SOUTH WEST ENGLAND–PART II

22 JUNE 2023, Leeds, England

Continuing our time with dear friends Karyl and Paul, the four of us spent 3 days traveling to and around Cornwall (about 2 hours west), taking in the rugged coastal beauty, the charming small hillside towns (with VERY narrow streets in and between many of them), the rolling hills covered with light green and yellow grasses and often divided by bright green hedges or lush dark green trees. Everywhere we looked, the scenery was breathtaking. We also loved the stone houses, some with thatched roofs.

Our first stop was in the small town of Boscastle in North Cornwall where we had a wonderful “carvery” lunch at a local pub, watched a school fund-raiser’s “Duck Races” and visited the Witchcraft Museum…very interesting. We then went on to our first overnight stop at Tintagel, the mythical birthplace of King Arthur, and a world-wide center for tin mining in the 18^th Century. I loved all the stone walls. We also walked to an amazing hotel called Camelot Castle, with spectacular views of the Atlantic Ocean and coastline.

Having watched a fabulous movie together called “Fisherman’s Friends” (about a group singing sea shanties who were discovered in Port Isaac and are still quite famous in the UK), we’d hoped to have lunch in Port Isaac, but there were so many tourists we couldn’t even find a parking place. (I guess it must be the beginning of tourist season—this was the first town we’d been in that was so crowded.) So we went on to another delightful fishing village called Padstow that we absolutely loved….fewer people (with many, many dogs!), a working harbor with an old lock, lots of  little shops and pubs on small, twisting streets. Lots of character as well as delicious food at one of Rick Stein’s seafood restaurants (very famous chef in the UK).

From there we drove to our next destination, the funky harbor town of Newlyn and then to nearby Land’s End—the most south-westerly point of Britain’s mainland. It’s become quite a tourist attraction, but we got there late afternoon and there were very few people. We’re told it’s very windy there most of the time, but we enjoyed a gentle sea breeze. It’s pretty amazing to realize that there is only the Atlantic Ocean between Land’s End and New York City (3,147 miles). It is also 874 miles to John O’Groats, the north-eastern-most point in Scotland (where we plan to be in a few weeks!). We’re really glad we were able to experience this part of England…and are so very grateful that Karyl & Paul were willing to plan this whole segment and drive us there.

In Newlyn, we stayed above a bar called The Swordfish Inn right across from the harbor (our window is above the sign, below) and then walked up the hill to a charming restaurant overlooking the harbor (Fisherman’s Arms). Gary enjoyed one of his favorite meals—fresh lobster right out of the bay nearby. They called it a “crawfish.” See for yourself!

       

The next morning we were delayed in leaving because there was a truck blocking our way (above) delivering over 30 kegs of beer to the Inn (plus several cases) and taking back the empties. They deliver this amount every week!

On our way back to Collumpton we enjoyed more of the wonderful rolling hills that became even greener and lusher as we crossed back from County Cornwall to County Devon. We stopped for lunch in the picturesque village of Bickleigh where we were greeted by a beautiful peacock. The town is famous for its 14^th Century bridge over the River Exe. It is here that Paul Simon was inspired to write his famous “Bridge Over Troubled Waters.”

We loved Cornwall, but we were happy to get back “home” to Karyl & Paul’s. We were all a bit weary after our 500+ mile road trip and took good naps. Gary, K & P went off to a church meeting that evening and then had a lively discussion about religion, politics and lots more before retiring. I took time to simply “be” and went to bed early…all part of my self-care!

Our last day, we joined K&P at a monthly meeting of their U3A group (University of the 3^rd Age), “an international movement whose aims are education and stimulation of mainly retired members of the community—those in their third age of life.” It was a delightful crowd and they had an amazing variety of special interest groups. I wonder if there’s anything like this in the USA. I think it started in France, but there are apparently groups over much of the world. Has anyone ever heard of U3A? Their tagline is “learn, laugh, live”…right up my alley! We then had the best dinner of the whole trip at The Olive Well (a 2-block walk)  and then did a brief Solstice Ritual in the bountiful garden before packing and getting ready for the next chapter of this amazing “holiday” (the Brit word for vacation).  On we go taking two days by train to get to England’s Lake District.