Hawaiian Adventures. Part Two

Hawaiian Adventures

The Island of Kauai

Kauai is known as the Garden Isle of the Hawaiian chain of islands and it truly lives up to its name.  Here you can see cascading waterfalls, enormous sunken canyons, lush vegetation, dazzling sunsets and crescents of white sand beaches along jagged coastlines.  The food in Kauai might be Philippino, Japanese, Chinese, Portugeuse, Korean, Vietnamese, Pacific Rim, or any delicious combination of the above.

For this stay I choose a bed and breakfast overlooking a Tuscan like valley.  Marjorie's Kauai Inn is a good fit for us as they can cater to vegan, vegetarian, gluten free and other lifestyle culinary choices.  Mike, our host, is so accommodating that he provides steamed kale and other greens each morning for breakfast along with steel cut oats, Hawaiian granola, rice milk, buckwheat pancakes and fresh pineapple, strawberries and blueberries.  Our large room overlooking the pool and patchwork valley comes equipped with a television and DVD player, private bath and refrigerator.  When we arrive, the frig is stocked with a welcome platter of fresh fruit, Hawaiian chocolates, macadamia nuts, and Ezekiel bread.  Mike greets us warmly and shows us all the wonderful things he has stocked for us to borrow during our time in Kauai.  These treasures include a collection of well over 100 movies, snorkel equipment, boogie boards, water bottles, books, life jackets and many travel brochures to lead our way.  Every morning he makes suggestions for our daily itineraries and always includes some hidden gems not in the guide books.  The third day, Mike's wife Alexis arrives to prepare some gluten free scones sweetened with dates as part of our repast.  Our breakfast companions are a lovely couple from Vienna, Virginia, only 25 minutes from our home in. Maryland!   We share our travel experiences over tea and breakfast on the outside porch overlooking the spectacular view.  The next day we meet two doctors from Calgary, Canada and have a lovely conversation about health and western medicine.  I am interested to hear about their views on medical care and whether diet has any place in their practices.  They have just returned from a 22 mile round trip trek along the North Shore, camping out on the trail!   We envy the three weeks the Vienna couple have put aside for their first visit to the islands.  We are sorry to miss the celebration they have planned to celebrate their 25 th anniversary after we are gone.  The experience of a friendly, vegan, homey bed and breakfast with interesting fellow guests can supersede any five star hotel, in my book.

Upon arrival, we opt for a drive to the North Shore of Kauai.  It is an hour drive from Lihue along the sole coast road before we arrive at our destination.  At this time of year, the water in this region is more suited to surfers as the waves get up to fifteen feet.  We visit Hanelei town, filled with beachy shops and restaurants and KO gets his dose of L and L, a typical Hawaiian fast food joint.  The traditional plate lunch with its two scoops of white rice, macaroni salad, and Ono fish must be consumed by every true Hawaiian.  Personally I do not get the appeal of it and opt for some Humous and carrots from a nearby grocery.  Princeville is filled with upscale resorts and shopping centers.  The views from the lookouts here are picturesque with tall cliffs over curvy beaches below.  

Following a long drive south, we reach the South Shore in the dark in time for a delicious oceanfront meal at Beach House near Poipu.  Our waiter, Edwin, is a delight.  He asks KO what nationality he is, as, like everyone else we meet, he thinks KO is Philipino, like Edwin is.  KO gets these inquiries many times, especially from the waiters on the Holistic Holiday at Sea cruise every year.  He must have similar features to Philipinos, but he is actually half Chinese and half Japanese and from Hawaii.  We do occasionally partake in fish and decide to try the ones that are often found on Hawaiian menus, Ono and Mahi Mahi.  It is served over risotto and accompanied by some lovely greens.  Later we arrive at our bed and breakfast in the darkness and our parking space is on a very steep incline.  We go to sleep wondering if our car will be at the bottom of the hill when we awake at 5 am to the cocka doodle do of the multitude of roosters found all over the island.

