WEDNESDAY 26TH MARCH - Plymouth today.

Going into Devon! Foreign parts!

Plymouth is our nearest city of reasonable size and we had to go there for something. This meant crossing the River Tamar into Devon. These two bridges are at Saltash where the railway bridge - Royal Albert bridge was designed by the great Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel and was opened in 1859 by Prince Albert and is a fine and stately way to span the river's estuary. The road bridge was built in 1961 and is a functional suspension bridge not beautiful but necessary.

It costs £1 to leave Cornwall and nothing to get back in.

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Oh just to make it more fun there is a tunnel under Saltash.


Having crossed back into Cornwall after completing our business the sky was amazing so I had to share it.

MONDAY 17TH MARCH - today

I cast my eye across the valley this morning enjoying this view which changes each day. The gorse bush which you can see - if you look very hard - in the left hand side half way up is out now. The buds of Spring have not burst forth but it will be a glorious shade of green which will cover the valley.

I lifted my library books out of the bag and placed them in a pile to enjoy the thought of what lies behind the covers of each and every one. There are so many books to read and just not enough time.

I also ate marmite on toast, had four different people call by for cups of tea and chat, made phone calls and many other things happened but these events were not logged on the camera as there has to be something for the imagination to work on!

I had a good Monday and hope you did too.

WEDNESDAY 12TH MARCH - feel good factor

A friend gave me this little bunch of camellias from her garden.

That felt so good. Thank you.

P. made this scrumptious Jamie Oliver Chocolate pie. Eaten with clotted cream it was rich and indulgent. This felt wickedly decadent. Thank you.

P. is a very good chef and he made two of these pies and we gave one to a friend for her birthday. She was delighted. That felt good too well even better actually.

MONDAY 10TH MARCH - oh my gosh!

The worst storm this winter - so far.

Sennen cove, west Cornwall.

The cobb -Lyme Regis.

Lulworth cove, Dorset.
North Wales.

We are beng battered again.

As I sit here at my pc in Cornwall the wind is blowing so hard I fear for the roof although it has stayed through storms before but this one is pretty wild.

The wind has been recorded at 80 m.p.h. here in the South West.

Ferries cancelled. A ship floundering in The Channel. Flights out of Gatwick and Heathrow cancelled too! Trees are down all over the place and flooding too.

Time for a comforting cup of hot chocolate.

THURSDAY 6TH MARCH - Precious Ramotswe

We were very fortunate earlier this week to have a visit by Alexander MaCall Smith to talk about his books and in particular his No.1 Ladies Detective Series. He talked of the real characters who had inspired his fictional ones, his love of Botswana and how he writes. He was an amusing and interesting speaker and I am so glad I went to listen.
Cornwall is geographically at the end of the world and many people don't traverse the River Tamar and therefore perform, present, or speak on the Devon side of this boundary, so for such an eminent author to get to Truro is a real treat. His books are loved all over the world.

This is the ninth book in this series.

I just had to put some of the global covers here.

They are such gentle books and the crime is so acceptable!

WEDNESDAY 5TH MARCH - Sen Piran

Today is St. Piran's Day - the patron saint of tin miners and generally regarded as the national saint of Cornwall. The flag of Cornwall has a white cross of tin on a granite background. Granite being the bed rock of the county.

There will be the annual pilgrimage across the sand dunes at Perranporth beach to St. Piran's Oratory. This is built at the place where Piran landed having come from Ireland having made the journey floating on a millstone.

Cornish is a language which no one speaks today however there are ardent enthusiasts who promote it along with Cornwall's identity.

MONDAY 3RD MARCH - LOCH ETIVE

We were here at New Year 2008.

Across Loch Etive from Taynuilt Pier towards Bon Awe.

Loch Etive from Taynuilt pier - looking south.

Loch Etive from the foot of Glen Etive.

River Etive with Ben Chaorach.

Just beautiful. I love the wildness of The Highlands.