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St Ives, Cornwall

Tuesday 28 August 2012
tin-mine1.1
Abandoned tin mine

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Patchwork fields




To all those who live in the UK, I hope you had a great long weekend!

Cornwall. I must've heard the name mentioned thousands of times by my friends. Most were incredulous that I haven't seen it. The word is uttered in a reverential manner akin to a tone used to describe heaven on earth. Cornwall county is seeped in myths, ghosts and pirates that combed the secluded coves centuries ago. Legend stated that the ancient town of Tintagel was in fact, Camelot and the birthplace of King Arthur.

Tin mining was once a vital part of Cornwall's thriving economy up until the 19th century. Abandoned tin mines, now lying in ruins and forgotten, can be found dotted throughout the region. There's a local saying that "a mine is a hole anywhere in the world with a Cornishman at the bottom of it".  Suffice to say that most miners in the world probably have a Cornish forefather.


Wiltshire-fields


Wiltshire-Hay1



The Cornish language is almost unintelligible to my untrained ears. It's heavily influenced by Gallic, Celtic and Breton (Brittany) and sounds nothing like English with its lilting tones and the rolling of the tongue.

It was a long drive from Hampshire, approximately 7 hours with a couple of pit stops along the way. I was stupid enough to succumb to Lil L's pleas and downloaded her picks which included her favorite 9 year old gospel singer, Rhema Marvanne and Taylor Swift hits. The 5 songs were played repeatedly for the entire 7 hours with both the hubs and Lil L  belting out the songs which inevitably ended up into a who's the loudest in the car contest. I wonder if the CIA would consider a loan of these two individuals to perform an audio torture if they have trouble extracting a confession from their prisoners. For free.



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StIves-beach
Porthminster beach


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The Harbor

StIvesHarbour
The Harbor

StIves-harbour-lighthouse
Lighthouse at The Harbor


We drove past picturesque rolling hills with vivid green patchwork pastures, bales of hay laid hither and thither in the fields and the winding and narrow country roads with charming thatched cottages on either side. St Ives is an idyllic seaside town which was once an artists' colony due to the beautifully diffused light, azure waters and equally blue skies. The heaving crowds and packed cobbled lanes could not detract the town from its beauty.


StIves-harbor-surfing
Porthminster Beach

FlowersbyHarbor
Near Porthgwidden Beach


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The Cornish Deli: Crab sandwich


StIves-deli2
The Cornish Deli: Brie and jelly salad with Rose


deli1
Moist foccacia with shortcrust pork pie

dinner1
Rhubarb cafe: Seabass with new potatoes, samphire, capers and beans

dinner2
Cornish mussels with creamy white wine sauce and crusty bread


There's no shortage of incredible bistros, delis and restaurants. We popped into Rhubarbs and had fresh crab sandwiches and salad. The next night, we checked out Rhubarbs cafe and had one of our best meals in Cornwall. Very reasonably priced and exquisite food.

We met delightful locals who were happy to stop for a chat and enjoyed the fantastic hospitality from the owners of No8 Windsor Terrace Bed and Breakfast. We were approached by a elderly gentleman who was elated to find someone using the same clunky Canon 400D camera. It turned out that he was an old classmate of Ringo Starr, the drummer for the Beatles.

plaque
A plaque that says it all

Up next, a quick tour around Cornwall!

39 comments:

  1. You make me want to become a shutterbug when I see images like this. Everything is so clear. Are you going to be visiting the Eden Project - it's pretty fab. Lil L will love it.

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  2. These photos are so incredibly breathtaking Marlene! Sounds like you had a nice time even with the singing from the hubby and Lil L hehe! Thanks for sharing! :)

    xxTheresa

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  3. gorgeous pictures marlene, postcard perfect!

    steph / absolutely-fuzzy.com

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  4. What a dreamland! I'm sorry we won't make it there during our UK trip. Well, there's always next time. Amazing shots!

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  5. The pictures are so clear! How do you take photos like these??
    Will be the perfect scenic backdrop for many a movies!
    Thanks for sharing Marlene:)

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  6. what a cool trip! The photos are stunning - especially the first two, which literally took my breath away

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  7. Waouh !! What a lovely trip ! You're pictures are stunning as always ! Did you meet the Man with Seven Wives ?
    Have a nice week ! Françoise.

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  8. Looks fabulous and surprised how nice the beach is x

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  9. I went to Cornwall many years ago when my girls were little and loved it. Also visited St.Ives and ate Ice Cream on the gorgeous beach, would love to go back but so far from Kent. x

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  10. omgosh the photos of this place are AMAZING!!! so picturesque and beautiful!!! and the food.. omgosh the food.. that pork pie?! sounds AMAZING!! i want to eat that so badly hahaha

    haha i did get to try indonesian food in fact.. the dutch consider it a type of national food oddly enough haha... i blogged about it in my "amsterdam part 2" post :)

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  11. ohhh i forgot to thank you for the tip on the my kimi dolls!! i will definitely check that website out :)!!!

