Weekend in Cornwall, Part 2

The picture on your right is from a pedestrians-only street (the best kind, in my opinion) in Saint Ives, Cornwall. AKA my hometown, someday! Honeymoon spot, at least.

So, we began the next day's adventures by boarding the coach at 10:00 AM. I didn't actually fall asleep on this initial journey, though I would later- sleeping soundly on coach buses has become an art form for me. As we drove I kept an eye out for the ocean, while we passed through yet more green, rolling countryside. The land in Cornwall is speckled with tall towers made from stone or brick, which I later learned are chimneys from abandoned tin mines. They make for interesting, albeit strange, landmarks. Driving through Cornwall now you would never know about its industrial past- Cornwall used to provide most of the tin and china clay supply for the world in the 2oth century. Now it's just pretty to look at.

When I could finally see the blue of the ocean again, we disembarked at a place called Land's End. Not only is Land's End a catalogue of practical yet stylish outdoor apparel, it is literally land's end: the very southernmost point in England. The scenery was spectacular, and the water seemed even more blue than in Newquay. I got some wonderful pictures, and even a couple of videos for a more live experience. Laura and I strayed from the group and explored a bit more extensively, as usual. We also found our way to a playground with a small zipline, which was sooo much fun. I wish I would've captured the experience on tape. I wandered off by myself in search of food and returned with a bottle of water and some yogurt-covered raisins; a bit of sustenance until St. Ives. I also sampled some delicious cornish fudge, courtesy of Dan and Mike. Mmm.

Arriving in Saint Ives, another beautiful view of the ocean met us, along with what appeared to be a thriving coastal town. We took a shuttle from the car park to the center of town and were set loose. After wandering through busy streets crowded with people, and cars wending their way through all of the people, we ended up on a busy, pedestrian-only street lined with cafes and shops. We ate at Skys Cafe, where we sampled some traditional Cornish Fares. Kelly, Laura and I all ordered the steak and Stilton pasty. A pasty is usually filled with meat, potato and cheese or onion and baked in a thick crust. It's shaped like a half moon and is easy to pick up and eat. Aubree, Danielle and Sam opted for the cream tea: a cup of tea served with two scones. The two scones come with clotted cream and jam. We all tried each other's food and everything was delicious!

We split up later, with Kelly, Danielle and I opting out of shopping in favor of exploring the beautiful beaches. We walked down the tall, stone dock and felt the wind whip over us while we heard the crashing of the waves far down the shore; exhilarating! It was a long, long way down from the docks to the water; the tide must come up very high and go down quite low. We rolled up our jeans and walked down the beach, passing buoys and boats lying on their bellies, enjoying the wind and the sunshine. (Oh yeah, the weather this weekend was fantastic; they told us to dress warmly because it was freezing, and so I spent most of the weekend being uncomfortably warm.) We took some more photos and lamented that we couldn't stay, then trudged unhappily back to the shuttle. I wanna go baaaaaaack.

More beach adventures in a separate post. Hulluva weekend, huh?