Cherie's Place

Filed under Anecdotes, Cornwall & Exeter 2026, Holidays

Cornwall & Exeter – Day Six

For breakfast I ordered the full English breakfast minus a few items, but it was still too big for me.

We visited Truro to visit the Cathedral so that I could tick off another Cathedral in my Pilgrim Passport. We arrived to find that children were practicing music in the crossing. There was a sign saying no photographs but we were told that photographs of the building were allowed, but not to photograph the students.

One of the school supervisors spotted cameras and rushed over to tell us that we mustn’t take photos of the students.

We found the Cathedral interesting but the only part of the Cathedral to have a calm and serene atmosphere was the south aisle, which is the only part of the original parish church that remains. The rest of the parish church, which had been rebuilt and remodelled more than once since the first Parish Church of St Mary was established in around 1259, was demolished in 1880 to make way for the new Cathedral when Truro was announced as a Cathedral city.

Later, after browsing in Waterstones and coming away empty handed, we visited Charlotte’s tearoom for lunch. It is a quaint old-fashioned tearoom. I was still full of breakfast so I chose a lighter albeit more indulgent option, warmed apple and almond cake.

Before leaving Truro, we visited Cornwall Museum & Art Gallery which houses an eclectic collection of artefacts, not all of which are connected to Cornwall. It also has temporary exhibition galleries, one of which is currently displaying, ‘Cornish Myths & Legends’. The theme tied in with some of the things we had seen in the Museum of Witchcraft & Magic.

On the way back to the car, we went into the shop formerly know as W H Smiths. I was looking for the next instalment of a series of books I am reading as I had earlier in Waterstones. Yes, I could order it online but is much more fun to go on a bookshop hunt. I didn’t find that book but I picked up a couple of other books (buy one get one for £1).

We returned to the billet to freshen up before dining in the restaurant. I chose scampi – the portion was enormous! Afterwards we sat in the bar area chatting to another couple.

Tags: Cornwall, Cornwall Museum & Art Gallery, Truro, Truro Cathedral, Vacation

No Comments CherryPie on Jul 16th 2026

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Cornwall & Exeter – Day Five

We had a lovely breakfast sitting in the conservatory window and looking out on the garden. There was a small buffet selection and a choice of menu options that were cooked to order. I chose Belgian Waffles with fruit compote. They were delicious but the portion was enormous!

One of the reasons we chose to stay near St Austell is it was very near to the Eden project and that is where we headed straight after breakfast. We visited the Rainforest Biome first and, considering it is a rainforest climate, it was less humid inside than it had been outside for the past few days.

We finished exploring this Biome just in time for lunch, after which we visited the Mediterranean Biome. The plants in this environment were much more familiar to us. Next, we visited The Core building which houses the Invisible Worlds exhibition alongside other temporary exhibitions. The architecture of The Core is based on the structure of a sunflower, which is made of hundreds of seeds that combine to create something greater than the sum of their parts.

One of our favourite artworks in The Core was Infinity Blue. The sculpture almost reaches the roof. It pays homage to one of the smallest living beings, cyanobacteria. Inside the sculpture steam is produced and puffed out as rings. It was lovely to see children running around the sculpture trying to catch them.

By this time, after over 5 hours in the Eden project, we had run out of steam so we returned to the Waterwheel to chill out before dining in The Longstore in the nearby Charlestown. I chose lemon sole with Rosmary potatoes and Mr C chose steak. Both meals were delicious.

Afterwards we walked round Charlestown harbour before returning our billet for a nightcap in the bar.

Tags: Belgian Waffles, Charlestown, Infinity Blue, The Eden Project, The Longstore, Vacation

No Comments CherryPie on Jul 15th 2026

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Cornwall & Exeter – Day Four

We had one last breakfast in Padstow. I reverted to the veggie option before checking out. We loaded our luggage into the car and drove to Boscastle to visit the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic. We arrived at the museum just after a coach party had arrived and so were advised to wait about fifteen minutes before visiting. We bided our time visiting the nearby National Trust shop.

The museum is well worth a visit I found it interesting, intriguing and disturbing in equal measures.

Before leaving Boscastle I picked up a book and a hat clip from the National Trust shop and Mr C found a nice shirt in the outdoor clothing shop. We also took the opportunity to have a browse in the pottery shop. It had some lovely items on display but weren’t tempted to purchase anything.

