I appreciate that this blog has been long overdue, but we really have been quite busy!!
We left Sydney mid-March to spend about 3 months based in Jersey – a small island 85 miles south of England, not far off the French coast. The intention was to see my father who presently resides in a care home & prepare his now empty house for the property market. This had long been the plan, although we both decided that arriving in springtime would be a smart idea, (besides, I really don’t think that we would have tolerated the winter being a couple of wimps).
After our last trip to the UK, Bill declared ‘never again’ – referring, in fact, to the long flight from the UK to Sydney. So with this in mind we planned a stop in Bangkok either way, providing an excellent excuse to catch up with Alice. The stop on the way out was short but sweet. Made shorter by the fact that our onward flight plans were thrown into disarray by Trump’s war and we hastily had to change our plans to avoid the Middle East.
Nevertheless, despite the rather circuitous journey, we arrived in the UK to be met by our wonderful friend Tammy who announced that we were going to the seaside! We spent two very memorable, fun days in Broadstairs, an old time Victorian seaside resort in Kent with the literary notoriety of accommodating Charles Dickens whilst he penned David Copperfield. Although not tempted to swim, we did manage a few good walks, pub stops & good food – Bill patiently tolerating non-stop gossip between ‘the girls’.
Then onto Jersey & cool spring weather initially, which required us cranking up the heat in the house. We had a mammoth job to perform de-cluttering the house – I swear Dad hadn’t thrown anything away for 10 years. Not only that, there were 2 or 3 of everything, as well as enough extension leads to reach the moon, an endless amount of spare curtains, linen & cushions, a garage jam packed with tools and every drawer & cupboard totally choc a bloc!
To cut a long story short – it’s sorted. House looked infinitely better, placed promptly on the market & offer accepted! Now we await all the lawyer/survey/bank/court processes to run. It’s a long haul here in Jersey.
Besides the house organisation, we were able to see Dad regularly, who is going pretty well & catch up with some of the lovely people who have been looking after Dad in the last few years, (to whom we are incredibly grateful).
Spring literally ‘sprung’ whilst we were there, with the tree buds bursting into leaves & blossom, the sun shining more often & I would have to say the island looking at its best. Colourful blossom everywhere and that special vibrant green of new leaves. We managed several walks along some beautiful coastal paths & enjoyed the odd pint in some of the lovely Jersey pubs.
Three weeks later we left Jersey for the short hop to the UK for a road trip around the south of England to catch up with family & friends. We had a spectacularly good time! It was such a joy to spend time with friends we have known for years, although, for the obvious reason of geographical separation, do not see as much as we would like. We were also much obliged to them for living in some beautiful parts of England, enhanced by the fact that for most of the time we had good weather, (unbelievable ), which improved all the time.
We spent the first weekend with Paul & Kylie, who live in St Germans, Cornwall, (not far from Plymouth). They know the Cornish coast like the back of their hands, so took us on some epic coastal paths to a couple of small Cornish seaside towns. First was a walk to quaint Polperro, a charming small fishing port with higgledy, piggledy streets, quaint cottages and an exceptional pub, (the Blue Peter Inn). Next walk to Fowey – a picturesque, historic fishing town on the Fowey Estuary. We enjoyed the walking tracks around the edge of the river with stunning water views, catching the ferry across to the town and exploring the winding streets, interesting shops & art exhibitions. An unexpected hailstorm forced a hasty retreat to another lovely pub for lunch! We very much enjoyed the company of our friends, but needed to keep moving: next stop Treyarnon Bay, North Cornwall.
This was very much a trip down memory lane for Bill who used to spend every summer here with his family in a caravan park right next to the beach. Just to recreate the vibe, (in terms of proximity to the ocean), we booked 2 nights in Treyarnon YHA, (youth hostel I know – forgive the pretensions), which is situated right on the cliff path. It actually was really quite good – we had booked a room just for ourselves – dorm accommodation seriously not on the agenda, but facilities actually were good and it really was spectacularly located.
We arrived in the morning in bright sunshine, so took the opportunity to take the 10.6mile trip from Treyarnon to Padstow – a truly stunning walk, particularly in good weather! Although we somehow managed to lose the path a couple of times, we made it to Padstow in good time to find the obligatory Cornish pasty and pint of St Austell (Bill) & chardy (Deb). Like excited children we sat at the top front of the double decker bus on return, an experience Bill really enjoyed as for the first time, he could see over the hedgerows he had been driven through many times all those years ago. The next day we experienced Cornish ‘mizzle’, which as the name suggests, is a mix of fog & drizzle which gradually drenches you from top to bottom like a slow form of Cornish torture. Despite that we enjoyed a bit more time exploring Padstow and even managed a short walk along the ragged cliff tops south of Treyarnon admiring the stormy ocean waves crashing against the rocks.
