I pray that you have all found smooth sailing and favorable winds since my last post. I must become more regular with these posts, but life has a way of getting in the way sometimes. Forgive me, as this post may prove to be a rather long one. I have much to say, and enough time to say it, so drop anchor, and feast your eyes on a bit of a literary treasure chest for a while.
I had the wonderful pleasure of being invited to spend a weekend in Cornwall with Jami and Paul Voge. For those of you who are not too keen on England's geography, Cornwall is the southern-most county in England, and reside on the south west coast. It is home to a range of wonderful things, the most being... great surf. Cornwall houses Newquay, which in turn houses Fistral Beach, where England has its International Surf Headquarters... I don't even think we have one of those back home. Needless to say, it felt a bit like home. I believe that 99.99% of surfboards in England are sold, and stay in Cornwall. The vibe was definitely trying to emulate Southern California, and the beaches were more like that of the Central Coast. When I say they emulate Southern California culture, I mean that in a good way, not the Norwich way where guys where overtly too much Holister and Abercrombie, touting "Laguna Surf Shop... Venice Beach". I've been to that surf shop too, I'll also take you to see the "Laguna Bay Surf Championships". It hurts my soul a little when I see that, but California sells over here.
 |
| (Click to Enlarge) |
Anyhoooooo, to turn around and see sheep grazing on a hill while you surf, is something that just blew my mind. I kept turning to Paul Voge and saying "Paul, we're surfing in England right now! Can you believe it!" Then I went and skipped up and down the beach for an hour. (For anyone who just got the Endless Summer reference, props to ya). I didn't bring my own boards with me this time, as I was unsure of what we were going to encounter, but we made out just fine with the rented gear. Turns out if you know what you're talking about, and they trust you, they'll let you ride their shop boards, or "proper boards" as they call them, for a minimal extra fee. So there I was, my first full day in Cornwall, in a little town called Trevon, with some decent surf, crazy off-shore winds, and a proper board beneath my feet. We got on the surf a little late, but still had a great time. I am going to track a swell coming into Cornwall sometime soon, because I have a hunch that when this place goes off, it goes OFF! Not to mention the locals are some of the nicest people I've ever met, and due to the fact that surfing in England isn't all that popular (minus Fistral Beach and Newquay), the crowds never get to bad here. And like I mentioned before, it is like Central California, or Northern California. If one place is too crowded, you drive 15 minutes down the road, and have a wave all to yourself. I'm sure you've had enough of my blathering, so take a moment and enjoy these photos and then scroll down to continue your Literary Expedition Through The Life and Times of Paul E. Hester...
 |
| They All Look Like This |
 |
| Supposedly It Gets Good Like This All The Time |
 |
| Where The Land Met The Sea |
 |
| Not A Bad Place To Surf |
After surfing each day we decided to go discover the surrounding territory. You are never really farther than 5 hours from anywhere in England, so when you get to a specific county, things may look far on a map, but they are actually really close. The first day we decided to go to King Arthur's Castle. You know the Sword in The Stone guy, Knights of The Round Table, Camelot, yeah that guy. Well, we weren't anywhere near Camelot, or the Round Table, and as a student of history I must interject here to state that all of those things may truly be just English myth. But, what is left of the castle in Cornwall is attributed to that of King Arthur. It is an amazing site, built right on a cliff, and some of it out on a massive rock. The stone of which he was said to have pulled the sword out of is kept a few minutes inland, so we just checked out the castle ruins. It is amazing to think how they constructed things back then, and how much man power and money it must have taken to build an enormous castle on a cliff side. Yet, at the end of the day, King Arthur might have been a few knights short of a full round table, as the stairs built hundreds of years ago to get one to and from the castle are ridiculous. Obviously there have been some improvements made over the years for safety, but those are the actual stairs used. Merlin wasn't a magician, he was a fitness guru. Even with the psycho steps, it was an amazing place.
The second day, we decided to go to a town called St. Ives. It was an incredibly picturesque town, and had some incredible ice cream to top it off. I must say that the dairy products are really top notch down in Cornwall. After the cows are done making delicious dairy, they generously offer themselves to be made into top notch steaks. Such humble and gracious Cornwall cows. I have come to discover during my time in England is that where most kids binge drink on the weekends, I am usually traveling and end up binge eating. The food has just been so excellent! But here are some pictures from St. Ives...
 |
| This Isn't A Joke |
 |
| Pretty Sweet Place |
Well, that does it for now. I hope you all enjoyed, and I promise the post will get shorter. I realize I write novellas and it takes half a day to read my blog sometimes. However, I pride myself in sending my loyal crew on literary pilgrimages through my time and space. Now, I am just keeping you here by writing more.
Sailing True North,
The Pirate Crew
After surfing each day we decided to go discover the surrounding territory. You are never really farther than 5 hours from anywhere in England, so when you get to a specific county, things may look far on a map, but they are actually really close. The first day we decided to go to King Arthur's Castle. You know the Sword in The Stone guy, Knights of The Round Table, Camelot, yeah that guy. Well, we weren't anywhere near Camelot, or the Round Table, and as a student of history I must interject here to state that all of those things may truly be just English myth. But, what is left of the castle in Cornwall is attributed to that of King Arthur. It is an amazing site, built right on a cliff, and some of it out on a massive rock. The stone of which he was said to have pulled the sword out of is kept a few minutes inland, so we just checked out the castle ruins. It is amazing to think how they constructed things back then, and how much man power and money it must have taken to build an enormous castle on a cliff side. Yet, at the end of the day, King Arthur might have been a few knights short of a full round table, as the stairs built hundreds of years ago to get one to and from the castle are ridiculous. Obviously there have been some improvements made over the years for safety, but those are the actual stairs used. Merlin wasn't a magician, he was a fitness guru. Even with the psycho steps, it was an amazing place.
No comments:
Post a Comment