Since we only have two full days here, we try to cover a lot of ground in a short time.  This morning we head out to Waimea Canyon, labelled the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.  The eighteen mile ascent to the top takes us about an hour,  winding up the passes on the mountain.  Arriving at the summit, 4000 feet above sea level, the views are spectacular.  The canyon layers of red, green and brown rock were formed by a volcano that collapsed.  Waterfalls spout out over the rocks in a haphazard fashion.  Over the western side of the mount we can just barely spy the Na Pali Coast, with its pristine beaches, through the clouds overtaking us.  The temperature up here is 15 degrees colder than at the base and a misty rain is falling.  Juraissic Park was filmed nearby and I am expecting a Tyrannosaurus to appear at any moment!

Old town Koloa is one of my favorite stops on the Southern Shore.  In 1835, the first sugar plantation was established here.  Immigrants from Japan, Portugal. China, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines flocked to Koloa to work in the sugar cane fields.  KO's dad grew up on a sugar cane plantation in Oahu which we got to visit and in one of the houses they had photos of the immigrants from Okinawa named Oshiro and there was a very close resemblance to his family.  The Koloa History Center and the plaques on many of the buildings give us an idea of what life was like back when sugar cane was king. 

The walkways are dotted with friendly shopkeepers selling Hawaiian Aloha shirts and dresses. A Hawaiian's idea of dressing up is putting on his colorful Aloha shirt. No ties or suits can be found here, even in fancy restaurants or when conducting business.  They have the right idea about comfort!

Pizzeta is our restaurant of choice as Italian food can lend itself to a plant based diet.  We partake in delicious pasta and fresh veggies.

The Poipu Beach near the Grand Hyatt is the place to be at sunset.  We casually wander into the resort, as if we belong there.  Amazing lagoons and waterfalls create the hotel's backyard and we meander along the paths, past the salt water pools to the beach.  A sunset in Hawaii is always spectacular.  Crowds gather to watch the sun making a slow than quick trip toward the horizon and  then out of sight to warm the other side of the globe.  Cerulean blue skies and a Windsor sea is the back drop as the bright yellow sun creates muted purples and pinks to stretch in a watercolor palette of colors for our enjoyment. I never get bored with nature's magic.

On our last day we have planned a catamaran ride along the Na Pali coast.  Promises of a dazzling coastline dotted with snowy white untouched beaches have convinced us to spend the money on this excursion.  When we arrive at the departure site, we get the disappointing news that the seas are too high and rough and the trip will not take place.  Unfortunately, since we are leaving the following day, we will have to miss this experience.  Feeling let down, we head north to the Wailua Falls, site of the opening scene on the popular TV show,  Fantasy Island.  The Wailua River is said to be the first landing spot for all Polynesians to the island.  We travel up a four mile road that leads right to the falls.  Nearby a homeless person with long dreads is creating lovely baskets by hand,  weaving reeds together in a criss cross pattern.  Two mangy dogs sit nearby.  I am not sure if he is selling the baskets as he does not speak but continues to create his beautiful work.  The falls meet our expectations and we take some nice photos.

We are leaving the Hawaiian islands today, after a brief stopover in Honolulu.  The memories I will take with me are the friendly spirit and laid back attitude of the people living here, the watercolor sunsets and sunrises, the majestic scenery, the multiethnic foods, and the serene feeling created by all of the above.  In my hurried existence on the east coast, I forget that there are people around the globe living a slower, less pressured lifestyle and treating others with the kindness and cheerfulness found here in Hawaii.  I am thankful that I got to experience this, if only for a little while......