Another place on Mr C’s bucket list was Tintagel Castle, so that was our next port of call. We found a suitable car park where Mr C inadvertently paid for (only) a two-hour parking slot This meant that after lunch we only had around an hour to explore Tintagel Castle. I had explained that a visit to Tintagel is about walking in the landscape and that you need time to explore the area. Having visited before I knew that one hour was no where near enough to enjoy the site.

It was extremely hot and very windy so I only went as far as I knew I could manage in the time we had available leaving Mr C to stride out further whilst I retraced my steps to allow us to get back to the carpark on time.

Walking across the new bridge that scans the gap between the two parts of the castle the wind was howling across the gap making it difficult to stay upright. On my way back I was walking a steady measured pace, bracing the wind when the couple in front of my stopped to look at the gap between the two parts of the cantilever bridge. Just as I overtook them, they decided to walk on causing me to break my stride. The lady of the couple asked me if I wanted to link arms so that I didn’t get blown off the bridge. This, and being asked if I needed help to get up the steepest park of the path near to the visitor centre, made me feel old!

Interestingly, I would like to go back and explore Tintagel again when I have more time to enjoy it whereas Mr C was a little disappointed with what he thought would be a more substantial ruin and not so inclined to return now it is ticked off his bucket list.

Next stop was The Waterwheel near St Austell where would be spending the next few nights. We checked in, unpacked and chilled out in our room until it was time to dine in the Inn’s restaurant.

For dinner I chose Mediterranean tart with salad and new potatoes, and as we were dining, we got chatting to a couple on a nearby table. Before retiring for the evening, we had a nightcap in the bar where a man started chatting to us. He told us he was a stonemason which led to a conversation about English Cathedrals and which were the best. He had no hesitation in saying York and then after consideration he added Winchester.

After a while he left to watch the England match in his room leaving us to our own devices.

No Comments CherryPie on Jul 14th 2026

Filed under Anecdotes, Cornwall & Exeter 2026, Holidays

Cornwall & Exeter – Day Three

The service at breakfast was not as efficient-much slower-than it had been the previous day. Several people were seeking out the waitress for their order to be taken only to be told to return to their table, someone would be along soon.

The waitress eventually came to take our order (after taking an order from others that had arrived later than us). I chose the blueberry pancake stack. It was delicious.

The temperature had dropped enough for us to follow the local history walk around Padstow. We stopped at St Petroc’s church where we heard the organ being tuned. Shortly after, we arrived at Prideaux Place just in time to join the guided tour at 12pm. When the tour had concluded we enjoyed mackerel pate whilst sitting outside overlooking the deer park.

We then resumed the Padstow walk which ended at the harbour. We continued to the nearby National Lobster Hatchery which we found fascinating. As we arrived, the lobsters and other marine life were being fed. It was fascinating to watch the lobster eat.

We returned to the town and had refreshments in the delightfully named Cherry Blossom café. We shared a cake and I had my usual Elderflower Presse and Mr C a cup of tea. We then returned to the billet to chill out with another cup of tea enjoying the view from our room.

Later we dined in Rick Stein’s Seafood Restaurant. The service from Olly was excellent but once again, as in Winchester earlier this year, we were left slightly underwhelmed by the food choices. I chose Indonesian fish stew which turned out to be one of the larger meals.

We have dined in Rick Stein’s before these two occasions and enjoyed what was on offer, but something has changed over the years.

We had a nightcap in the Old Ship Inn before retiring for the evening.

Tags: Cornwall, Deer Park, Mackerel Pate, National Lobster Hatchery, Padstow, Prideaux Place, Rick Stein, Rick Stein's Seafood Restaurant, St Petroc's Church, The Old Custom House, The Old Ship Inn, Vacation

No Comments CherryPie on Jul 13th 2026

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Cornwall & Exeter – Day Two

Breakfast and the associated service were excellent. There was a buffet selection and a menu offering cooked-to-order choices. I selected a child’s vegetarian breakfast.

Mr C wanted to tick off some of his bucket list items, so we headed to Land’s End via St Michaels Mount. We paused briefly at St Michaels Mount for Mr C to take some photos before continuing our journey to Land’s End.

Both places were a lot more commercialised than I remember from my previous visits. At Land’s End there were lots of tacky over-priced gift shops. You also have to pay a professional photographer to be able to get anywhere near the ‘famous’ signpost. What a rip off! The views, however are stunning and the breeze was a welcome relief given the 90F temperatures we were experiencing.

