My memories of childhood holidays in Cornwall are vague to say the least but I think we went there at least twice, and stayed on the same farm on both occasions. I'm sure we had a good time but my memory is shocking and doesn't improve with age. I do recall the burly - and somewhat grubby - farmer we stayed with and I remember him squashing a bluebottle on his net curtains. We all posed for a photo and my sister stood on the back of a rather large sow. I'm sure my parents still have that photo tucked away somewhere.
We played on the farm, chased chickens, and went out and about in Cornwall with my parents, though where we went to is now lost in the mists of my grey matter. I do remember looking for the giant's heart in the cobbles of St Michael's Mount and I remember too, the dead mouse under the table in the cafe we stopped off at on one of those cold and wet days which, often characterise holidays in England during the summer. Now, some decades since I was last in Cornwall, I have just returned from a week there and, before I forget where we went, am going to record the places we visited and what we did. At least this way, if my kids inherit my same shocking powers of recall, there will be something in black and white (not to mention the hundreds of photos that my wife clicked whilst we were there).
Day One - Saturday
Set off on what turned out to be an eight hour journey from Essex to St Clether near Launceston. It should have been a six hour journey but an accident on the M5 put paid to that. Found our holiday home tucked away on one of those typically remote lanes and settled ourselves in.
Day Two - Sunday
Drove to Bude, spent time on the beach, dipped our toes in the icy waters and then explored the town, picking up ice creams, local jam and a throw for our settee made in Kerala. India is never far away in our lives.
Later on, had a pleasant afternoon at Tintagel exploring the dramatic Arthurian castle there. We would have explored more, but parts of that castle involve walks down precipitous steps (see below) which, with three young children and a push chair, didn't seem to be a particularly wise undertaking.
Day Three - Monday
We walked up to the farmhouse where the children fed the goats, chickens, ducks and lambs and stroked various cats, three dogs and a horse.
I then drove as far west in Cornwall as it is possible to travel - to Land's End (below) and then later to St Ives where I was mugged by a seagull which deftly plucked my Cornish vanilla ice cream out of my hand whilst my back was turned.
Day Four - Tuesday
A two-hour tour around our farm which was probably a little longer than it could have been. We sat in a trailer pulled by a farm buggy and then bumped across seemingly all of the 300-odd acres owned by our hosts. They farm sheep and cows and the highlight for me was watching the sheepdog do his stuff. Drove over to Looe and watched people catching crabs. Took a glass-bottomed boat-ride out to Looe island and saw a couple of seals and plenty of seabirds. The rocking of the boat unsettled Shilpi but sent both the boys fast asleep.
Day Five - Wednesday
The Eden Project. What a fantastic day out, and we were there for around eight hours. We all sweated like pigs in the rainforest biome and had a great lunch in the bakery. You pick what you want from the generous self-service counters and then, when you've eaten your fill, go up to the pay station and tell them what you've had. It all works on trust and I presume that the system works. I think our meal for five came to about thirty pounds which wasn't at all bad.
Day Six - Thursday
Newquay and the beach. This was where my parents came on their honeymoon. We were rained off the beach after less than ten minutes and all dived into an aquarium where we changed from beachwear into our clothes. By the time we'd mastered that, the sun had come out and so we went back to the beach. Twenty minutes later, another shower saw us back in the aquarium and this time paid the entrance fee and walked around looking at the fish. Back to the beach in the afternoon where we stayed for a couple of hours, this time without rain breaks.
Left at around five and then stopped off at Paulo's Circus Americano on the way home. This was a family-run circus where there performers doubled up as vendors before and after the show. The girl on the tightrope served us hot-dogs and chips during the interval and her sister, in all probability, sold me three candy-flosses before the show and was later swung around by her neck in the second half. Good fun, and it's been years since I've been to a circus.
Day Seven - Friday
A soaking wet day with the rain coming down in stair-rods. Popped into Launceston which must be one of the few towns left with a wool shop on the High Street.
Launceston has a castle and arguably the highest concentration of hairdressers' salons of any town in England. We stayed long enough to realise that this probably wasn't the best place to visit and so turned around and drove down to a shipwreck and maritime musuem in Charlestown near St Austell. Charlestown would be a good place to live: small and picturesque but close enough to St Austell to pick up the essentials for 21st Century living.
Day Eight - Saturday
Back to Essex and a shorter seven hour journey with a couple of breaks for food and leg-stretching.
