Yesterday was the first of my Cornwall exploratory trips, I had some shopping to do as well, so Truro was the obvious stop, and I followed this with a sunset down at St Mawes on the Roseland Peninsula.
Truro is the only ‘city’ in Cornwall, but it’s really no bigger than most towns, but it is central has more shops than most of the villages around. It maintains a friendly vibe and generally easy going atmosphere, it’s really far too small to have stressed out businessmen running about, so the streets tend to be calm and easy. The cobbled centre and Cathedral really make it a pleasant town to be in. There’s a few too many new coffee chains popping up, and it is tiny so don’t expect the choice of any major city here.
The drive down to St Mawes through the Roseland Peninsula is typical Cornish roads, plenty of narrow bits and high hedges, but the occasional wonderful vista out the window. St Mawes is a well maintained traditional village, clearly with a good bit of money behind it. The pubs and hotels are a bit at the pricey end, but it’s a very attractive town overlooking the estuary with a couple hundred boats moored up.
The walk along to the castle is short, and the castle isn’t huge, but the historic building with the impressive views over towards Falmouth make for a very pleasant view. It’s not the excitement you might want, but for a quiet evening, or a nice place to take a date, I can think of much worse.
Back to Truro again to enjoy a quick drink; tonight was the turn of the Old Grammer School, a Tapas bar, serving decent food and fancy drinks. Truro has a great selection of nice pubs and new trendy bars, which is always surprising, as the city is a ghost town on the weekday nights. It’s a wonder they survive, but we’re happy they do as they provide a nice range of places to grab a drink and a bite in style and comfort.
Benjamin Duff
Verses Travel 