Tintagel

Well the weather didn't improve a lot and at one point we wondered whether we were experiencing a Tintagel Hooley (the local term for strong wind). We visited the Old Tintagel Post Office and once again realised how short people must have been several centuries ago (or they developed a serious stoop to compensate).

We then ventured down (and up and down and up) to the ruins of Tintagel Castle. The views were great but it was hard to hold the camera steady with the wind gusts and it was quite a long drop to the water below!! The King Arthur theme is strong here of course - so strong that in the 1930s, a "romantic millionaire" built a mansion in Tintagel, including a grand hall which is now a centre for audio-visual presentations about King Arthur etc.

After lunch we headed to Port Issac (those who are Doc Martin fans will recognise the scenery) and spent some time walking around the village and immediate coast line.

Getting there was fun as we drove down what were basically one-way country lanes with hedge covered walls on both sides and very little passing space. It required quite a bit of patience to negotiate!

We admired the local concern for wildlife when we passed a sign saying "slow down for fox sake". Speaking of wildlife, I thought you might like a photo of today's "Cornish Swan" (okay, I know its not really a swan but it is a water bird)!!

A feature of life in UK is the large number of people who bring dogs with them on holiday. Many of the hotels and B&Bs welcome them and there seem to be few restrictions on where they can go even in the countryside. Its nice that a lot of shops make a point of leaving bowls of drinking water outside for the dogs (not that they need it right now!)