Paignton – still sunny

Another mostly sunny day (Sunday) with no need for a jumper. The sea this  morning was like a millpond and, with the  bright blue sky, the day was looking good.







We went for a ride on the Seaton Tramway this morning, an electric tram that follows the Axe River valley upstream for a few miles and passes through Seaton Marshes, an extensive wetland with, according to the brochure, over 50 species of birds. Walked to a village about 1 mile from the end of the tram line and stumbled on a small choir concert in the village church.



We left Seaton and drove to Branscombe, described as one of the most beautiful coastal villages in Devon. The roads leading into the village have high hedges on either side and are only wide enough for 1 car. There are a number of passing bays, but some time is spent reversing to allow oncoming cars to pass. The drivers  are amazingly polite and it is unusual for the oncoming driver not to wait to let you through. It is almost a stand off sometimes with cars in both directions waiting for the other. The village has many beautiful thatched roofed cottages with the road meandering between.

We’re now in Paignton, where Gill’s parents lived at one stage. We’ve just returned to our B&B after a meal at one of the many pubs along the seafront. It is about 9pm and we’re looking out the window, over rows of bathing boxes with bright coloured doors, at the fading blue sky and the flat sea.  Paignton is very much a holiday town, with rows & rows of hotels & B&Bs on the roads in and along the seafront, just like you see in English films set at the sea side. What seems to be the main street from the seafront to the centre of town is filled with amusement parlours, pin ball machines and general touristy stuff. We haven’t had time to look beyond this yet.
Tomorrow (Monday) we are going on a “round robin” tour, consisting of a bus from Paignton to Totness, then a river boat down the river Dart for about an hour & a half to Dartmouth, then a steam train back to Paignton, with time along the way to walk around Totness and Dartmouth. We’ll come back to the same B&B for the night.
Now it’s Monday. We spent a couple of hours exploring the medieval town of Totnes which has a mix of old world charm and new age nutters.  The Bogan Cafe says it all!? Really though, it is an interesting town to walk through. Had coffee and have now learnt that we need to order double shot coffees. The round robin tour was very relaxing. We sat outside at the pointy end of the boat for the trip down the Dart. Got sunburnt. The commentary told how the filming of the film, The Onedin Line, set in the Amazon jungle, was filmed along the heavily forested bank of the Dart, and one shot was ruined by the steam train passing by. They shot the scene again later, but had the train timetable this time. The boat captain pointed out a new house with a copper roof and made the comment that the copper was still there.


Spent a couple of hours at Dartmouth looking around & intrigued with the oldest  and sole surviving medieval house in the borough of Dartmouth. It’s a pub and was built around 1380. Ceilings very low.













Naval military  college on the hill is impressive and overlooks the town. It replaces a few old ships that were used for training naval cadets.












How about a public ‘phone that will let you text or send an email as well as ring someone?




Steam Train from across the river at Kingswear back to Paignton was a  relaxing end to a great day, with pretty good views over villages, valleys, harbours, beachfronts, boats etc.



Spent the evening planning visits to nearby National Trust properties. Unfortunately Agatha Christie’s holiday house is closed tomorrow (Tuesday).

Tuesday evening now.
Another sunny, blue sky day. Visited Buckfast Abbey this morning, a self sufficient Benedictine monastery, where they are getting prepared to celebrate the millenium of the founding of their order in 1018. Huge building works replacing the floor of the Abbey Church in stages. The monks run bee-keeping courses, make tonic wine, make stained-glass windows for churches, organise conferences and retreats, amongst other activities. There are lavender gardens, sensory gardens and physic gardens, with plants for medicinal, household and culinary purposes.


Then on to  a National Trust 300 year old home, Saltram – when we could finally get there. Several  important signs are missing, and we did a random tour of some of Plymouth’s suburbs.The house has several rooms designed and decorated by Robert Adam. Very impressive, but some aspects were overwhelming and too ornate. There are warnings not to fall into the ha-ha, a steep invisible dip in the front lawn.



Because of the delay in getting to Saltram, we did not have enough time at Cotehele, a Tudor house in  west Devon. The house had a more cosy feel to it, with huge tapestries covering the walls and the rooms more intimate sizes. Unfortunately we were too late for the flour-grinding mill to be seen in action.
 

We took a ferry across the Tamar River to escape Plymouth and drove into Cornwall. We are spending  the night in Looe, very pretty, very trendy and very expensive. River is tidal and boats are left sitting in the exposed mud at low tide.