Hawaiian Adventures, Part One

Hawaiian Adventures

Part 1

When winter approaches in fall with several feet of snow in Buffalo and temps dipping into the teens in Maryland, it's time to make our escape to the beautiful paradise of Oahu, Hawaii.  Since KO's parents live in Honolulu, we try to make the five hour trek across the continental US and then another five hours across the Pacific to visit them every couple of years.  Travel can be both exhilarating and exhausting.  While I enjoy visiting other places, I do not relish what it takes to get there, the hours in the airport and on the cramped planes and the jet lag that seems to last forever and wakes me up at three am. for a few days after I arrive.

The other difficulty with long distance travel is finding a way to stay healthy with the challenges of unusual foods with unknown ingredients, and trying to keep to a regular schedule.  I always consult happycow.com before I leave home to discover the vegan restaurants in the areas I will be visiting.  I match the restaurant to the vicinity we will be touring in each day of the trip.  It always helps to have a refrigerator in the room, or a small kitchen and maybe some relatives nearby who are macrobiotic too! ( a rare and pleasant find for us!). We stayed at the Waikiki Beach Hilton which had a refrigerator in the room, Hawaiian music in the lobby, and valet parking.  

The highlights of the Oahu branch of this trip are many.  One day we tour the spectacular home of Doris Duke.  At the age of twelve, she became the heiress to the Duke fortune, acquired through the profitable tobacco business. Seeking privacy from the paparazzi, she built a haven in Honolulu which brushes up against the sea with wonderful views of the sand and surf.  At twenty three, on her honeymoon around the world she fell in love with Islamic art and brought back entire rooms from Morocco and reconstructed them to the letter in this palatial home.The wooden floors throughout are from Hawaii, but she planned every other detail including the intricate cut glass windows and the inlayed wooden ceilings from materials she acquired in Iran and other far away places.  She was known for being the first American woman to become an adept surfer as well.  Ms. Duke led a fascinating life filled with mystery, affairs and a love of beautiful things.  

Another highlight was our climb up Diamond Head and our ascent to Manoa Falls.

Diamond Head is an extinct volcano which is 150,000 years old.  A tunnel has been carved through the exterior so the visitor enters into the cavernous center of the volcano.  Along with a multitude of other travelers, at seven am. one morning we begin our climb up ramps, steps and stones to the summit.  It is an arduous climb as the temperature soars into the mid 80's, but the reward is great.  From the top, we can view the entire city and the coastline, as well as the ant like cars below.  It feels quite empowering to add this to our list of accomplishments.  

Manoa Falls takes us to a different climate even though we are still right in Honolulu.  As we enter the area from the parking lot, we can see lush green vegetation and it feels humid.  After walking a ways, the rain begins to fall and the temperature begins to drop.   The trees here loom above our heads and are buried in deep green philodendrons that curl up their trunks.  The sprinkle of rain has made the rocks we must climb muddy and mucky.  One must climb with care so as not to slip.  After a difficult ascent, we are rewarded with a breathtaking waterfall that cascades through a rocky creek all the way down to the bottom of the trail.  Soaked to the bone, we carefully descend through the cool, then humid temperatures of the forest and back to the parking lot.  Hawaiians view this place as a home of the gods and we do detect a serene and other worldly feeling at the end of our adventure to Manoa Falls.

The epicurean experiences in Oahu are plentiful and unique.  First, the influence of the Asian population is apparent everywhere.  Japanese grocery stores and specialty stores, such as Shirokiya, abound.  Shirokiya is a Japanese store adjacent to the Ala Moana Mall that sells everything Japanese and has an eatery upstairs offering Japanese curry dishes, sushi, Nishime, Kinpura, bento boxes, ramen, tempura, rice balls and Mochi.  Sitting at the tables, the language of choice is Japanese and most of the shop keepers are fluent in Japanese.  

The first night KO's parents generously treat us to an authentic Japanese meal at Gazen.  They make their own homemade tofu, much creamier than the store bought type and very delicious, and natto, a fermented soybean dish which provides calcium, but can be unpalatable to some due to its slimy texture.  The udon noodles with vegetables are delicious as is the daikon salad.  It is a real treat to see what real Japanese food tastes like, which is quite different from our restaurants back home.

