lizblog

My home …..

I've been fortunate to have been to some beautiful parts of the world. Because of the memories associated with places it's often difficult to say which are the favourites. When I think of favourite places I think of the crisp coldness of the air in northern Finland in Winter, the whiteness and crunchiness of the snow, the air so clean and fresh you could feel it doing you good. I remember the sleepy olive groves in the south of France where the constant sound of cicadas and crickets lull you in the heat. I picture myself once again in the sea of the distant Isle of Tiree, where the white sand beaches and clear water sparkle in the sunlight. Lastly I think I would choose the cliffs and secret coves of Cornwall, the deep lanes and wild flowers, the tiny villages and harbours.

But, until I lived away from my home for a few years, I never appreciated just how beautiful it is, or how much I belong here. I took Asher for a walk this morning. The air was washed clean as it rained last night. The view over the town from the top of the hill was sparkling …… so varied. Distant moors with their purple jacket of heather, rolling hills and wooded valleys, even the town with its chimneys and rows of houses and factories made a good part of the vista.

The blackberries were ripening, the dog was dashing around going on the walk 4 times longer than mine. The woods were cool with dappled sunlight filtered through the leaves. I am so happy to live where I do …. it has a bit of everything ….. except the sea.

Asher surveying her kingdom the dog in the dappled sunlight

Steps created by the oak tree roots ripe blackberries

Polkerris Beach

As it promised to be a sunny if breezy day today we decided to look for a beach to relax on. Just a few miles from Fowey is Polkerris. It's a quaint, tiny village of a few houses, a pub and an ex lifeboat station now converted into a cafe. There's a little beach and harbour where we spent a pleasant day reading, chatting and people watching.

As is so often the case when it's sunny and windy we didn't realise the strength of the sun and all came back with red bits we didn't realise were there until it was too late. Ali has red knees, Joy, red face and chest and I have a red leg. Clearly I sat reading with my legs crossed so only one caught the sun.

We ended the day with Cornish pasties.

The Lost Gardens of Heligan

Our main outing today was to visit the Lost Gardens of Heligan. There were lots of beautiful scenes and amazing plants. More pics when I return home and have sensible Internet access.

Ferry worry

We had an interesting start to the day. We were on the little ferry, crossing over from Bodinnick to Fowey. As we arrived in Fowey, Ali went to start her car to find her battery was completely flat. We were the first car on and therefore first off.

Fortunately an enterprising man produced jump leads and got us going within minutes. Needless to say our first visit of the day was to Kwikfit to get a new battery. This saw the nifty combining of two modern technologies as my iPhone located the nearest Kwikfit and Ali's Tomtom took us there. Sweet.

Hall Walk

Monday saw the welcome arrival of Ali and Joy sometime inThe early hours. It was good to see them and when they'd recovered from their night drive we decided to go for a walk.

It's a National Trust walk from Bodinnick round the top of the estuary then down to Polruan. There were lovely views back to Fowey.

We were glad to arrive in Polruan where we stopped for a cuppa and a lovely sandwich at the Crumpet Cafe before returning to Fowey on the ferry. We did some shopping there and then got the ferry back across to Bodinnick.

Tuesday we're going to the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Mevergissy.

Rain and shine

Today has been a day of wind, rain, thunder and lightening. At one point the power went off and there is no TV signal even now. That was no hardship, I have spent the day reading and eating.

Now, in the early evening, the view is once again clear and I think I'll go for a little meander along the path that runs in front of the cottage.

My little walk took my along several footpaths and now, an hour later, I am back looking forward to a nice cup of tea.

The Pink Cottage

That's the name of the little cottage where I'm staying. It's very quaint with wonderful views over the harbour at Fowey. There's room for 8 people here so, at the moment, I feel like I'm rattling round in it. My Uni friend Ali and her daughter Joy are joining me today.

Cornish holiday

So .... I set off, first to Ruth and Matt's where I was treated to a lovely meal at a pub called the White something or other I think. I had a salad with prawns, avocado, orange, cress, nuts, pomegranate and various other things that was very delicious. After a good night's sleep I set off on my way.

I was a bit worried about the journey. I'm not good at long distances and I don't possess a Sat Nav, but I wrote myself a route of roads and main towns and set off. I needn't have worried. The M5 is, of course, unmissable and after that the roads were easy to follow. I stopped of at a pub called the Black something or other and tackled the fattest cheese sandwich I've ever encountered which was very palatable, then continued on to my destination, Bodinnick. I arrived safe but tired at around 5pm. Phew!

Garden …. next stage

Digging has been the order for the last two days. I guess, because the ground has been dryish and squashed under the shale, it has to be quite hard and lumpy. I was indeed hard, but I persevered with lots of rests and now it is all dug over. I timed it well ….. about 5 minutes after I'd finished it began to rain and thunder.
  
Any garden design ideas gratefully received …. also any cuttings, shrubs …..???? I shall plant bulbs in the Autumn for definite. I also intend to make little walk ways to aid weeding and planting. It'll certainly look better than the shale and dead heathers.

Garden news

My front garden. Shale chippings, a pretty maple tree, a few random stones and pots and the odd half dead grass and heather plant. Low maintenance certainly, but not theprettiest sight to look out on each day. I decided that this was the time for change. Change in a fairly radical way. So, I set to work …….

After filling 4 bags with the chippings, it didn't look much different. Luckily I had lots more bags …… and I needed them. Altogether I filled 13 bags! Next I started to lift the weed suppressing blanket thingy.

Finally the ground was clear. Tomorrow will see the digging begin.