We are Tate Members and had often thought about visiting the Tate Gallery in St Ives, but it's a long haul from London. So when John was due to go to a conference in South Wales we thought we could go down for a few days.
We hoped that it would be far enough into the year to get some reasonable weather. We were wrong but we still had a good time.
St Ives
When we arrived in St Ives the weather was terrible. We managed to walk to an excellent fish restaurant in the high street, but that was all.
Luckily we had a nice room with a sofa and a great view across St Ives. So even if it was a bit wet we could
sit and read and watch a film on the television. The hotel was right by the back of Tate St Ives so it was
very handy … but you do need a strong pair of legs to get up and down the hill.
On the first full day the weather had improved so we managed a walk around the town. The harbour is still in
use and is lined with great restaurants and pasty shops.
We tend to think of the water around Britain as muddy and dirty, but recent efforts to clean up our beaches
and water do seem to be working. The water at St Ives was very clear, even around the harbour where the
boats come and go regularly.
There is a lifeguard station and a chapel on the headland at St Ives. Typically rocky Cornish scenery.
Tate St Ives faces on to the beach at Porthmeor. We did get a bit of sun so you can imagine how great this
would be in the summer.
Tate St Ives was well worth the trip. Excellent building and interesting art, with a small café at the top. A great place for a slow coffee and to read the paper.
Eden Project
The wet weather made the domes at the Eden Project an ideal destination. They are huge and you really
can imagine being somewhere else when you are deep inside surrounded by exotic plants.
The domes are very varied with great displays on the uses that the plants have in different parts of the
world.
Aside from the main contents of the domes there are excellent seasonal displays, and don't miss the
outside areas.
We had planned to stay for the Sunday and come back later on the Monday. But it was too wet to stay. So we bought some pasties on Sunday morning and come home via Castle Drogo.