Beautiful Cornwall

My friend Barb flew over from Maine Friday and by Saturday morning we were in the car and driving down to Cornwall.  Cornwall is the southwestern tip of the UK, a peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic with temperate climate and stunning views of the sea.

Along the way we managed to find a small village that Barb's ancestors had come from when they immigrated to America.

Barb in front of the church gate of the parish where her ancestor preached

When we arrived at the Blue Horizon B&B in Marazion we met our hosts, Paul and Judith Vincent, who were quick to make us feel at home.  We sat in the lovely sun room with a pot of tea and some cake and admired the view of the garden and coastline.  Afterward we were shown up to our room in the top floor of this Victorian guesthouse and found that we had a stunning view of St. Michael's Mount.

Enjoying a cup of tea at the Blue Horizon

View of St. Michael's Mount from our window

St. Michael's Mount is a tidal island, home to a historic 12th century abbey and castle.  As the tide went out we walked across to the island on a cobble causeway.  Pilgrims have been making this trek for centuries and it's a beautiful approach to the conical-shaped stone fortress that dominates the small island.

The causeway at low tide

View from a castle window

Barb and I had a wonderful time touring the castle, taking in all of the amazing views of Cornwall.  Such a stunning coastline!  And in between views we talked.  Barb and I first met over twenty years ago when our oldest sons were in the nursery together at church.  Ian and Nick grew up like cousins, our families sharing good times and bad.  It's a wonderful friendship and I'm grateful to have Barb's family intertwined with mine.

The orange glow of sunset

Barb plans our day over breakfast

Another view of the castle

Low tide

Barb and I looking out to sea

Even their dairy house was beautiful!

We spent the rest of the weekend catching up on all the news.  And seeing some of Cornwall.  We found a stone circle and an ancient celtic burial tomb.

Taking in the energy from a stone circle!

"Merry Maidens" stone circle

Lanyon Quoit - a Neolithic chambered tomb

"Barb, maybe we shouldn't be in these woods?!?!"

John Knill monument

But our greatest find was taking a wrong turn, driving down a single track road - we actually had to back up to let a horse pass! - and ending up in a field across from the John Knill monument. We were in the middle of nowhere.  Classic!  Direct from Wikipedia, here are the directives from John Knill regarding his remote monument:

"In his will Knill left money for the upkeep of his obelisk and also £25 for celebrations to take place every five years on St James' Day, 25 July. He directed that every five years £10 should be expended on a dinner, and that ten young girls dressed in white should walk in procession with music, from the market house to the monument, around which the whole party was to dance singing the hundredth psalm (All people that on earth do dwell). This quintennial commemoration is made the occasion for a good deal of jollity, in which the entire population joins, indeed the whole proceeding is quite mirth-provoking; nor is the least laughable part of it the looks on the faces of the vicar and mayor, as they sedately waltz around on the upper step of the monument, hand in hand with the ten young girls. The first ceremony, in which Knill himself participated, took place in 1801."

You can't make this stuff up!  I'm already designing my own monument and thinking of ridiculous things to ask people to do on some random day!

The "Supermoon" - The closest and largest full moon of 2012