I rented a car the other day, and went exploring with Lauren. We are travel journalists based in Carlisle, and to our shame, we've never been into the Lake District before.

So I picked up the Vauxhall Corsa in the morning and off we went, along the scenic route to Keswick. Music on and go! As a rule of thumb, whatever car I drive, it never moves an inch without music!

I hadn't been driving a manual in left-hand traffic since I was last in New Zealand, but it all came back pretty fast. Changing gear with my left instead of right hand, driving on the wrong side... it worked just fine! Although I was extra careful on every corner I turned, not to go into the wrong lane!

It felt great to drive again! I miss the feeling of being on the road, going places. I like exploring, zig-zagging around and taking in the view. I love the freedom the car gives me. I can go wherever I want to go, whenever I want to go. Stop anywhere, take a photo, take a breath and continue. As Captain Jack Sparrow said in Pirates of the Caribbean: "What a ship really is, what the Black Pearl really is - is Freedom!" - To me, that's my car!

So we went to Keswick and got there in time for a Full Cumbrian Breakfast. We found this café on the edge of the pedestrian zone. The "Wild Strawberry" is a quaint, nice place, and the breakfast and hot chocolate was excellent, along with the service. After this, we explored the town. We started at Moot Hall and made our way to the Theatre by the Lake. We're creating the official magazine for the "Words by the Water" festival, which will take place in Keswick at the end of February / beginning of March, and wanted to scout the location a bit.

After taking in the view of Derwent Water for a while, we turned around and went back into town. Lauren got some Vox Pops (on the street interviews, for all you non-journalists out there) for her article, while I went window-shopping and came close to buying a pair of designer wellies.

Being girls, we had a hard time trying to avoid the chocolate shop, so we eventually gave in. "Ye Old Friar of Keswick" is located right next door to Moot Hall and offers chocolate pralinées of all sorts. Still, I bought the most random thing there: A teapot, shaped like a giant dice. I guess I am finally embracing British culture.

In the afternoon, we made our way towards Penrith. It's basically the next bigger town worthy of being called a proper town, south of Carlisle. Without a map, we parked the car near the shopping centre and once again went exploring. Funnily enough, we first of all ended up in an charity shop! Both of us like a good second hand store, so we went inside and each found something we deemed worth of buying. (I don't think I have to mention that once again it was the most random thing??).

We had a stroll through town and ended up at the Arcade for another cup of hot chocolate. The arcade's café is located at the very end and out of the way, but was really nice and good quality!

On the way back to Carlisle (on which I practised drving on the motorway in the UK), we stopped off at Warwick Road Tesco. For once, we had a car and could actually buy as much as we wanted without having to think about how to get everything home. I especially stocked up on drinks (of the non-alcoholic kind). Whenever I'm shopping, I miss having a car. I'd love to be able to "fill her up" and stock up on food and drinks.

The next morning, I was running late returning the car. The windshield was frozen, and I didn't have a scraper, so I had to do it by (gloved) hand. And as if that wasn't trouble enough, just as I was about to pull out of the parking spot, a rubbish truck turned into my street, blocking the way. So I had to go down Tullie Street and from there onto Warwick Road. That was not the problem. The problems started when the street I was supposed to drive through turned out to be closed. Having only been a pedestrian in Carlisle for 1 1/2 years, and knowing the walking shortcuts, left me with a lack of orientation and little knowledge of the street map. I knew I would have to go through Hardwicke Circus Roundabout to return the car, and eventually found my way to Georgian Way and into the roundabout. Roundabouts are not that common in Germany, and over there, you drive through them "the wrong way round". I was glad I made it out of there without a scratch. The rest was kid's play in comparison.

Now that I am in the rental company's database, I think I will be going on more trips. If I can find two or three people to come along, we can split the costs and each pay less than a tenner for a day out. Sounds like a plan to anyone??