12 May 2014

Padstow day 3

Tesco's !

Shopping for groceries !

However, there was some interest in the alcohol aisle. Tesco branded beer in a six pack of 440 mL cans cost just over 7 pounds. that's about the cheapest beer I've ever seen. The other beer was also as cheap as chips. The wine and spirits prices also leads one into bad habits. Robyn bought a French chardonnay for 5 pounds. I resisted the charms of the alcohol aisles because there are already 6 bottles of beer in the fridge already.

We bought food too, I think.

After stashing the food and wine, we headed for St Eval. First we came to the town, which has many old buildings which look just like they were built to house airmen during the war. Today some have had new fronts put on them. Several of them had their fronts taken off, ready for a new one, and a new life as a modern "semi" [semi-detached dwelling]; it's a 2 story duplex to you and me.

St Eval is a small village near Padstow, and where many airmen were stationed during World War 2. My father was one of them. He flew for the R.A.F. with 224 squadron, bombing enemy submarines in the Bay of Biscay. The church is just outside town, and very near the old airstrips. It contains the insignias of all the squadrons that used the church. 224 Squadron was among them, and lost many men, just as all squadrons did. The war is still big here, with memorials and plaques very common.

      

       224 Squadron insignia                              Interior of St Eval Church.

 

 

As the coast was close by, we went over to Carnewas (yes, that's how it's spelt; don't ask me how to say it). The best way to describe it is rugged. the Atlantic smashes into the English coastline here. Even on a calm day, the surf is impressive.

 

Surf pounded the coast. It was loud and relentless. The warning signs actually said not to swim here ! OK - I won't!

Robyn didn't see this. She had gone back to the tourist centre tea room, for a cuppa. I braved the sea, ever-present winds and the cold to bring you this picture (I am sooo brave; actually I took it from the steps, holding on to the hadrail with my other hand. Then I ran up the steps very quickly).

For lunch, we drove to Newquay. As we motored around the clifftop drive, Robyn spotted the Kallacliff Hotel. The owners provided us with a very nice lunch. I had Coronation Chicken for the first time ever. It had a curry sauce reminiscent of your mum's old Keen's Curry powder (remember the orange tin ?). We chatted for a while, as the owners (both of them) took a break from painting the place and had some lunch at the next table. Like everyone we've met, they were interested in us and asked where we came from. We had to explain where Emerald is, then tell them how hot it gets. This is Ok, because we can tell them anything we like. None of them have been to Australia.

 I'm smiling despite being blown around by the wind. We ate our lunch in the conservatory. It was in the sun and out of the wind.


Down in the centre of Newquay, both of us bought showerproof coats. The ones we bought are good, but not long enough to cover our bums. The new ones are a bit longer. We got them both half price (40 and 30 pounds each), which of course means they were overpriced to start with.

I'd had about enough sightseeing for one day. We took the shortest road home, and had sausages for dinner (from Tesco's !). Oh, and a beer.

Tilll next time....

Lex and Robyn.