Tea and pastry on the Pulteney Bridge. Lots of entertainers Little flush for little jobs, big flush for bigger ones.
We change trains twice; the entire trip from Penzance to Bath takes 5 hours. We are heading to an AirBnB, which of course is up a hill from the station. And then another hill. More steps. Then more. But what a view! We're staying in a room at the top of the house with the red door. View from our window. We shower then head back down to the town center for dinner and a ramble, taking a thermos of gin and tonic with us.
We take a bus to Sennon Cove, planning to walk the 5 miles to St Just. The sea is wild here! Huge waves pounding the breakwater. Bob takes picture after picture and then a few videos. Bob decides to get closer. I assume I'm about to witness his death and become a widow and will have to fly back with a casket. The sign reminds us why we're here. The path goes across the beach and then up the hill and down to the end, and around to St Just. But every part of my legs hurts and we contemplate not hiking. I consult the path book, hoping for some reassurance that I can do this: I'm still traumatized from yesterday's hike. There are no buses for 5 miles so there's no changing your mind. I tell Bob I can't do it and we dump some whiskey into our coffee and lean back on a boulder and just sit there. A Yetti for Molly! Taking the last bus to Penzance. By not walking we'll be in time for Sunday dinner.
From Heathrow we take the Paddington Express, then hightail it to platform 9, where the train to Truro sits waiting for us, then pulls off almost as soon as we arrive. The train is full! So we join a group perched on suitcases, the floor, or just plain standing. Bob perches and I sit and read. The journey takes about 4 hours and in the last 30 minutes, we get real seats! At Truro, we cross the platform to get the little branch line to Falmouth. Falmouth! First thing we do is eat. A Falmouth woman on the train told us where to find the best fish & chips, which we eat on the pier. Then we head off to find our cottage.
|
|