The KCC  Farmers Market on Saturdays is one of my favorites experiences on the island of Oahu.  People start arriving by busloads at 7 am to roam the booths and to try some of the delicious foods offered here.  Fried green tomatoes, fresh home made natto, Hawaiian chocolate and Kona Coffee, sweet pineapple, Vietnamese street food, raw vegan food from Greens and Vines and many bakeries, including a gluten free, vegan one.  There are clean cosmetics, soaps and scents and fragrant ginger flowers, colorful African Violets and Birds of Paradise.  This "Haole" (a white person) feels very much in the minority among so many beautiful Asian people.  Hawaii is a prime vacation spot for Japanese people as the signs are in Japanese, many speak their language and even though it seems very expensive here for us, it is cheaper here than in Japan so their money stretches in Hawaii and many Japanese choose to have weddings here in Honolulu.

The other places we try are the Downbeat Diner in Chinatown and Nourish near our hotel.  Nourish does a tofu scramble and Downbeat has vegan chili with brown rice. We were not disappointed with either choice.

Finally, having friends or relatives at a travel destination is a real plus. KO's mom has been macrobiotic for 34 years so her kitchen is all set up for us when we come to prepare a macrobiotic meal for all of us.  It feels like home to be in a kitchen again after all these meals out and I am thrilled to share Stuffed Acorn Squash, Cream of Cauliflower Soup, Tofu with Squash and Purple Cabbage and Lemon Bars with them.  KO's mom adds natto and a yummy quinoa dish and we sit down to a home cooked meal.  I feel more balanced and ready to continue our adventure to Kauai, the garden isle, tomorrow.

"Taking Time To Make Time."

Taking Time To Make Time.

Summer is coming to a close and September is already upon us.  I have heard friends and acquaintances say that they are too busy with work to even take a summer vacation or break.  Lose or use leave piles up and they continue to work late into the night and on the weekends.  It seems we are so indespensable that no one else can do the job we do.  Employers and even we forget the value of taking time to make time for ourselves.   But how do we give our brains a break to process our lives or just to quiet our minds?  Yoga class, meditation and nature walks on the weekends help, but then it's right back into the daily grind of everyday life.

I feel that vacation away from our usual routines is an essential part of becoming a healthy person.  Lately I have had an upheaval in my own life.  My ninety three year old Mom passed away on July 27.  Suddenly, in my bereaved state, I was thrust into action mode to go to the funeral home, pick a casket, compose and deliver a eulogy, attend the funeral, shovel dirt on my mother's casket, and entertain people for three straight days in the home my mom inhabited just two days before, without her being there!  Talk about an emotionally daunting and stressful situation.  To add insult to injury I have had to clear out her home and to deal with harried siblings about difficult, contrary matters.  At the same time I have continued to run a busy Macrobiotic cooking business, held pot lucks and the Macrobiotic Boot Camp, dealt with a sick cat, lead my book club and tried to eat healthy meals and take nurturing walks to calm my mind.  I did it all regardless of the feelings of sadness, guilt, and finally anger that have consumed me.

How does a person clear her head of all this clutter while in the thick of it?  I decided to create a space to breathe in the form of a room by the sea.  Here I hoped to just sweep out the cobwebs and to take a break from the constant barrage of troubling emails relating to Mom's estate, the phone calls from people needing something from me, and the monkey mind thoughts that were agitating my brain.

After just one day at the ocean, I have been able to get back to my true self.  I have thought about what kind of person I am and about the things that are truly important to me.  I have reflected on staying non reactive in charged situations when others try to trigger me to react and that we have power over how and when we do respond.  I have thought about how I need to recognize the things over which I have power and the blessings for which I am grateful.  Other thoughts have been about what I need to do to stay centered and healthy in my mind and body and which people in my life complement my well being.  If I had not taken the time to make time to separate myself from the patterns of my daily life, I do not think I would have been successful bringing clarity to these life challenges facing me now.  I had to take time to make time for me.