To top the list of self-inflicted torture, Bill decided that a swim in the 11.6 degree sea was a mandatory masochistic activity to be undertaken whilst we were there. Good job Bill – happy to paddle up to my ankles & hold the towel for you like the well trained missus that I am! Sorry about the ice-cream headache.
Next stop a 2 hour drive via Newquay down to near the tip of Cornwall, to the wonderful fishing village of Mousehole. I think the story has been told before in previous blogs, but in summary, this place is the origins of our boat name: Mowzel Cat, (‘mowzel ’ being the Cornish pronunciation of Mousehole). We again stayed in The Ship Inn with views over the small harbour with its tiny entrance (the mouse hole). Such a lovely place to visit again with an awesome restaurant (2 Fore Street) for a delicious dinner with a several options of local seafood.
After that we headed to the heart of Devonshire countryside to visit Patrick & Anna – we were at Cambridge University with Patrick (all those years ago). They are an absolutely delightful couple who live in an amazing old farmhouse, (with the most magnificent expansive garden & surrounds), in a place called Shillingford St George. The bluebells were out & we enjoyed a lovely walk through the local woods absolutely carpeted in blue accompanied by their elderly dog, Ziggy dragging its feet behind. Well, dragging its feet until in a moment of recalcitrant defiance, it decided to turn around to make a quick dash to the pub. Fortunately it was apprehended before venturing out on the road, but point was made and we all headed to the Nobody Inn – a fine watering place to enjoy a drink in the early evening light.
The following day we planned a trip down memory lane as Bill & I had lived in this neighbourhood, (on the outskirts of Exeter), for several years prior to emigrating to Australia. First stop: All Saints Church, Kenton – it is here that Bill & I were married in 1987! The church was built in the second half of the fifteenth century c1450-1500, although there was probably a wooden church built on the same site in early Christian times. It is said to be a very large & ambitious church for such a small village & I must say that I had forgotten how beautiful it was inside. Not far away was a large country residence called Oxton House – our first home. Not the whole house I hasten to add, but a small apartment at the back! Nevertheless it was a great place to live in the middle of the countryside, yet not too far away from the Exeter hospitals where I worked. Finally, we stayed a night at the Lord Haldon Hotel in Dunchideock, (love the name), where we held our wedding reception! What a fun day – who can believe it was 39 years ago!
Our tour continued the following day through the gorgeous landscape of Somerset to a small village called Rodney Stoke where my cousins, Neil & Anita live. Again, set in a beautiful location with a sprawling garden – their challenge this year I think (they have recently moved in). Neil & Anita had visited us in Australia at the beginning of the year, so it was a delight to see them again on home territory and enjoy their very kind hospitality.
It was a pleasure to catch up with Nicholas & Emma in Chitterne, Wiltshire as our next stop. I had met them both at my niece, Rachel’s wedding in Tuscany last year – the parents of lovely Ben, Rachel’s husband. I was great for me to introduce Bill, (who had remained on Mowzel Cat in Tahiti at the time of the wedding) and they treated us to a magnificent Sunday roast! I can’t remember the last time I had a roast – certainly far too ambitious for the constraints of the galley!
Onwards & upwards, we left to drive across Salisbury Plain, past Stonehenge, to Englefield Green to stay with Chris & my niece Charlotte. There we remained for a few days, catching up on the news, going on a fantastic walk around Frensham Little Pond, eating a very yummy curry at a restaurant in Staines & checking out a few pubs just for a change! In our defence, or more specifically in Bill’s defence, the British pint is a very fine and unique cultural experience and can’t be found in Australia! Some might say that is a good thing, but they would be very wrong! The sunshine continued to shine, much to our surprise & satisfaction! We drove down to Poole the ‘slow way’ and encountered some wonderful vistas across the English countryside. Bright yellow fields of rapeseed, beautiful beech forest, quaint streams with fat trout motionless on the shingle with weeping willows dangling at the water’s edge. England in the sunshine at this time of year really is quite special – the weather of course, being the critical yet unreliable factor.
After an enjoyable short stay with Tim & Jo in Poole – school friends of Bill, we continued on to the Isle of Wight to spend a few days with Hugh, (actually Bill’s best man at our wedding) and his wife Sally. The sunshine continued to shine enabling us to enjoy some great hikes on the island. A final farewell and the end of a really fabulous tour of the south of England enjoying wonderful company, special places and by & large, pretty marvellous weather! In fact, fair to say we saw England at its best in the spring sunshine. Long may it continue on our return to Jersey!