Penzance

  

When you hear of Penzance you may think of the Pirates of Penzance of which the musical is set in this town.  Sorry to disappoint, but it was not a home to Pirates, though the shops will sell you all kinds of Pirate attire for the kids.

Today it is the most westerly major town in Cornwall.  Cornwall is a county in England yet you would think you entered a different country.  First off, the signs are in two languages.  This time in Cornish with the locals having a thicker accent than Bristol. They have their own flag 〓〓 that they fly absent of any UK flag.  Finally there are palm trees and other Mediterranean vegetation.

St Michael's Mount is the Cornish counterpart to Mount-Saint Michel in France.  They both are small tidal islands accessible by land at low tide that at one time were Monastery’s. Click on the link here to watch a brief time lapse image of the tides swallowing the pathway to the Castle.   Today it is jointly operated by the St Aubyn Estate and the National Trust.  The family resides in a portion of the Castle with the remainder open to the public as a National Trust Museum.  

We visited during low tide and headed for the gardens first.   These are gardens the likes of which I have never seen before.   Started in 1878 they are a wonder to explore.  It’s a terraced garden built into a mountain side and have a multitude of very large succulent plants in addition to a blazing array of flowers and grasses.   

The Castle is home today to James and Mary St Aubyn who’s title is Lord and Lady St. Levan.  They have their own  private entrances and a sectioned off part of the castle.  The areas we visited were full of items collected by the family from around the world over the centuries.  

View from rooftop looking down at gardens

Chapel on rooftop

Chapel

We boarded the Coaster Bus to see more of Cornwall.  It’s billed as;

One of the UK’s most spectacular open top bus rides, showcasing rugged coastlines, mining heritage sites, harbour towns and Land’s End itself.

Let me say the bus drivers on this route in Cornwall can drive a double decker bus through spots that only a Mini Cooper should be driving.   Most of the route is “single track” which translates to one lane with two way traffic.  When you encounter another vehicle one has to back up until they find a spot wide enough for each to pass.   This becomes exciting when they are both buses, which we experienced.   It’s even more interesting when the bus encounters a heard of cattle being driven back to the milking barn.  (Note picture below)  This was a gorgeous trip in the countryside.  The only let down was Lands End.   Lands End is the western most part of the mainland.  Rather than a thriving fishing village, todays its a tourist stop.   

Gorgeous fishing village, not Lands End

Much of the west coast was rolling hills next to the sea

One of several small towns

One of many former tin smelting sites

Cattle and crops rather than sheep

Left -Single track road in center of town
Top right the cattle we had to stop for
Bottom right is the Cornish flag

We stayed at a very nice B&B in Penzance that included both breakfast and dinner options, which we took advantage of.   The common areas had wonderful whimsical art.  Our favorite is a large piece that we greatly enjoyed.  Unfortunately my photo doesn’t show the candy names on the wrappers.  

Penzance is a touristy town and the gateway to the Isles of Scilly, a major UK vacation destination we will visit next.   I also got the impression it was trying to become a retirement community, at least there were some apartments targeted to retires along the waterfront.