In addition, my son has been hanging out with me here and our discussions have been animated.  I treasure my relationship with him which has had its up and down moments in the past.  Now we can be frank and forthright with each other and it is refreshing to share an honest relationship with him.  Our chats here have covered boundary setting, determining one's direction, life patterns that don't serve us anymore, and being in the moment to pay attention to what is right in front of you.  How fascinating and wonderful to take time to make time to work these important issues out with your child and to give them the gift of your undivided attention and time.  My twenty three year old daughter and her boyfriend spent some time with us as well.  We frolicked in the waves together and shared some meals while they were here.  We took time to make time for each other even though they have their own very busy lives with challenging jobs.  We all decided it was important to share this meaningful time together.

We need to take the time to take care of ourselves before we reach the breaking point.  Just as a disease did not suddenly appear as when someone says, " He was so healthy and he suddenly keeled over.", we don't want to wait until we get to the point where we can't think straight, we are grabbing chocolate or alcohol or "biting everyone's heads off" in anger.  Take time to make time for yourself and your loved ones and choose the friends that take time to make time for you.  Fall is a lovely time to take  time away from your daily life and go to the mountains or shore.  It may be the best thing you can do for yourself and you will come back focused on what really matters to you.

Comments are welcomed and would love to hear what you think about this topic or if it resonated with you.

Next Stop, Loverly London

On the long train ride back from Cornwall St. Ives to London's Paddington station, KO and I hatch the clever plan to check our cumbersome bags at the station and head right out to Windsor Castle.  Rushing from the train in the busy station, we find the Left Luggage booth and store our suitcases for a reasonable twenty pounds for the first three hours.  Negotiating our way across the multitude of platforms and  the teeming crowds, we hop the train and settle in for the fifty minute ride to Windsor.  The castle, the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world closes at five so we had to make haste to see it all.  Starting with the gothic St. George's Chapel, built in 1348, we walk where pilgrims journeyed in the Medieval period.  The Order of the Garter, honoring all the knights, is housed here and colorful banners fly above each of their honorary seats.  The famous are buried right under our feet, including Henry VIII and Jane Seymour.  Leaving the chapel, we head up the hill to the impressive home of Queen Elizabeth, built by William the Conqueror in the eleventh century.  Notable are the early nineteenth century apartments built in the Georgian style.  The enormous St. George's Hall dining room hosts the State Banquet and can seat one hundred and sixty people at one long table. Glad we don't have to cater that dinner!  The Queen uses the castle on the weekends and at other times and her residence is across the courtyard from where we are able to tour.

 

Heading back to Paddington Station to retrieve our bags and then venture on another train to our hotel near St. Pancreas, we are exhausted and hungry.  We opt to stay near this station because it is the hub for many different tube or subway lines and we can travel easily throughout  London from here.  All over this area are row houses which host numerous bed and breakfasts.  Ours is named Alhambra Hotel and includes a small room with private shower and an ample breakfast of oatmeal, croissants, beans, vegan sausage, optional eggs and toast.  The ever present Nutella, a chocolate and hazelnut spread, and various fruity jams are always on the table.  

We choose to dine at Mildred's, a vegan restaurant in Soho.  It is a colorful thirty five minute walk from our hotel, and it is wonderful to stretch our legs after sitting on the train for so long.  Mildred's has delicious food served in a bistro atmosphere.  The Porcini and Ale Pie,with earthy giant slices of mushrooms swimming in a rich broth and then covered with delicate layers of pastry dough, is a favorite entree.  They also serve a Detox Salad, for those of us who have over indulged in rich food, stir fried vegetables, risotto and bean burgers.  Mildred's is a safe choice for travelers on a plant based diet and an excellent and delicious choice for everyone else.

