Vacation V Staycation Costs
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I rarely visit this section (having no plans to travel very far from home), but I idly looked in yesterday. I hadn't heard anyone mention Jane Shaw for years and years. She was a favourite author of mine in the early 1950's and I have all her "Susan" books and some of the others. They will all be in the bookcase on the top floor (chcildren's books). Maybe I should fetch them down.
Sorrry - totally off topic!
Please Carry On (talking about) Cruising.
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Just reading about plans for some Cruising. Mega ships looking likely to trundle up to Scotland, and along South Coast. However, it is cruise only. Passengers unlikely to be allowed off, so you can look, but you can’t explore. We happened to be in Falmouth one day when one of the immense American Cruise Ships was anchored just off Carrick Roads. The town’s population soared that day, lots of little tenders plying to and fro all day. Got to have had your jabs as well before you get onboard.
St Mawes Castle doubled as Fort Baton (where Ross rescues Dwight) in the early Poldark TV series. And the sea scenes using the Grand Turk in the early Hornblower’s was filmed off Falmouth. Doubled as Minorca I think🤔
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"Sorrry - totally off topic! Please Carry On (talking about) Cruising."
I think I might start, talking about cruising, myself!!! (Smiling face, winking, thumbs up).
Re ship sizes and prices-only done three cruises, and learned on the first to avoid mentioning that it was our first as this led to a torrent of advice on what we should be doing, and the ships were all 2000 passengers of smaller.
Our first, with P&O,was just £795 each, for 17 days,but it was in 2015, in the Med in Febuary.
Second, with Cunard, was a package of 7 night cruise with a day in Venice pre cruise and two in Rome post cruise and was £1750
Latest, with Marella, was in 2019, a two week cruise and stay, 7 nights in Corfu and was £2450 each.
They all had good and bad points, of the three P&O was fave but future cruises will be chosen on itinerary and price mainly with an open mind on which cruise line.
We were very impressed with P&Os hygiene measures where you could not enter anywhere without sanitising your hands, the others were less strict, and whilst not the size ship many have mentioned, had no issues with crowding, on none that could not be avoided.
I can see that it may appear counter intuitive to say being on a ship with thousands of others may be safe but, based on our cruise experience, would feel no less safe than being in a restaurant, shop or many workplaces.
Add in that it seems you will need to show you have been vaccinated and their experience with preventing cross infection and I really do need to check on that August holiday of the Italian lakes & Greek Islands Cruise & Stay!
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Not been on a cruise. Perhaps one about this size, that we saw in Loch Alsh a few years ago. A French company if they are still in business, I believe the food is fairly good.😋 Those mega floating hotels, that look as though they should fall over, have no appeal whatsoever.
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That looks quite nice Steve. Those river cruisers look nice as well.
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Cruises? No thanks!
Years ago, before they built the cruise ship terminal, we were sitting in a sand floored beach front bar on the south side of Bali looking out at one of the Cunard Queens anchored in the bay. Every hustler on the island with fake watches and silver bracelets to sell had arrived by the pier to meet the gullible as they came ashore. They were very old Americans - the men recognisable by their checked gingham, elastic waist trousers - and my were they gullible. They paid silly prices in US dollars and believed the pashminas really were cashmere - though many were scared by Asia at first hand and turned tail and fled straight back to the ship.
A British woman from the crew joined us in the bar - think old fashioned headmistress crossed with military police sergeant. She was the enforcer in charge of the cabin staff - she searched their cabins for drugs, she found who was selling the stuff to the passengers, and who was sleeping with the passengers for cash. Simple disciplinary answers - she put them ashore at the next port of call and let them find their own way home. Her below stairs cruise ship descriptions were gloomy.
And on another day we found ourselves in Port Klang - which the cruises use as the drop of point for Kuala Lumpur. That really is the most awful place I ever saw.
So no thanks.
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Big cruise ships are always crowded?
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Only those who want to brag about swimming north of the arctic circle will show up at the pool in the fjords DK although I suspect that one is a bit below the line. Most of my cruises have been Cunard and I've never found them crowded. Don't know how the propeller driven blocks of flats fare though.
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Used River Valley a few times the Grandsons loved it, straight on to a cycle path down to Pentewan. Snozle town center walkable in other direction.
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As regards St Austell town centre that is the best thing to do-walk in the other direction!
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No staycation for the Germans over the Easter period, Murcia Today reports than Berlin will lift travel restrictions to Spain for the holiday period, and Spain will welcome them with open arms, even though the locals will be confined to their region and not allowed to travel, the Madrilenos are not happy. German daily infection rate 12K per day and rising, UK 5.75k and holding steady.
Germans will be allowed to travel home without testing or SI .
P,S, i see that doctors in Germany are calling for a lock down starting this weekend
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Aw, come on! While it'll never match a big city centre, it's not bad for a small town.
