Cohens in Cornwall

We picked up the kids at school on Friday and headed south. Cornwall is in England's Southwestern tip of the peninsula, and with its own language, culture, and history, many Cornish consider it an independent country. One of the highlights of Cornwall is that it is the home of the Currans, a previous Atlanta and Paideia family who visited us several months ago in Bath. Rob, Karen, and their 3 daughters (Megan, 11; Lannie, 9; and Jess, 6) moved to Cornwall (Rob's home) a few years ago.

Our first stop was the Curran's house. They live in a converted barn in a tiny village in the woods on a stream. Rachelle and I loved spending time chatting with Rob and Karen while the 5 kids played outside. After dinner we headed to our B&B, which was beautiful. It was a converted mill set on a fast-moving river, and we entered our accommodation, which used to be a stone barn, by crossing a small bridge over water. Our place was surrounded by water, and there was a little boat if you wanted to paddle around.

On Saturday, we popped into the Curran's and picked up Megan and Lannie and headed to Pendennis Castle. We were lucky that they were having a wedding and we witnessed the bride and her party arrive in carriage pulled by horses and the groom prance in with his top hat and tails on a horse. It was quite a spectacle. We explored the peninsula and climbed amongst the rocks before meeting up with the rest of the Currans. We followed them to a little beach tucked in a wooded cove. I helped Rob carry his kayak down the path and the kids helped tote the picnic, which was a treat of Cornish pasties and ales. While the kids scampered amongst the rocks and climbed trees, the grownups relaxed in the sun and sipped wine and ale. We took turns exploring the coves and caves with the kayak, and it was quite easy to imagine past smugglers and pirates hiding their goods amongst the rocks.

On Sunday we took the two youngest Currans to St. Michael's Mount (http://www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk/), which is a castle on the hill of an island only accessible at low tide or by boat. The 6 of us stormed the castle and feasted on Cornish food in a little restaurant. After having our fill of the fortified island, we drove through Penzance and headed to the cute fishing village called Mousehole (pronounced Mowzil). After exploring the cute shops and having some ice-cream, we headed to the beaches on the Northern coast. As we drove there, we found that you could see either coast from certain high points in the road. We stopped at a beautiful stretch of beach, which had a rocks for climbing and long stretches of sand for chase. As we explored, we came to a very fast-moving and wide stream that came from the rocks and flowed into the ocean. The kids waded in a bit, but it was Noah who braved through to the other side and ending up completely soaked head to toe in sandy salt water. We eventually had to leave as it was getting close to dinner at the rest of the Currans were waiting, so, after getting Noah into dry clothes we headed out. That evening, we had another lovely dinner with the Currans and a good nights sleep.

On Monday we headed to the Curran's for a wonderful pancake meal. On that particular day the Curran's village was having a street sale. All along the road were little tables set up with clothes, toys, books, homemade food, plants, and other things. Noah and Liv joined the Curran kids and a couple of other kids to man a table full of toys, kids clothes, and other odds and ends. They most definitely gave the "fairy cake" selling little old ladies a run for their money in the cute category. Eventually we had to bid farewell to the Currans and head out. On the way home, we detoured to the Eden Project (www.edenproject.com), which is a former clay-pit site converted into an enormous garden and several huge biodomes. We wandered through the rain forest biodome, which is the world's largest greenhouse complete with birds and waterfalls, before having an all-natural lunch harvested from the Eden Project land. After filling up on environmentalism and nature we headed back home to Bath.