The next day, refreshed from a whole night's sleep and fortified with our English breakfast, we board the tube to the Tower of London.  The Tower of London was the scene of many gruesome executions back in the day.  If you displeased the King, you ended up here to be tortured with either the Rack(stretches you), or maybe you would be folded like a Tripod and squeezed tightly til you confessed.  Other fun included being hung upside down. One time they got a butcher to do the beheading.  He was drunk and after trying nine times to unsuccessfully separate the person from his head, he got his butcher knives and hacked the head off!  This is just one of the stories we enjoy on a Yeoman tour where, along with one hundred others, we are entertained with tales of the Tower.  The Tower of London was built in 1078 when William the Conqueror ordered the White Tower to be built inside the city walls.  At that time there was already a Roman wall surrounding the city and it remains in parts today.  The Tower of London is now home to the Crown Jewels.  Herding past them, we note the crown worn by Queen Elizabeth II at her coronation. It boasts 2,868 diamonds, 273 pearls, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, and five rubies.  Among these stones is the famous Black Prince's ruby at 170 carats and the Cullinen II diamond originally 3106 carats when it was found in South Africa.  The rest of the collection includes scepters and swords encrusted in gold and jewels.  The Tower of London is both a magical and disturbing place to pay a visit.

 

There are many highlights to the trip and I will just mention a few so you won't zone out while reading this blog.  While in London it is easy to get tickets to a Broadway quality show.  The Half Price ticket booth in Gleicester Square sells same day tickets to that day's shows.  We attend the very enjoyable musical Dirty Rotten Scoundrels while we are here.  

The markets in London are outstanding.  We find one near the Tower of London at St. Katherine's Docks.  Multicolored tents shelter the vendors who are selling lunch to the workers and tourists as the boats in the harbor moor nearby.  Choices include lacy boreks filled with spinach and herbs, gluten free and vegan crepes stuffed with mushrooms and greens, Spanish empanadas, Portugeuse fish and potatoes, paella in huge woks and Thai street food.  Beautiful homemade chocolate chip walnut cookies and Raspberry White Chocolate brownies are stacked high to the sky and Sticky Toffee and Fig, Carmelized and Orange cakes call out to us.  We almost resist!

 

The other impressive market we discover is the Borough Market near the London Bridge.  Our last morning in London we hustle over there to pick up fortifications for the long plane ride and find some last minute gifts.  Since the thirteenth century, farmers and vendors have been selling their quality goods here.  Brightly colored fruits and vegetables, daintily decorated tartes, salty olives in barrels, English meat and veggie pies, and the bean and rice salads I choose for my dinner on the plane can be found here.  The place is humming with excitement and I wish I could roll it up and put it in my suitcase to take home with me.

For our final meal in London, I choose Rules, an old establishment on Maiden Lane, where Charles Dickens dined.  Situated on a well trod cobblestone street, the 200 year old restaurant has only had three owners.  Rules specializes in game cookery, oysters, pies and puddings.  Stuffed animals grace the walls.  In addition to Dickens, Thackeray, Galsworthy and HG Wells, have dined here over the ages.  It has appeared in the novels of Evelyn Waugh, Rosamond Lehmann and Graham Greene.  Buster Keaton, Stan Laurel, Clark Gable, Charlie Chaplin and Lawrence Olivier sat on these velvet couches.  So those of you who know what a movie and theater buff I am will understand why I want to eat here.  I am not disappointed.  The atmosphere is regal and the waiters are right out of Remains of the Day.  KO and I share a delicate vegetable soup and Yorkshire pudding, a type of popover.  We order a Sticky Toffee Pudding to go and head for the airport.

It has been a wonderful journey, from the hills of Tuscany, to the busy streets of Rome, to the Roman baths of old, to the azure blue sea and overflowing flower boxes of Tuscany, to London's rich history of Kings and Queens and marketplaces and now back to the good old U. S. Of A.  I am so pleased so many of you have shared our journey and I hope I was able to make you feel like you were right there with us, enjoying the sites, history and food.  

