Summer of 23 - UK Tour - The unexpected happens, visiting the kids from afar, moving on to Cornwall & Carnewas at Bedruthun Steps

 Sunday May 14th, 2023   

Saturday night Bryan began to feel ill. We had some covid tests as a precaution for when we were on the cruise but hadn't needed them. Now he used them and tested positive. I tested but was negative. 

We were supposed to leave today and go to stay with Ian & Kris but it was obvious that was now out of the question. We arranged to stay an extra night here in Andover while I worked out an alternative and to give Bryan some time to rest. 

We also managed to catch up on the last of our laundry as unfortunately the owners had gone out yesterday and left the shed locked. 

We decided to still go to Bridgend in the hopes that Bryan would test negative before we had to leave and we could visit with the kids. I found an Air BNB near them and booked it for a week. We delayed our arrival at our next stop in Cornwall by three days.

Monday May 15th, 2023 - Sunday May 21st, 2023

Bryan managed to drive us to Bridgend and we got settled into the ground floor apartment we had. I started to feel bad as well, and sure enough I tested positive as well. We both went straight to bed when we arrived after the drive. 

We went to a local pharmacy and got more tests and some cold medication and to the supermarket to get some food we hoped we would be able to eat. I survived on banana and custard. Bryan had chocolate custard.

There was nothing we could do but rest, medicate, sleep and try to eat and keep hydrated. 

Thank goodness we had Ian & Kris nearby, as Ian went to get us a few things during the week. It became obvious that we weren't going to be clear before we left, and the day before we were due to leave they all came and visited by standing by their car at the kerb and we were at the front door. They also bought us more goodies. It was so good to see them but it broke my heart that we couldn't cuddle or hug. 

We also missed a Lads & Dads rugby game, the Dads won!! We did consider going, and standing on the sidelines away from everyone but in the end just didn't feel up to it. Sigh!!!!

Needless to say we don't have any pictures from our week of the apartment, or family. 

Monday May 22nd, 2023

We were both feeling better but still testing positive. We headed out to our next stop in Cornwall. We stopped on the way for groceries.

We arrived at Wildflower Cottage, Porth, Newquay, Cornwall. We are here for 18 nights and have some places to explore. The farm has an interesting history and you can read a little about it in the link above. 

The family were very friendly and father and son came to fix one of our recliners for us. We had a long chat about the history of the farm and they gave us suggestions of places to visit. 

Sue in the living area with the dining table and kitchen in the background

Even a 4 poster bed!!

Bathroom with Jacuzzi tub. We had to supply our own towels.

View from the back garden

So peaceful & relaxing

Nice seating area outside

We saw the cows most days

Our own back garden

Stained glass windows above dining area

Wednesday May 24th, 2023

We had planned a few places to try and visit while we were here but we decided to try a place the owner had recommended for our first trip out. We were taking things slowly but had got clear covid tests when we got here, so that was a relief.

Carnewas & Bedruthan Steps was an interesting stop. It's a National Trust property and we took the opportunity to get an annual membership.  This enables us to go to any National Trust property and get free entrance and parking. We plan on visiting quite a few of these sites so the membership will have paid for itself pretty quickly.

We started the walk down a concrete path with an ocean view not too far away.

It was getting interesting and there were several benches where you could stop and rest and take in the views.

This was a picture postcard view.

The ragged coastline was beautiful and lifted our spirits as we finally got to enjoy our vacation in England. We still weren't 100% and so conserved our energy.

The picture below shows a lighthouse in the distance.  I'm sure we would probably have driven to it on a normal day but we were pacing ourselves on our first day of a return to normalcy.

Most of the people we encountered at the beginning had walked further on. We slowly walked and then sat and enjoyed the views which were beautiful and it was so peaceful. 

The picture below is a close up of the one above.  It looks to me as though the rock is shaped like a seal sitting on a rock. Can anyone else see that?

It was a wonderful start to our explorations of Cornwall. We visited Cornwall in 1988 to celebrate our 1 year anniversary of meeting, although that was a quick weekend visit.