Sheffield, Peak District & Bakewell

Last week my boyfriend and I went to visit Sheffield - one of the eight largest regional English cities that make up the Core Cities Group, the most economically important English cities outside of London (next to Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle and Nottingham).



As we're not normally interested in shopping, we decided to explore the city's architecture. Although we've noticed an architectural clash, a combination of out-dated and futuristic buildings that we like, we couldn't find anything interesting in this city. Except for Sheffield County Hall, an example of Victorian era Gothic revival architecture that we found amazing and breathtaking, we couldn't find anything else that could encourage us to stay longer in the city than an hour. Quite disappointing.

However, we knew that Bakewell is not far away (thirteen miles to be exact). Bakewell is the only market town within Peak District National Park. Thanks to a great location on the River Wye, and beautiful courtyards, independent shops and cafes, Bakewell is an attractive and hugely popular destination for tourist to the Peak District.
However, Bakewell is best known for a confection made by mistake. In the 19th century, a cook at the Rutland Arms was baking a jam tart but misunderstood the recipe and so Bakewell Pudding was made. If you've never tried Bakewell Pudding, it's actually a familiar pastry with jam but the top is made from eggs and almonds and baked so it has a caramelised taste. Delish! Standing in the queue and waiting to buy two Bakewell Puddings, we couldn't resist looking and eventually buying other pies. We decided to also get a Beef and Onion Pie and Chicken and Mushroom Pie.
It was getting dark when we visited Bakewell, but still busy with many shops open including typical tourist ones, a few high street names like Fat Face, Millets and Thorntons, charity shops and secondhand bookshops.

We drove from Sheffield to Bakewell situated right in the heart of  Peak District National Park. On our way to Bakewell, we stopped a few times just to admire the breathtaking views of this beautiful area. We even drove up the hill and met highland cows, long-haired with huge horns originated in the Highlands and Western Isles of Scotland. They turned out to be fascinating but quite stubborn creatures which we had to politely ask to move off the road. :)