A shout out to KO, who lugged our luggage (apt word eh?) everywhere without complaint, urged me on "just one more tour today" when my feet felt like they would fall off, stayed good natured most of the time, and took these most beautiful photographs with his keen eye.  He is an easy person with whom to spend two weeks of walking, learning, eating, and sharing experiences.  

So until our next journey....keep traveling healthy.  Susan

Heaven on Earth in St. Ives, Cornwall

 Heaven on Earth in St. Ives, Cornwall

There is no place on earth like St. Ives, Cornwall.  Located 5 hours by train from London's Paddington Station, it is a site to behold.  Everywhere you gaze is a photo opportunity.  Golden sand beaches melt into the sea which transitions from turquoise to royal blue and then dissolves into a cerulean sky.  Brightly colored flowers baskets of blue cornflowers, orange gerbera daisies, yellow nasturtium, Queen Anne's Lace, and purple pansies brighten every doorway and window box.  Cobbled walkways smoothed by age curve this way and that beckoning you to a secret path you can discover.
It could be the way to Smuggler's Arch, where, salt, tobacco and rum were brought after being pilfered from nearby ships.  Maybe you spy a blue door, denoting the home of a sailor, a black door of a miner or the green door of a farmer.  Perhaps you are on the route to Barbara Hepworth's home and sculpture garden.  She lived and died in St. Ives and one of her enormous sculptures stands in front of the U.N. In New York City.  Many artists have been drawn to this magical place because of the pink light that is cast on the town from the minerals in the sand and the clear blue unpolluted air and sky.  Known for mining and the gold, silver, tin and other materials found 2000 feet below the ground, St. Ives affected the Bronze Age and in the Third Century A.D. the town was trading tin with the Greeks.  Eventually it proved too expensive to extract the minerals and many miners were unemployed.  Their knowledge of the mines was so valuable that Mexico and other places ordered up 100 heads to come and help them. Hence, the term "headhunter" was born.   The miners' wives would prepare a turnover called a pasty for them to take into the mine.  It had a crimped edge and was filled with meats and vegetables for a hearty meal.  

There was toxic arsenic in the mine so they had their snack and threw the crimped edge away down the mine to ward off bad spirits.  This pasty became the empanada after these Cornish miners moved to Mexico.  There is the world's only Pasty Museum in Mexico!  The fisherman had a rich sea of pilchers, catching 90 million every year.  This oily, smelly fish permeated everything and is known to us as sardines.  When the mines closed, the fish stopped coming, and they think it was because the waters were no longer mineral rich.  Thankfully in 1934, the Holiday Pay Act was passed and St. Ives became a hub of tourism.  The railroads brought artists, vacationers and income to this oasis.  

The Little Leaf Bed and Breakfast, where we are lodging, is the home of Danny and Lee and their little girl.  They welcome guests with open arms and a broad smile and operate a spic and span establishment. Our vegetarian English breakfasts are delicious and so filling we can barely get hungry for lunch.  Lee and Danny also provide wonderful guidance on side trips from St Ives and restaurant suggestions.

One of the wonderful perks of a bed and breakfast is the people you meet from around the world. We were talking to a sweet and friendly young couple last night and it turned out they are from Hawaii. Next thing I knew, they were swapping high school names with KO and feeling that Aloha kinship!  Small world to find three Hawaiians in a bed and breakfast on the west coast of England.

We have discovered a vegetarian restaurant here called Spinacios.  My tummy was on the fritz last night from overindulging in scones, so I just opted for basmati rice, but KO enjoyed Sanbar, a split pea Dahl dish, with spinach and mustard greens.

