Cornwall vol2 päev 1 /day 1

Selle suve reis viis tagasi Cornwalli. Eelmine kord käisin seal Germaloga 2011 aastal, siis hõlmas tee nii Walesi kui Cornwalli, viimases olime 2 päeva. Siis jäi edela-Inglismaast hoopis teine mulje kui ise sõites. Bussireisil peab arvestama suure seltskonna ja mille kõigega veel, kuigi ka see oli tore. Ei mäleta kitsaid teid ega kõrgeid hekke, mis neid ümbritsesid. Bussiga sõitsime vist veidi suurematel teedel. Iirimaa teed olid samuti käänulised aga Cornwalliga mitte võrreldavad.

Sõit algas nagu ikka lennujaamast, lend Helsingisse 6.05. Seal 1.20 ootamist ja edasi suund London Heathrow. Auto rentisin jälle Avisest, Iiri reisil jäin rahule. Supercover juurde, seekord oskasin enda  kindlustamisest loobuda, see oli nagunii Salvas tehtud ja hoidis lisakulutusest. 1.2 mootoriga Hyundai, kokkuvõttes sõitsime ca 500km rohkem kui Iiris aga bensiini kulu oli tunduvalt, tunduvalt väiksem kui Vauxhallil (meie maal Opel). Pakiruumi kahe kohvri paigutamine oli omaette teema aga istmele ei tahtnud jätta ja  mõlemad said peitu.

Highclere Castle

Highclere Castle

Esimene sihtmärk oli Highclere Castle. Ma küll tulihingeline Downton Abbey jälgija enam ei ole aga see jäi teele ja on kindlasti väärt külastamist. Highclere Castle kodulehel palutakse GPSi kasutades valida sihtkohaks üks söögikoht enne lossi ja edasi juhinduda viitadest. Ma ei tea, miks see hea oli, igaks juhuks salvestasin lossi koordinaadid samuti, juhul kui viitade järgi kohale ei peaks jõudma. Kohal olles välistasime lossi ning tegime jalutuskäigu aias, mis jagunes väiksemateks soppideks. Loss on kaunis, inglise aiad oma tuntud headuses. 

Highclere Castle, munga aed

Highclere Castle

Stonehenge

Stonehenge

Sõit edasi Stonehenge poole. Stonehenge vol 3. Kaks esimest korda on saanud parkida üle tee kivide kõrvale. Google mapsist kontrollides oli see parkla veel olemas. Tegelikkuses on kivid nüüdseks veel suuremaks turismimagnetiks kasvanud, parkla on oma endisest kohast umbes miili kaugusele nihutatud ja sellest on suur külastajakeskus kasvanud. Ostsin piletid kodus ära, ei pidanud seal eraldi järjekorras seisma. Külastajakeskuses oli suur parkla, näitus, kohvik. Kindlasti jäi midagi märkamata. Kivide juurde minnes oli kaks võimalust, teha matk üle iidse Stonehenge alade, mis pidi võtma pool tundi või minna bussiga, mis pidi sõitma 2 minutit. Ei no, ilus ilm, mis seal ikka bussiga sõita. Jalutasime teiste kannul kuni tee läks kaheks. Üks jätkus bussiteel, teine suundus üle põllu. Üks ees, teised järel üle põllu. Pärast selgus, et valisimegi õige tee kuigi sõidutee oli lühem. Kivide ümbruses ei olnud midagi muutunud, ikka nööriga piiratud ja lähemale pääs puudus. Saan aru, et pööripäeviti on võimalik suure raha eest ringis sees käia.
Jalutuskäik võttiski pool tundi, tagasi sõitsime bussiga.

Weymouth

Weymouth, Lacey`s B&B

Esialgu oli mõte Salisburys ka väike peatus teha aga jätsime selle plaanist välja ja suundusime otse Weymouthi, kus oli meie esimene öömaja, Lacey`s B&B. Majutuskohtade valikul olid jälle kriteeriumiteks tasuta parkimine ja hommiksöök. Lacey omanikeks olid Nigel ja Wendy, Nigel tervitas meid väga sõbralikult, tutvustas tuba ja andis soovitusi, mida Weymouthis näha. Käisime linnas jalutamas, ilm oli pilves aga kuiv. Inimesi oli suhteliselt vähe. Weymouth on suvituslinn, ilusa pika promenaadiga. Sooja ja päiksega on seal kindlasti mõnus suvitada.

Weymouth

 

This summer took me back to Cornwall. The previous time was with Germalo in 2011 and included both, Wales and Cornwall. Then we only spent 2 days in Cornwall and that gave a totally different impression than driving it ourselves. Understandably you have to consider with a lot of people when it comes to coach tours. I certainly don`t remember narrow roads nor the high hedges bordering the road leaving zero visibility. I guess we took the bigger roads with bus. The roads in Ireland were also curvy but do not compare to those in Cornwall.

Our journey, as usual, started from the airport. Our first flight was 6.05 from Tallinn to Helsinki, our connection time being 1.20. Then to London Heathrow. Again, I rented our car from Avis, I was happy with the conditions in Ireland. I of course took supercover, to travel without extra stress. This time I was smart enough not to get personal insurance since I already had it from Salva. Our Hyndai had 1.2 motor, oh the fun driving uphill and hills there were plenty. Surprisingly so. In the end we drove approximately 500 km more than in Ireland but it took so much less fuel than Vauzhall (Opel in Estonia). It was a struggle to fit two suitcases in the tiny boot :)

Highclere Castle

Highclere Castle

Highclere Castle

Highclere Castle

Our first destination was Highclere Castle. I am not a ardent fan of Downton Abbey anymore but the castle was in the area and is definitely not to be missed. On their homepage, Highclere Castle asks not to use the castle`s coordinates if using GPS but instead a cafe`s and then follow the signs. I don`t know why this was necessary. Anyway, I had saved the castle`s coordinates in case we would get lost but these were not needed. We did not visit the castle, but only walked in the gardens. The castle is majestic indeed and the gardens true British ones.

Stonehenge

Stonehenge

Or next destination was Stonehenge. Stonehenge vol 3. During two previous times our bus has been able to park arcoss the road from the stones. Checking from Google Maps, this parking lot still exists. But by now the stones have developled into even bigger tourist trap, the parking lot has been moved approximately a mile away and grown into a grand visitor centre. I bought our tickets at home so at least we didn`t have to stand in the lond queue. The visitor centre has a big parking lot, and exhibition, cafe etc. There are to possibilities to approach the stones, either to walk (that was supposed to take 30 minutes) or a coach (2 minutes as informed). It was a nice day, so why take the bus? We followed others until road split into two, one across a field, one continuing the road. As one person chose to risk across the field, others followed. As it turned out, it was the path we were supposed to take although the main road was quicker. Nothing changed around the stones, still bordered with a rope and people can`t get any closer (except during Solstice if you have the money).

Weymouth, Lacey`s B&B

Weymouth

Weymouth

After that we headed to our accommodation in Weymouth Lacey`s B&B. When it came to choosing our accommodations, as usually, our criterias were free parking and breakfast. Lacey is owned by nice hosts, Nigel and Wendy. Nigel greeted us, showed our room and gave tips what to see in Weymouth. We took a walk, it was overcast but dry. Weymouth has a beautiful long promenade.