line

Well, all went according to plan to get us to the starting point in St. Bees.  A smooth flight from Calgary to Amsterdam and then from Amsterdam to Manchester.  We only got lost once in Amsterdam airport; I think that speaks well of our navigation skills which will be required over the coming few weeks.  Oh - and we almost missed boarding our second plane as we sat happily chatting and passing the time in a spot just down the hall from where we really needed to be.  When did they stop announcing that they were in the process of boarding flights??  Once safely on the ground in Manchester, Marilyn (who arrived from NZ the previous day) greeted us and guided us on to the proper train, and we were off to St. Bees.  It's a good thing we have a van transporting our luggage each day.  Nony was our hero, with only an 11kg bag, until we met up with Marilyn who will be away from home for over 4 months and has just a tiny suitcase on wheels that I couldn't live out of for a weekend!

Total travel time for us was about 20 hours; close to 24 for Marilyn.  So - Wednesday is a rest day.  A leisurely breakfast at the hotel, a visit to the historic St. Bees Priory and a stroll by the ocean (Irish Sea) completed our day.  It started raining towards the end of our walk so, while we had the option, we retreated indoors for a good portion of the afternoon. Everything is amazingly green, the flowers are fragrant and many sheep and cows dot the hillsides. Really looking forward to starting the walk tomorrow.  Wifi is a bit sketchy at the Fairladies Barn (our B&B), so hopefully this will post.