 

The town bakeries boast gluten free and dairy free scones and pasties, so this part of the world is sensitive to food allergies, but they really fall down on greens.  Mostly we just see salad and mushy peas, with an occasional green bean, and loads of potatoes, mashed or in their jackets with toppings.  Fish and chips are popular.  Chips are fries and crisps are potato chips.  The bakery windows in St. Ives are mouthwatering.  Brimming with iced hot cross buns, lemon tea cakes, Eccles cakes and shortbread cookies, even the strongest of Macrobiotic women might have to indulge.  The cream tea with tall scones and strong tea is the tradition every afternoon and we have been embracing this practice with open arms.

So, it is with great melancholy that we bid farewell to Cornwall tomorrow and board the train for London.   We are discussing spending a week here next year and really getting the experience of mellowing out.  I hope you found this blog entertaining as I know I went on for quite awhile but I couldn't contain all the love I feel for this little slice of heaven on earth.

Cheerios From Merry England

Cheerios from Merry England

Last summer we enjoyed our stay in St. Ives, Cornwall so much that we vowed to return again this year.  How to visit Italy and then end up in Cornwall?  Not exactly a hop, skip and a jump away from each other!  We bridged the gap by flying from Rome directly to Bristol and Bath on our way to Cornwall, the English sea coast.

Arriving in Bristol in the evening, although it stays light until 10 at night, we set out across the canal, behind our lovely hotel, with a/c!, to seek a veggie restaurant we had researched on Happy Cow.  Happy Cow is THE resource for international and national vegan and vegetarian establishments.  We found, The Watershed, a combination indie movie theater and restaurant a few steps away.  We were so psyched to eat nachos drenched in hearty veggie chili, sweet butternut squash, delicate falafel, and a wonderfully creamy yellow pea soup.  Can you tell I was yearning for anything NOT pasta?

Everything was delicious and we considered watching a movie, but instead opted for an after dinner stroll.  People were everywhere.  There were future brides wearing fuzzy bunny ears carousing one last time with their girlfriends and men sporting Afros and 80s garb, hanging with their mates spilling from the pubs.  Music was streaming through the cool night air and the crowds were singing along with uninhibited enthusiasm and a freedom I rarely witness in the States.  Then it was off to sleep so we could rise again for an early train to see the Roman Baths.

The train to Bath carried us there in a brief fifteen minutes.  We opted for an overview of the upper town on the Hop On Hop Off Bus.  They have these tours all over the world and the beauty of it is that you can disembark to visit a site and then just hop on again when the next bus comes by.  Additionally, there is a wonderful live guide who filled us in on history, real estate prices and topography of the area.  

Back in the lower town we walked along the universally cream colored buildings where Jane Austen made her home many years ago.  We were on our way to find Acorn Vegetarian, a new restaurant in the center of town.  Our meal was exquisite!  White Onion Tarte served with greens and carrots on a cider cream sauce was delectable.  My spiced pea soup with orange coconut cream was warming and flavorful.  Included in my three course lunch was a Nut Roast with fresh spring greens, rosemary potato galette, parsnip purée and cider braised red cabbage.  The final course was a Chocolate Pot with raspberry sorbet and candied pistachios.  This was the most beautiful and delicious meal of the trip, hands down.  I got some good ideas I am looking forward to trying for the Healthy Chef business.

All tanked up, we headed over to the Roman Baths.  The Romans built these baths in 60-70 A.D. after they spied steam coming up through the ground.  A hot spring comes under the town and provides healing warm waters.   Many visitors felt that the waters had a curative power and came here to heal themselves.  We walked along the same stones those early conquerors did as we discovered the main bath house and the smaller baths nearby.  An informative audio tour explains the history of the Baths. How wonderful that these historic sites have been preserved for us to enjoy!  The far reaching borders of the Roman Empire were quite extensive and seem to exceed those I learned about England in my British Imperialism class back at Washington University in St. Louis.  

Returning to the hotel, we packed up for tomorrow's four hour train journey back to beautiful Cornwall.