Exploring the British Coastline
Do you always find that you are always wanting to explore other places than what’s local? We’re still thinking about places further afield, and we always forget about what we have close by. This time J and I decided to keep it local and explore some of the British Coastline.
Seagulls in St Ives
Our first stop was St Ives. I fell in love immediately with this place and decided that this was where we were going to retire. The cobbled streets, the tiny shops, everything was so quaint and fit just right. Everywhere you turn there are fantastic views. If you go up to the Chapel of St Nicholas, you can see a panoramic view of the town. The town in the middle flanked by water. I’ve never seen such a scene, and it left me wanting for more.
St Ives
It’s not just a pretty place though. St Ives provides inspiration to a lot of artists who made this place their home. The Tate has a number of exhibits that showcase local talent which made me feel more connected to the place. It has the best views as the cafe at the top has panoramic windows opening up to the sea and on one part of the gallery as well you’ll see a nice spot to sit and take in the art on the inside and that on the outside as well.
Your ticket also provides you access to the Barbara Hepworth Sculpture Garden. Some of her work is shown at the Tate along with some of the people that she worked in but this space was something else. The backdrop of the cherry blossoms made this a sensory adventure in more ways than one. The sculptures stood out, and you could walk around them and see the intricate details. I didn’t have much appreciation for sculptures before I went there but by the time we left, I saw everything in a new light.
Being on the coastline, St Ives boasts with a number of beautiful coastal walks. J and I took a train from St Ives to Lelant and then took the path from Lelant to Carbis Bay as our hotel was close to Carbis Bay. We experienced the benefits of late spring. The paths were covered with beautiful blooms like snowdrops, bluebells and daisies. The light hit some paths just right and that alone made you feel like you were in your own magical space.
What surprised me the most was the colour of the water on this part of St Ives Bay. All along we had seen blue water and then all of a sudden, I looked down on a cliff face and the most gorgeous green water welcomed me (I didn’t jump in of course). In that moment, I realised that this part of the British Coastline was full of surprises.
If you have the opportunity to head over to St Ives, I’d greatly suggest making a detour to the National Trust’s Godrvey. This beautiful space is popular with walkers and surfers with amazing sands to set up beach camp on. The lighthouse for me was the highlight as you could see it from all angles of the area. The Godrevy Café has a nice selection of food and drinks which you can purchase and enjoy in one of their spaces
J had booked us a glass making course where we would be working with Steve Robinson who makes a lot of beautiful artwork on glasses for many customers such as John Lewis. We were going to be participating in an evening taster class where we would learn how to make a tea light panel. I really enjoyed this experience because we got to think about different designs to which I must admit after J finished with his I was really jealous because it was well thought out whereas mine didn’t have a lot of thought to it other than representing water after being by the sea
Our British Coastal adventure was completed by a trip to Dorset. Dorset is home to the Jurassic Coast which is a World Heritage site due to the importance it has in uncovering the Earths History. I knew this was going to be my favourite place. My only mistake was not getting here early enough for us to be able to enjoy the area at a slower pace. We started our short adventure in this area by visiting Lulworth Cove. We found a path that took us to the tip and J being the daredevil that he is took it one step further and found a ledge to pose on. I won’t lie, the entire time he was there a million bad thoughts went through my head but he lived on for me to share the shot :P
From there we went uphill to the Durdle Door. I didn’t anticipate the steep hill and had I not been wearing trainers, I don’t think I would have wanted to walk the short distance to the Durdle Door. By the time we got there, the walk up didn’t matter anymore because I was finally in this beautiful space. I’d always wanted to visit this place and for many reasons kept putting it off but after the Azure Window in Malta was lost, I knew I had to make the trip to go and see this natural arc before something happened to it.
Exploring the British Coastline is something which I really hope that J and I will continue to do. Who knows we might just walk all the way around it :P