Belated Cornwall stuff

[juliet]

So, last weekend I went down to Cornwall with kitty_goth, bootpunk, valkyriekaren, Mat & Kath to stay with Kitty's parents. And a top weekend it was too. Got into Bodmin around 2200 on Thursday night, after somewhat scaring the unfortunate couple sharing our bit of carriage with us, & rather unexpectedly encountering Andrea, who used to be in youth orchestra with me (we were good friends for a while, then sort of fell out), & who I've not seen for 7 years or so. Which was a little peculiar.

Friday, Mat & CJ headed off surfing, & Karen, Kath, Ben & I went to the Eden Project. Which was *brilliant*. I mean, I know I like plants (& they had quite a lot of food-type plants, which are the ones that interest me particularly), but it really was fascinating. Really well put together, as well, and signed & labelled & stuff. We spent 4 or 5 hours there, I think, & I could probably have spent longer (except that my feet might have worn out!). I really want to go back again - probably in spring, to see how it looks then. Luckily it wasn't too hot or sunny a day - the temperate biome was an OK temperature, but the tropical one was pretty damn hot (& humid) anyway, & every time the sun came out for a bit you *really* noticed it. Fantastic, anyway, & thoroughly recommended. Lovely plants. The walk back up to the exit, through the plants that grow in this sort of climate, was really nice - I particularly liked the plants-in-myth section, which had a willow-stick hut thing over a little maze (with the willow beginning to grow where it'd been planted in the ground - willow grows like fury given half a chance). There were lots of herbs planted around the outside of the eating areas, as well, which obviously made me go *bounce* lots & run round smelling everything. I was having to resist handling all the plants as we walked round the biomes - on the grounds that if all the visitors prodded at them, all the leaves would fall off. But when they've got halfadozen different sorts of thyme, it's *difficult*!

It was a shame that just as Ben was starting to unwind from stressful work week, he got a call from work again - I think half of Eden heard his candid opinion of the activities of his team in his absence :-) Luckily the restressing didn't last. We also discovered a good use of mobilephone hands-free kit in the evening - you can have 2 people on the end of the phone, so we both got to have a chat to shadow_jess :-)

Saturday went to the beach with CJ, Mat (both surfing again), Ben, & his mum, & went for a walk along the cliffs with Ben, his mum & the dogs (2 blue merle Border collies - lovely dogs). It rained on us a bit a couple of times, but not for long, & I got to go for a paddle in the sea (& despite carefully tucking my skirt up, nevertheless managed to get rather damp around the edges. I am incapable of being sensible when it comes to the sea, it seems. Water! Yay! Ben & I cooked dinner in the evening (well, Ben cooked dinner, I was being kitchen-skivvy) - steak & mash for everyone else, Tesco vegan spag bol & mash for me (Tesco veggie spag bol surprisingly good, though). And then stayed up late drinking, trying to steal the futurephone (it's OK now, though, I don't want it any more as I've got my lovely Treo. hurrah), & playing a form of 3D Scrabble called Upword, & a bit of Go (until my brain started breaking).

Just about managed to make it to the beach again on Sunday, although rather later than had been the vague plan (people had been talking about "getting up early" - this was clearly never going to happen, though). CJ went out to catch a final few waves, & Kath, Karen & I went for another paddle in the edge. Except this time I cracked & decided to go for a proper swim, accompanied by Kath. It was bloody *freezing*! Especially as it was a windy day, & after a bit started raining as well... But swimming in the sea is always fun, even when (as in this case) it was more a case of playing in waves than any actual swimming. CJ & I got hauled out eventually when the sensible dry people decided that they wanted to go to the pub :-) Drinks, chips, & just made our train back London-wards. Lovely weekend all round.