I got chatting to a couple whilst we were looking at a signboard of marine life that could be spotted off the coast. They were excited to tell me that they had encountered a seal whilst they had been paddleboarding nearby the previous day. One of them had also had a less pleasant experience, he had been stung by a jellyfish.

Before we left, Paddington Bear offered me a nibble of his marmalade sandwich. We decided not to have lunch at Land’s End and find somewhere on route to St Ives which was our next destination.

A signpost directed us to a lovely St Buryan farm shop where Mr C was able to sample a Cornish pasty and I, still being full of breakfast, chose an apricot slice.

When we arrived in St Ives, we hoped to visit The Tate St Ives but we found it impossible to find a parking space. By this time, it was getting too late to park further away and enjoy the gallery to its full. We chose to return to Padstow rather than wander around St Ives.

Back in Padstow the heat was still unbearable. We decided to cool off with a Mr Whippy, there was a mobile van parked up just outside the hotel. I was warned about the seagulls and as I was making my way to safety, and before Mr C had even paid, a seagull did a swoop-and-dive from behind, taking my flake and most of the ice-cream and leaving me with just a cone and a startled couple who were walking towards me.

As I turned back to Mr C the owner beckoned me back and very kindly gave me another ice-cream for free. This time Mr C and I both made it to safety without a repeat offence.

We sat and whiled away the rest of the afternoon in The Old Ship Inn before freshening up for dinner in The Jetty at The Harbour Hotel. We found that the hotel was not actually in the harbour where its sign is situated but on a steep slope above the harbour. When we eventually arrived at the hotel, I chose fish and chips. A thunder storm was brewing up over the sea bringing with it sharp gusts of wind (and later rain) leading the staff to tidy up the outside seating so that it didn’t get blown away. This led to a delay in our food being served, but when it arrived it was delicious.

After eating we decided not to chance our luck with the weather and returned to the hotel for a nightcap. The service in the bar was just as chaotic as it had been on our arrival the previous day.

Tags: Land's End, Marmalade Sandwich, Mr Whippy, Paddington Bear, Seagull, The Jetty at the Harbour Hotel, The Old Ship Inn, Vacation

4 Comments CherryPie on Jul 13th 2026

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Cornwall & Exeter – Day One

The first destination of our holiday was Padstow. When we set off (on time), the temperature was 94F s0 we were glad of the car’s air conditioning. We stopped for lunch in Gloucester services where we sat inside after we decided it was too hot to sit outside. Later, we stopped at Exeter services for a leg stretch and another cooling drink.

Padstow, was positively cool at 81F. We parked the car and checked into our hotel, The Old Custom House, which was conveniently close to the car park. We arrived at the most inconvenient time; the hotel was experiencing a power cut. In fact, the whole of Padstow was experiencing a power cut. The power kept cutting in and out for the next half an hour or so.

We dumped our bags in the room and visited the hotel bar just as the power cut out again. The bar maid was in the process of telling us that she couldn’t serve us when the lady who had checked us in intervened and told her that we were residents and she could serve us. All she needed to do was bill it to our room number.

One glass of wine and a cool beer later, we were chilling out in the lounge which overlooks Padstow Harbour. Whilst we were driving to Padstow the restaurant we had booked to dine in that evening phoned to tell us they weren’t able to honour the booking as both of their Chefs were ill. The journey to Padstow had been a long one so, rather than look for somewhere else, we decided to dine in the hotel restaurant for convenience.

However, when we arrived for dinner most menu items had sold out leaving us with the options of burgers or curry. We told the person serving us that this wouldn’t work and we left. We were able to find a table at the Harbour Inn which is next to The Old Custom House. The food was nice. I chose scampi. This was served with chips cooked in beef fat. I know that many people rave about this type of chips but I was not convinced the flavour worked with scampi. I found the flavour clashed and I think I would have felt the same way if I had ordered the fish instead.

After dining we had a leisurely walk around the harbour before enjoying a nightcap in The Old Ship Inn. We returned to the hotel to find it was buzzing as we sat relaxing in our room with a view over the harbour.

Just as I was settling into bed, I remembered that I had forgotten to pack my lovely new alarm clock that worked so well when we were in Winchester for Easter.

Tags: Cornwall, Exeter services, Gloucester Services, Padstow, The Harbour Inn, The Old Custom House, The Old Ship Inn, Vacation

6 Comments CherryPie on Jul 12th 2026

Filed under Cornwall & Exeter 2026, Holidays