A Cornish Chill....

Hello my lovelies!

How are you all doing?

Today sees me back at the computer,
back in normal mode
back home here in the Fens...

For the past couple of weeks Mr T and myself have been investigating 

the gorgeous delights of southern Cornwall, right at the very end of 

civilization as we know it, here in the UK!

What do I mean by that?

Well, simply put, we have been holidaying amongst the

most rural part of our little island in amongst the

granite and moss, walking in amongst the wildflowers and

hedgerow lanes.

It doesn't sound alot really does it?

For us though, it was a holiday of a lifetime.

Following Mr T's diagnosis of cancer four years ago and then secondary cancer last year meant we haven't had a 'proper' switch off holiday in four years; and even more poignantly for us, we weren't really sure we ever really would have again...

Cornwall stole our hearts a few years ago and it was Cornwall that took us in her arms

to soothe our worried souls when we first received the diagnosis four years ago.

Naturally, it seemed the perfect place to return to in order to 

recover a little from last year's journey....

Our intention was to do nothing...

but for anyone who knows this part of our island, that's not easy when 

 there is simply too much

history and natural beauty for an old Fen bird like me to ignore!

We stayed as far south of Cornwall as you can get,

 amongst the ruggedness of an ancient moorland that holds 

some of the most beautiful tales and stories.

Sadly, it also holds tales of  the sad reality of an immense hardship 

from an industrial mining area many Cornish folks had to endure..
I think coming from the Fens, I could totally relate to the community comradeship
that many families took as normal life.

Everyone associates this area with the romantic view of Poldark now but visiting many of the small hamlets and villages and tuning in to the history of 'Kernow' (Cornwall)

you really couldn't be further from the truth if you tried.
The average life span for a miner back in the 19th century was only 39 years if he was lucky.
Most children worked in the mines from the age of 10 and then were sacked at 16 so owners didn't have to pay an adult wage.
Their stories write our history and like many tales from our past, sadly
it is not a way of life many of us these days are happy to hear about and yet
we all have a connection to these memories in some way or another.

Southern Cornwall makes no apology for their style of tourism.

What you see is what you get!

There are no fancy frills, no twee bunting like in many Cornish hotspots.

You are greeted with an attitude of 'this is us, take it or leave it' 

which as a Fen 'gal I quite like!

Of course there are some absolutely beautiful gems to be found if you only search for them...

These three-cornered leeks were everywhere and I fell in love with them!

Aren't they the most adorable little gems?

Their stems are what they say...three-cornered!

Little Cornish booties dancing in the breeze...

 

In amongst the down time of not walking, photographing or exploring,

I loved investigating the flora and fauna of the Cornish hedgerows around us.

Colour was simply everywhere.

May is definitely a beautiful time of year to see her sparkle.

And the added bonus of course to that is that there is so much inspiration 

for my little doodles and designs....

It was absolutely beautiful to sit in the Cornish sunshine watching the wildlife chatter about me

whilst I captured the sights around me...

I felt like Beatrix Potter with the bunnies skipping in the buttercup meadow!

I've always loved Beatrix but spending two weeks studying bunnies I have a new found admiration for her.

Why?

Well, she didn't rely on taking snaps with her camera or mobile as we do today.

She relied solely on her ability to observe, for what must've been absolutely hours, to then follow with sketches in order to draw her illustrations.

Amazing...

There is way too much to write about Cornwall in one post so I've leave that for another day.

In the meantime, here is a little snippet of few Cornish memories...

Wildflowers, granite tors, azure seas,

art & design, a new language, Living Stones,

ancient history, Cream Teas,ever-changing skies,

ferns, harbours, sunsets, meandering lanes leading nowhere,

Colour, vintage gems, an old way of life,

calmness...

If you've never explored this part of the British Isles, 

I thoroughly recommend you give it a go...

I will post more pics on my Facebook page so do pop by...

In the meantime

I'll say toodle-ooh for now!