ANOTHER BLOGGING LANDMARK

Arija has a beautiful blog called Garden Delights where she captivates with her spellbinding images of various parts of Australia (a place I have always wanted to visit, and now I can through this wonderful blog.) Earlier this week she was kind enough to send me a blogging award, this is a first for me. And of course I am quite delighted to think that someone out there actually reads my blog (other than family!! ;) ) - Thanks Arija.


Of course there are numerous people I would like to pass this on to but I am going to limit it to three particular blogs that always raise a smile.

Kathie at Sycamore Canyon who's fabulous photos and wonderful descriptive powers always take my breath away.

The always entertaining Linda at 7msn Ranch who's animals are constantly up to some new mischief!

And the stay at home Super Mom Becky at Adult Deprived who wears me out just thinking about all the things she manages to cram into her day!

This one is for you ladies - you make my day :)

LEVANT MINE

Several years ago my Father started volunteering on a local restoration project. Unlike me he doesn't work restoring endangered species, his area of expertise is more engineering related so he works on restoring a Cornish Tin Mine.


These evocative symbols of a bygone age are scattered all along the Cornish coastline, many of them had shafts that reached for miles out under the ocean. As you can imagine, in the 1800's when they were at their peak of productivity, the safety standards were virtually non-existant. (One of the byproducts of the tin mines was arsenic and the sum total of protective clothing consisted of a wad of cotton to stuff up each nostril!!)

This is a photo of a photo (hence the poor quality - sorry) of how the mine looked when it was working at capacity.


And this is how it looks today. My Dad is part of the original 'Greasy Gang' that took to opening up the old passageways and exploring old tunnels! Of course he didn't regale my Mom with these tales until well after the fact! On my most recent visit he gleefully took me down a spiral staircase into the ground and showed me a tunnel that they had excavated to the main shaft. When they discovered it of course it involved going down the staircase and climbing over a mound of dirt that blocked the passageway and crawling along on their stomachs in the pitch black, not knowing what they would find! I guess tales like this help me to realise why I am who I am! The crazy gene definitely comes from my Dad :) My Fathers passion is all things mechanical and of course this is an engine on an ultimate scale.

This is an original coal boiler from another mine, that would have powered a beam engine. They found the boiler buried in a field and dug it up, restored it and put it into the engine house. In this modern age no one is likely to volunteer for the arduous task of stoking it to run the engine so it is actually 'mocked up' next to the beam engine which is powered by an oil powered boiler.

To see the beam engine operating is a pretty awe inspiring sight. The massive beam goes up two storeys inside the building and as it pushes down there is a huge 'Whumpf' as the single massive piston pushes down into the huge cylinder. This is the engine that my Dad has restored and worked on - he is one of the 'go - to' men whenever it goes wrong. If you look closely on the picture above you will see a brown paper bag, it contains a pasty which one of the volunteers was warming up on the engine! Some traditions never die!

This is the view from upstairs looking down on the beam. (The man in the green baseball cap is my Dad.)

And this is the stairway I climbed up to get that view.

Another tradition, along with warming you pasty on the beam engine, is that every engine house has a red geranium growing in the window. (My Mom is responsible for providing these each year!) It always strikes me as a little incongruous, in amongst all this industrial might to have this delicate splash of colour.

Here is another member of the 'Greasy Gang' checking the pressure on the engine. (You can see from his overalls how they earned their Greasy Gang name!) In amongst the work of keeping this huge machine working and exploring new tunnels and shafts, the Greasy Gang spends a lot of time drinking tea and chatting - I think this volunteer position was custom made for my Dad :)


Photo Credits - CJT

GOLOWAN - MAZEY DAY

Golowan, The Feast of St. John, is Cornwall's greatest annual community arts festival, blending Celtic traditions of Penglaz and the Serpent Dance with a ten day programme of diverse festivities, entertainment and music. It is essentially a mid-summer solstice celebration which has taken place in some form since pre-christian times. It was allowed to die out at one time when celebrations became too boisterous and too much damage was being done!

In 1990 Golowan was revived by a small enthusiastic team of volunteers and it has grown every year since. It all takes place in Penzance so we spent today watching the festivities. Colourful flags and banners adorn the streets and seafront. There is an election for a mock mayor which this year was won by a good friend of mine - Eddie the Snake! Here he is wearing his 'Crab of Office.'


There are street acts, storytelling, films, walks, fireworks, market stalls, lectures and flag making workshops, all culminating in the colourful parades of Mazey Day (which was today), which in local dialect means 'a bit dazed and confused!' Traffic is banished for the day and the main thoroughfare is bedecked with fresh greenery collected early in the morning

At the heart of the festival is the community, with thousands of school children taking part, alongside local artists, writers, performers and volunteers.

Each year has a theme interpreted throughout the festival with giant processional imagery, flags, banners, music, masks, costumes and performances. This year there was a good selection of boats, as you would expect in a seaside community

and some rather dubious looking characters too, especially the 'ladies!'

There was a slightly milder looking character, possibly representing a local tin miner

There was a great array of mysterious creatures, some quite benign looking

And some not quite so friendly!

As you can see, it was a gloriously bright sunny day and there were a lot of people around so my pictures are a bit hit and miss as I was moving along with the crowd and didn't always get to choose the direction of the sun for the photos!

It was a great day and the town looked so colourful and vibrant all decked out.

Tomorrow we head back to Chicago but I will try and do another couple of Cornish posts to finish off our trip when I get over the jet lag :)

Photo Credits - CJT

CORNISH COAST PATH

There is a path which goes round the entire coastline of Cornwall, it stretches over six hundred miles and covers some breathtaking scenery. Over the last few days we have been hiking various pieces of it.


It is not easy hiking as the path follows the numerous valleys and coves so when you are not scrabbling down one side, you are slogging up the other!


But the endless carpet of wildflowers and the wonderful views are well worth the effort.


This was one of our rest spots, talk about a table with a view!


As I have mentioned previously the seas around Cornwall are known for being particularly dangerous to shipping, for many years a lot of the local people made a good living from wrecking!


There are many lighthouses along the coast.


Some stand lonely sentinel on a rock out at sea and others teeter on the cliffs edge, all working hard to keep passing ships safe.


This one at Pendeen is particularly appealing to me, in part because of its 'Dr Zeuss' foghorns


There is a sign nearby warning of hearing damage if you stand too close to them when they go off! Ouch!!


Another constant feature is the endless chain of old tin mine, engine houses


These two are known as the Crown Engine Houses, can you imagine building them in that location?


I stood on the cliff top and tried to imagine what the scene must have been like when all the mines were working, with all the noise and clatter, not to mention the black smoke - tough times.


At the end of the day we sat down in Priest Cove and watched the waves washing in over the rocks.


Parts of Cornwall really do feel as if they are in a time warp, it is the perfect place to escape from the hustle and bustle of big city life.


Photo Credits - Dominick V & CJT