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  12. The place looks amazing and your photos are breathtaking! Oh and the food look so yummy! I love taking pictures of food. I'm a huge food lover!
    Thank you so much for commenting on my blog! :)

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  13. Lovely pictures, looks like such a beautiful place, I've also never been and really want to go!

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  14. Beautiful travel pictures as always! You have a very good eye for the whole composition. Makes it another place I would love to see.

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  15. Terrific post, great photos, your blog is fantastic!!
    xxxx

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  16. love ur blog, everything here is so yum!
    http://rock4less.blogspot.co.uk/

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  17. Beautiful photos, I'm getting hungry just looking at the delicious food!

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  18. It looks truly beautiful....You're writing is strong, very eloquent.
    - Aliya :)

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  19. Oh wow. Cornwall looks stunning. You always take amazing pictures

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  20. stunning photos! Looks like a great trip
    xL

    http://themarcystop.blogspot.com/

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  21. What beautiful scenery and the food looks delicious! Can I ask a dumb question - is this where Cornish pastries are from??

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  22. These photos are just stunning, the first two images are like scenes straight out of a movie. I love being able to gaze into places that I can only dream of visiting. I always look forward to your travel shots.

    xx Jenee C.
    http://camomeetscouture.blogspot.com

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  23. hi Marlene!
    wow these pictures are just simply amazing... i should add this place to my travel list!!!!
    hope everything is well and youre doing great!!!!! take care.
    xoxo, Haus of Gala

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  24. Lovely, lovely photos, Marlene! Now feeling a bit inspired to update my neglected travel blog... :)

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  25. I love your travel photo's so much! I always feel transported to where you are visiting which makes them so special. Cornwell is definitely on my list. So many people tell me of it's beauty and looking at your post I finally understand. I'm actually missing the hearty UK food. The pies... fish & chips! Oh boy. Another trip is required.

    xx Mandi
    www.findmeamuse.com

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  26. haha you've really fascinated me with the way you described the Cornish language! it's funny how an English language can sound so foreign. I even struggle with New Zealander accents sometimes because of how certain things are pronounced.

    Cornwall looks beautiful though. All the open, large fields are gorgeous and not something I'm used to seeing where I live in Sydney! you've photographed everything beautifully too :)

    metallicpaws.blogspot.com

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  27. Marlene, you should get a commission from the UK Tourism Office! Your pictures of this island are always so beautiful and inspiring. I've been meant to visit Cornwall for years. But it takes ages by train and we're not used to driving long distances on the left side (in fact, I never had the courage to drive here in the UK even though I liked to drive when I was in Portugal). Maybe we'll try to go there over a long weekend... It seems stunning. xx

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  28. Your pictures along with your writing takes me right there. WOW, absolutely stunning. Cornwall looks beautiful!! I'm jealous of you, you live close to so many beautiful places!!

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  29. Beautiful as always. Isn't Cornwall where Prince Charles lives? I know the Duchy of Cornwall historically belongs to the Prince of Wales. (Useless royal trivia here.)
    Your food pics are making me hungry! Mussels....mmmmmmm.

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  30. These images are breathtaking!!! You make me feel like I can actually taste that sea bass!

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  31. Hi Marlene. Hope you are enjoying your hols and I just wanted to let you know that I've nominated you for a Liebster award. You've probably already got a stack of these but have another one from me :o)

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  32. Marlene, I cannot believe what a great photographer you are, most of these sea scenes look like the Med, I loved Cornwall, felt like a village at the ends of the earth. Just a pity it was so so far away from London and the road down had the highest of hedges that you could not see over!

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  33. Gorgous imagery, breathtacking and romantic, yet intimidating!
    Material Fixations

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  34. As usual, your pics make me wanna go to ANYWHERE you are. But this one is closer to my heart because along with some other places, Cornwall is on my wish list.

    Eons ago, I saw a couple of pics that my friend has taken and truth be told, the pics/place looked very normal and uninteresting to me....it's gonna sound silly to you but when my friend told me Cornwall is also known as Land's End...that struck me and got me intrigued till now :D

    I definitely hope to have a chance to visit Cornwall.

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  35. These photos are just beautiful, really love that first image of the crumbling mine. Such a beautiful piece of architecture, it's kind of a shame to see it abandoned, but then that also kind of adds to the romance of it I guess.
    I need to go to Cornwall too, I have actually been before, but I was so little I have no memories of it. As usual you're lovely photos are making me want to take a trip down there right now, I just wish it wasn't so far away!

    PS: I really feel for you in the car with the music, one of my friends daughters is the exact same & I thought sitting through an hour of it was bad! Poor you!

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  36. Those photos had me oohing and ahhhing all over the place. They are absolutely amazing. Loved each and every single one. My lovely husband and I are trying to decide where to go to celebrate our anniversary next year and I think Europe needs to be on our list.... Perhaps with an itinerary devised by you!

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    Replies
    1. I secretly adore making up itineraries. Rather mad but I just love planning for trips. So feel free to ask. Don't forget to include a stopover to London!

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