Cornwall

Wednesday, June 4th:  According to legend, there are apparently evil spirits around called spriggis that wish to be children and will take a child's spirit if he/she has not been baptised. Part of moorland lore, no doubt!  The River Tamar divides Devon and Cornwall and so we travelled over Bodmin Moor, 80 square miles of remote heather-covered granite moorland, where more ponies graze than sheep. It is not as rugged as Dartmoor.  It is well-known for its two highest tors: Rough Tor and Brown Willy and it was once heavily mined for its vast quantities of tin and copper.

We stopped at the ancient Cornish capital market town of Launceston (pronounced Launston) or its Cornish name of Lannstevan named after St Stephen's monastery which founded the settlement.  It was teeming with people and we only had time for a nice lunch (delicious squash soup for me with crusty bread) and thus unable to visit the market itself with its many intriguing and beckoning wares.

We stopped at Camlann, Slaughterbridge, where a 6th century stone marks the legendary site of the final and ferocious battle between King Arthur (below) and the evil Mordred in AD 537. Mordred is said to be the illegitimate son of Arthur and his half-sister, Morgan le Fey. 

This battle ended the fellowship of the Round Table. The video and artifacts were very interesting but the walk around the trail where the battle took place was very disappointing and especially when the heavens opened and I had to make mad dash for about 5 or more minutes to the coach!!  We moved on to Boscastle (Kastel Bolerel) a small village and fishing port but we decided as a group to move onto Tintagel or Trevena (Tre war Venydh) known as a village on a mountain.  The castle ruins are associated with King Arthur and are one of the most-visited places in the UK.  See below.

Because it was cold and I was still wet I opted to have a hot cuppa and a scone, with clotted cream and strawberry jam, of course, and was joined by several of our group!  Bill chose to go off

by himself as he does not eat dairy. After such delicious culinary fortification and an uplifting of spirits, I spent the rest of the hour shopping and buying the local honey and some expensive Irish

linen (much better than Cornish linen as the shop lady told me).

Port Isaac – the beach.

Our last stop was to Port Isaac, a small fishing village and the home of Doc Martin.  It was a very steep hilly walk down to the village and now a dark, gloomy, and spitting day.  My new umbrella blew inside out and had to be tossed.  We saw all the places mentioned in the BBC series but everything was so much smaller and closer than on the screen.  The heavens opened as we struggled up the same steep hill and so we were drenched and arriving back on the road we found that the coach had disappeared so we sheltered in a hedge.  Much laughter though and good humour!  Better than crying!

After this we departed to Falmouth (Abelfala), a town and port on the River Fal.  It was getting late so we decided after checking in to our B&B, the Ivanhoe Guesthouse, (also lovely) to go down to the waterside restaurants and have fish and chips at the one of the famed Rick Stein's restaurant (not the one at Padstow).  Bill had met Rick Stein at a food show that we went to some years ago and he gave Bill his cell number and said there would always be a seat for him).  Everything was mouth-watering and the restaurant was crowded.

Thursday, June 5th: 

A beautiful day and we set off for St Michael's Mount (Karrek Loos yn Koos meaning grey rock in the woods) steeped in legend and folklore.  Like Mont St Michel in France it can be reached between mid-tide and low water.  In 1954, Francis St. Aubyn, the 3^rd Lord St. Levan, gave this craggy castle and island with a large endowment to the National Trust retaining a 999-year lease for his family to live there. We were unable to visit because of the tide but if you go you can imagine the mythical giant who used to wade ashore and steal cattle until he was lured into a pit and slain.  It is also said that the Archangel St. Michael appeared in the year 495 to fishermen. 

Minack Theatre

We visited the Minack (meaning a rocky place) Theatre which is built into the cliff and open to the elements with a superb view of the ocean.  It was planned, built, and financed by a determined Derbyshire woman, Rowenna Cade. 

Mousehole

We stopped at Mousehole (Porthenys) and pronounced 'mauzel', a very hilly and small village and port.  Really picturesque!   Here there was time for a light lunch and some more Cornish cream and scones. On to Porthcurno (Porthkornow), another small village and port and known years ago for its international communications’ cable station.  We passed through Penzance (Pennsans), a large town and port, but, unfortunately, no swashbuckling and handsome pirates to be seen anywhere to carry one off though I looked! 

St. Ives (Porth la) is a busy seaside tourist spot and was crowded. We wandered around at leisure and found time for a cuppa and other Cornish pastries.  There is the 1825 nursery rhyme that many of you, hopefully, know.

St Ives

As I was going to St. Ives
I met a man with seven wives
Each wife had seven sacks
Each sack had seven cats
Each cat had seven kits
Kits, cats, sacks, wives
How many were going to St. Ives?  (I know the answer).

Land's End (Penn an Wlas) was our final stop, sunny and windy. It is the most south-westerly point of Cornwall and you can go no further unless by boat. In ancient Greek times it was referred to as Belerion, place of the sun.  The famous Land’s End signpost is the iconic attraction.  

 

 

It is also an important plant area. It is very commercialized with restaurants, the Westcountry

Shopping Village, individual shops, and four pay-as-you-go family attractions.  We did have an

engaging talk with a Welsh couple who speak their language fluently and told us that it is now taught in Welsh schools and making a come-back.  The Cornish language has many similarities as the earliest language was apparently Welsh (no vowels used - only 'y' ).  Cornish people consider Cornwall their own 'country' not county.  Back to our B&Bs and again to Rick Stein's restaurant for a different fish and, for me, vegetables. 

