the further south we went, the view became more striking, but frustratingly, the hedges on the sides of the smaller roads, amounting to green walls, kept the scenery largely hidden.
many pictures were taken by kripa and some by ravi too.
we started bang at nine from kingston...
...and headed southwest
the drive on the motorway was a smooth one...
...over gently rolling hills...
... that soon had the backseaters catching a wink
we drove past stonehenge (been there, done that)
...and animal farms of all sorts... for the squealors..
... the black headed baa-baas...
... and the holy guys
there were unique road signs to warn drivers that we were in farming territory...
the flowers... they were one of the best parts of the drive... flowers along the cliffsides...
...in gardens...
...along pathways...
... or hanging over walls
and trees... soothing to the eyes.. in this case a trunnel.. (a nice word methinks for these tunnel of trees!)
hedges trying to lay claim over pathways
in some coastal towns it was the stone walls that narrowed down the road quite a bit...
we stopped by for some haddock and chips...
we took inroads over hills and dales to the coast (after some debate!), and it was past two by the time we reached stoke fleming
we halted for a bit at blackpool, with its pebbled beach...the first non-sandy beaches that i had visited...
it was fascinating to see the pebbles being tossed by the creeping waves... and in the process polishing every pebble to a gem (well.. nearly a gem)
we drove on past the kingsbridge estuary, where boats lay 'marooned' in low tide
then over to plymouth.. it was in the dockyards in plymouth sound that jung bahadur is said to have visited, and gotten impressed by, during his belayat yatra in 1850... this is the 'victorian engineering feat' bridge built over the tamar river...
... and the more recent tamar bridge alongside it
by the time we finally reached our destination for the day, st. ives, it was nearly six
a wonderful view of the corbis bay and the celtic sea greeted us...
...from the hotel tregorran
we then went to the promenade in st. ives and saw a male choir singing in harmony...
doggies fetching tennis balls from the water...
and seagulls cackling everywhere...
we could even see our hotel in the distance
we lingered till the light started fading and the lamps started to illuminate the cove
even the half moon had its part to play in lighting up the evening (well.. night actually by then)
back at the hotel we waited for midnight, and july 18th, to wish kripa a happy birthday... kripa gave ravi a picture with a big hint!
next morning at breakfast we gave kripa her 'beautiful daughter' card!
the clouds soon parted and the sun started playing with the aquamarine colours of the sea...
... and looking even more better with these plants...
us...
and the bud-day couple with the beach in the backdrop...
... where there was sporting event taking place
the colourful city hall in st. ives
the alleyways were filled with quaint and interesting little shops...
on the other side was this beach frequented by surfers... the reason why cornish seemed to be in love with the vw van... they can hold thier surfboards... vw vans poster, coasters, fridge magnets, salt and pepper shakes.. you name it.. you can find it in all souvenir shops!
hum tum aur sea
then we stepped into this tea shop which displayed crocheted yummy looking fares...
we had real english tea...
and cornish scones with the patented clotted cream and jam!!!
then a pantingly uphill climb to burn off all the excess calories i devoured with the clotted cream!
the top of the hill had the plot with the best view... for all the dear departed ones resting in eternal peace...
a cheeky sign in the do-it-yourself shop
then we set off for land's end first along the coastline.. only that the view was elusive and had to be snatched in between breaks in the hedges!!
then we cut across to penzance.. this is st. michael's mount in penzance
kripa poses next to the yatch harbour
... then we zipped in and out of lamorna cove. where seaweeds clung to large granite boulders smoothened by the waves...
finally we reached land's end... and sasura jwain took a breather
before looking around we had our meal of cornish pasties that we had bought in st. ives
and then we finally got the cake out to wish kripa a happy 32nd birthday... she tries to light the candles...
... ensuring dual protection from the gust...
... before finally blowing them out with a wish or two...
kripa got to have the cake and eat it too...
there were birds waiting on the side for crumbs...
the jagged shoreline at land's end... a reminder of the pounding waves of the atlantic ocean...
a benign canine grizzly was there too... one hugful newf dog!!
when the winds picked up it was coooooold!
while we oldies shivered and posed under the first and last house in england...
... kripa, the uk-weathered one was more defiant!
the last direction post could have said so many miles to kathmandu.. but at nearly ten quid.. we decided not to get tempted...
the gift shop had a very strange looking gift.. a chocolate patty(guintha)
and speaking of patties.. doggie patty lying where it shouldn't seems to be pretty expensive...
...in the beautiful sennen cove, where there were more surfers!
we drove northwards along the shoreline again towards newquay... viewing meadows......
and cliffs...
then we made a stop at a beach near newquay to get our feet wet...
the receding tide had left wonderful patterns on the beach.. almost like a river delta
kripa took over the wheels for some time
and then we were in the viewing spot atop newquay
the bay looked calm...
and yet flaunted its power over the rocks...
kripa in front of the old old huer's hut.. it is said the person who lived there would alert everyone of impending danger by raising a hue and cry...
then we headed eastwards towards home... passed by what is sometimes referred to as the 'cornish alps'-- spoil tips of the clay mines north of st. austell
as we stopped for gas.. five minutes before cindrella hour.. kripa got her last present of the day.. a bouquet from ravi...
when we finally reached kingston.. it was just past two in the morning of 19th july !!!
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