Padstow was rather bleak as we walked down into the village this morning, arriving even before the shops had opened for business, however Jan at the B&B assured us that by 11 o'clock the day would brighten - he was only five minutes out!
We walked along the coastline for quite some way and took in the glory of the Cornish countryside and coastline and were amazed by the sight of numerous plants covered with snails, the plant having basically been or was being destroyed by the snails feasting on it - in much the same way as we see caterpillars on Swan plants at home
Along the walk there were numerous couples and families and invariably each had a dog on a lead.
We returned to the village around 11.30 and what was a very sleepy environment when we left was a bustling metropolis of people and dogs, dogs and many more dogs - at one time I counted 6 dogs pass one point in one minute.
There was nearly every breed you could think of and they were well socialised animals as growls and yaps at each other was more the exception than the norm.
We started talking to a mature couple from Durham who had 2 terriers with them, one was 17 and the other 7 and as the 17 year old was getting near to the end of its life the couple had brought the old dog down to Padstow "for possibly the last time as he enjoys Padstow so much".
They had driven down to Cornwall with their caravan which they had parked at a local caravan club site.
The gent was an engaging personality who had a passion for motorcycle racing having competed in the Isle of Man TT on numerous occasions - he clearly had no fear of racing around that circuit (or any other for that matter) and tried to convince us that more people died playing rugby or cricket each year than in motor cycle racing. He lost the argument when his wife reminded him that someone had died in the races this year!
Though he lived 2 minutes from the Durham cricket ground he had no interest in cricket, nor for that matter rugby or league or any other sport - it was total immersion in motor cycle racing.
A TV program which we enjoy, Poldark, is set in this area and is a ready topic of conversation, in fact our B&B room is named Poldark!
As you look out over the countryside you can imagine the scene where Ross is riding with the coast in the background or Demelza standing on the cliff looking out to sea.
Nearby to Padstow are the towns of Bodmin & Truro also featured prominently in the program - here in the UK the third session has just started, 3rd episode last Sunday, and our host Yvonne just can't get enough of it - the lady of the Durham couple also commented on how much of a hunk Ross Poldark was!
Dinner at The Seafood Restaurant last night was nice but without being spectacular - the service however was excellent being provided by a youngish lady from the Czech Republic and we were able to chat with her about the city she studied in, Ostrava, a city we had stayed in some 4 or so years ago.
There was a lovely statue of Rick Stein's rough haired Jack Russell terrier, Chalky, just at the door of the restaurant - another of example of the love of dogs in this part of the world🐶
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