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That'll be the ever expanding pasty line 😂
From a native, too 😳
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Today was pastry day but sadly not yet converted to pasty, so no expansion as yet.
As for being a native, well that's not me my ansom but, I know many who are that agree with me re St Awful.
I have visited it to shop for decades, and worked there a fair bit on a couple of occasions, but since ASDA moved out of the centre................well, it has not been the same!
Slight upturn with the White River development but nothing to draw us and if heading West, usualy Truro or beyond, its Bodmin then the A30 as its also one of the worst places to drive through.
A couple of years ago friends on a rally at Pentewan asked if we wanted to go "into town" and we declined-on their return their opening line was "well you could have warned us".
Maybe if the Coliseum reopens we may visit more.
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I saw that today too, seems crazy that Germany is in a third wave yet open up to allow them to fly off on hols. IMO they should as a country be fined by the EU for allowing this.
I can understand why the Madrilenos are not happy about things.
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I can tell you're not a local. Neither am I by birth but, like the Cornish, I attempt to promote the good things about the area and I’d feel disloyal to my chosen area if I denigrated them. There are many quaint nooks and crannies worthy of exploration in all our towns but I’d sure move pronto if I hated the place.
Surely it was Tesco in Aylmer Square in the town centre before they moved to Holmbush on the site previously occupied by Mount Caravans? I don’t recall Asda being here at all prior to opening their superstore just on the outskirts.
Also, The Coliseum was at Carlyon Bay, not in St Austell town, and is flattened. You seem to be a bit adrift on a few points, A&J.
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We started cruising 25 years ago, a river cruise down the Nile, fantastic, one I would again.
Since then we have done 14 other cruises, some on small ships, some medium sized and a few of the large ones. On the whole we have had good experiences. Agree about sea days, sometimes they are welcomed if you have been busy in the prior to them but some cruises have a lot of sea days, they are the ones to avoid.
River cruises are excellent as they are not big ships, everyday you are ashore doing something interesting. They are not cheap on the Danube but its one we are looking at doing at some point.
Until things settle down around the world, we will more than likely stick to using the caravan or MH for our holidays. We have sites booked in the UK until the end of August and a tunnel booked (carried over from last year) for September. If its ok to travel then we will go and have a nice time I'm sure.
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I had a lovely old, now departed friend from a previous job who was brought up in Par and I always view the St Austell area as part of the real working Cornwall, not the touristy bits. She took me round to see all her childhood haunts and we had a coffee at the Holmbush before the start of the tour (when the veg shop was over the road and you could buy Cornish potatoes there.
)Nostalgia ain't what it used to be....but I do remember when Tesco arrived there.
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Well, as Jethro says, I am local when I am here, but still an odd thing to state unless you think that makes someone’s view less relevant.
That aside, I am surprised that, as you claim I need to use emojis to be understood, you could tell that I was not local from my emoji free posts.Both comments, about ASDA and the Coliseum, were made as they are both long gone, which you clearly seem to know, so ironic.
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The Holmbush is, or was pre-covid, still going strong and does pretty good food. That veg shop became a hairdressers (have you noticed how many there are in the area?) and then a vets. There is a similar greengrocer in Par.
It is a 'working' area largely due to the china clay industry - hence the milling and drying facility at Par docks next to the dog friendly beach. The Wheal Martyn China Clay Museum just north of St Austell town makes an interesting visit and tells of the industrial heritage.
Yes, Tesco moved to Holmbush from the concrete cancer riddled complex in St Austell which, after standing empty for decades, was eventually demolished around 15 years ago making way for the White River Shopping Precinct - a vast improvement!
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TG, see that P&O have cancelled all cruises till end of August/September, to be replaced with a series of round Britain trips from Southampton.
It was suggested on the Radio 2 news yesterday that the may be purely a cruise with no ports visited.
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I can tell you are not a local person from the rather disparaging attitude you display, A&J. Emojis will never disguise that. It’s not that your view is irrelevant but it is unusual from one who lives here by choice. It's as if you only tolerate your surroundings and would rather be somewhere else. Very strange.
Your closing paragraph leaves me puzzled. I corrected your mis-remembering, that's all.🤷🏻♂️
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The Holmbush, like many St Austell Brewery pubs, does indeed do good food and, as an alternative to Wheal Jane you could do worse than a visit to the brewery visitor centre and tour.
My wife’s auntie lived in one of the very small cottages opposite the Holmbush for many years and if you call again visit Rickard’s butchers next door.
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Wheal Jane? That’s down beyond Truro.
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Yes, Jayne is Martyn’s sister.
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A&J wrote "Maybe if the Coliseum reopens we may visit more."
Nothing like some blood and guts to pull in the punters.
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Ah, humour - clever 👍😂
I'm sorry, I thought you knew what you were talking about. I'll leave it there. Have a good day👍
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