A most unique thing about this day is what happened at the very beginning of it: a solar eclipse. We Americans had not known in advance, and this is how we came to find out:
Upon waking up I briefly checked emails and texts, as is my wont when in a foreign land (the SconeLady must catch up on what her family is up to). Friend Rosie had sent this enticing news:
"Good morning! ... it's an eclipse of sun this morning around 8.30-9.00 - just heard best chance of seeing it in South west" xx
Whaat!? No, we had not known that this eclipse was on its very way, that very hour. How had we missed hearing of it? No one had seemed to be talking about it here, and we were not listening to any news outlet (lovely to be away from news outlets whose news seems always rather bad). So on went my jacket, and out the door I scurried. Although I could not take a photo, this is what it looked like to me in a split second glance (only not so black in the background; it was more of a gray color, when I saw it):
https://www.flickr.com/photos/50604581@N03/7238074270
There were banks of people standing all along the hill leading up to The Island, gazing off into the gradually dimming skies. I hoped they had their special eclipse glasses on because our mother always told us to never, ever gaze directly at an eclipse. Such dreadful things might happen.
All of these people seemed to know about the eclipse in advance. We were just happy to catch it by surprise. Thank you friend Rosie!
************
In other news:
We were all reminded of Linda Ronstadt today, as we rode the #17 bus into Penzance. She seems to be the main reason why so many Americans are aware of that city - one cannot go there and not remember her Pirates.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/78317199@N00/3805555577
(Have you ever heard such a soaring voice?).
Our grand Penzance plan of the day had been ambitious: #17 bus to Penzance, find a phone store for all of our SIM card needs, the Penlee Gardens and pretty Magnolias, a walk to Marazion, then St Michael's Mount, a tour of lovely castle, bus back to Penzance, a Mousehole bus to Newlyn for the Newlyn Art School and Gallery, and then back home to fall into exhausted heaps.
We did not reach all of these destinations. Do you wonder why? In the morning we were filled with energy and thought that we might just reach them all. But in the end, I personally was involved in:
- the #17 bus
- the phone store and SIM card arrangements
- a walk to Marazion
- bus back to Penzance
- # 17 to St Ives
- falling into an exhausted heap at the end.
The others did more. They:
- walked across the Causeway to St Michael's Mount
- did the tour of the castle (awesome)
- ate in Marazion (good, but the bus to Penzance appeared just that moment too soon)
- waited, and finally completed all bus trips and fell into EXHAUSTED HEAPS AT THE END.
So I think it was a successful day. Much was attempted, and most was accomplished.
We are now comfortably replete, having eaten the kindly sister's roast pork dinner (they are both such invigorating cooks! One, remember, is a trained chef and the other a splendid cook). The SconeLady has landed on her feet in all of her Cornwall companions thus far -
friend Rosie and her Ted...
kindly sister and her husband...
their tall and adventurous son.
an upcoming visit from the lovely Becs...
Absolutely un-eclipsed.
See you along the way!
the SconeLady
photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/50604581@N03/7238074270">Solar eclipse 2012</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>
photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/78317199@N00/3805555577">Linda Ronstadt concert - UT Arlington August 1977</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">(license)</a>
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