Friday, June 6th:  Back to Victoria, London, via Bodmin Moor again. We saw Colliford Lake (the largest lake in Cornwall) where King Arthur, supposedly, pulled out Excalibur.  We stopped in Glastonbury, Somerset, a beautiful town but known as New Age because of its shops with legendary and occult items for sale.  Joseph of Arimathea visited and apparently stuck his staff in the ground where it miraculously flowered and became known as the Glastonbury Thorn. This flowers twice a year and has been grafted to make new plants. This is said to have brought on Christianity into Britain.  We found a small delightful restaurant hidden in an alleyway where we had tasty soups and salads, sandwiches, and, guess what??  Scones again.  We stopped at Stonehenge in Wiltshire.  I remember visiting as a child and wandering at will around the stones savouring their history. Now you pay a vast sum, take a small train, and look at them from outside a fence.  These ancient stones are believed to have been built between 3000-2000 BC.  Radio carbon in 2008 suggests that the first stones were between 2400-2200 BC. It is also thought to be a burial ground. The site is owned by the Crown and administered by the National Trust.

We were back at Victoria in the late afternoon after a wonderful trip.  We had another night in London, onto Dorking, Surrey, by train to celebrate Pam and Jo’s delightful 50^th wedding

anniversary at a gorgeous hotel/restaurant in the midst of the Sussex Downs on a wonderfully

Joe and Pam

        

Pam

sunny day. 

Then another train ride to Newport Pagnell for a picnic lunch with my nephew, Chris, and his wife, Tessa. We stayed a night with Anne and Gregory nearby and had a 9-hour drive to

House in Triel

Triel-sur-Seine (NW of Paris) the next day where we enjoyed a leisurely 4-day lying-about-visit tasting French delicacies, picnics in their garden,

 

Anne’s superb cooking, and visits to several restaurants. Charles de Gaulle airport had its idiosyncrasies but we arrived home safely on June 14^th.

Congratulations!  You made it.  Reward your self with …. yes, scones and toppings!

My 50 years in this country, Andrew’s belated 30th, and Andrew and Jenn’s house warming.

50 Years in America!

After a wonderful week of super weather before as well as afterwards, Saturday, August 23^rd , produced a cold, damp, and RAINY day.  Bill, Michael (nephew), Kitty (wife), Kerry (daughter) and I drove up to Martinsburg, West Virginia, to collect 13 huge platters of food.  Since the boot was full of chairs, we had to stack the platters 3 deep on our laps and it was quite a feat to remain comfortable for another 25 minutes of driving to Hedgesville where Andrew and Jenn live.  Twice we stopped and persuaded Bill to tie red, white, and blue balloons securely on two of the country roads’ sign posts so they would not fall off.  Alex (who had managed by the seat of his pants to get a flight to Dulles the night before and then drive on to Andrew’s) and Andrew had already put up large green signs to help everyone arrive.

Food Platters on Everyone's Laps

Then, after removal of the platters, we dashed out of the rain into the LARGE tent that I had rented and spent the next hour putting out the food, the drinks and other beverages, ice, the variety of 220 cookies I had baked, and the two long sheet cakes (one a white cake that had balloons on it and ‘Happy Birthday Alex and Andrew’ with a die-for thick rich chocolate filling and the other that was a carrot cake with a raspberry and cheese filling that said ’Congratulations Cherry, Andrew, and Jenn’) that had just been delivered.  Alex, Andrew, and Jenn had been running around to get the big tractor out by the entrance to the drive and which was filled with flowers with a welcoming sign.  The house was spotless and the grounds well weeded, grass cut, and decorated with flowering baskets.

The rain had subsided which was a blessing but it was still quite damp.  People started arriving though some had been held up by torrential rain on the highway.  About 65 friends and family showed up.  Mike made a toast after we had started eating, I followed explaining all the difficulties I had encountered in coming to and arriving in the States (such as not being met at the still-being-built Dulles because the Headmaster had forgotten I was coming, very little money for a taxi so I had to exchange some English pounds, being let off at the wrong spot, and then finding that my 3^rd grade teaching position (8 yr olds) had been given to someone else and I was now going to teach pre-schoolers), and finally Alex ended with a few words of welcome.

The Tent

Speeches

Group Shots

The rest of the afternoon was full of chatter, laughter, swimming in the pool (mostly children), playing games on the grass, bluegrass music, and later some fireworks.  Despite the weather, it was a wonderful celebration and such a delight to see so many friends and family members.  I was so glad and appreciative that they had persevered with the weather for the 2 plus hours’ drive.

We tidied up before we left though Andrew and Jenn had about 14 people staying overnight and they had to go inside and not tent outside because it started to rain again.  A huge breakfast was cooked the following morning before everyone left to go home.

I collapsed on the Tuesday after my company left and I am sure Andrew and Jenn did the same.  They worked so hard to get the place and house in great order made more stressful with Andrew’s military trip extending from 8 days to 3 weeks.  He arrived late on the Monday before and had so much to do to get the place ready.  Jenn had cleaned the house from top to bottom and, of course, because of the rain a lot of mown grass and mud got trekked all over the house.

It all worked out!  Hurrah and blessings and thanks to Bill, Mike, Kitty, Kerry, Alex, and Mom who helped Andrew and Jenn get everything ready in time.