Letter 12th October 2008

12th October 2008.

Dear All,

We enjoyed a good week in Cornwall and as reported in the postcards the weather was much better than forecast. We stayed in a very smart house at Gorran Haven for which Gordon managed to get a 25% late booking discount. It had a magnificent view of the harbour of which it would take some time to tire.

View from House


Every route into Gorran Haven involves 5 or 6 miles of narrow lanes and often through Mevagissey which was a constant bottleneck – but all part of the holiday. We arrived in rain having reached Dartmoor in record time then taken “the pretty way”. On Sunday we went to Gorran Haven Baptist Church for their harvest thanksgiving (2 squash and 5 packets of cheese!). We met a couple from Suffolk whose niece comes to our church – small world, at least amongst closet Baptists!
Sunday pm was sunny and bright so we did a 6 mile coast walk towards Mevagissey with excellent views. Bob and Carol’s windscreen wipers broke on the way down so Monday we sought out the nearest Vauxhall agency which proved to be in Truro. As it was a dull day we went to Falmouth taking in Pendennis Castle and the Maritime Museum via Mylor. The museum was good value with collections of boats and all things nautical through the ages and an under sea level basement with glass panels so that you could view seas life like a real time aquarium.
Tuesday was the Eden Project and I was mightily impressed, so many people had said “you will enjoy Heligan more than Eden” that I did not have high expectations. In fact I thought it was excellent with so many hidden twists and extras.



You might have seen this before!


Wednesday was wall to wall sunshine and we headed to St Ives as some of the group wanted to visit the Tate Modern. Kate and I explored the town and it was looking its very best as befits a town that attracts artists because of the quality of the light. The reports on the Tate were not very complimentary but it did open the discussion on art that it was meant to provoke. On the way back we explored the Roseland Peninsula as this is where Kate’s paternal grandfather was born. We found the house, which is at Froe and very grand on the bend of a river. It was being renovated and the builders let us walk round and photograph from all angles.
Thursday we went to Heligan and found the lost gardens. It is splendid and on a Thursday in October far from crowded. It was so good to see a decent vegetable garden at a posh garden! We only spent the morning there as Bob and carol had visited recently and did not accompany us. In the afternoon we did another coastal walk near Veryan to Nare Head – again in sunshine.
Friday was “chill out” morning then to explore Mevagissey and Fowey followed by a meal at the local pub called the “Llawnroc Inn” (think about it)
We left about 9 am Saturday and made a couple of stops. The first was at St Neot near Liskeard on the edge of Bodmin Moor. A new lawn game is sweeping the nation called “Smite”, it is a form of skittles which are struck with a log and then they are stood where they fall. You can score either by counting the number of skittles felled or the score on a single one. I am told it is better after a drink or two. Anyway it is distributed from a farm at St Neot and we called in to this idyllic spot to collect a few that had been ordered from work. We also called in on Jonny Whitfield who grew up opposite in Over and now lives near Sidmouth. We arrived home at 6ish in time for the second half of the England match.


St Ives at it’s best

Love


Mike & Kate