An English interlude

We flew from Leros to Athens on John’s birthday, Sunday July 12^th, and had a birthday lunch in the Sofitel, before we got our flight to Birmingham and John got his to London. We spent the week at home seeing friends, doing odd jobs and spent a couple of days seeing family in London before we set off with Becky and the boys for a week’s camping in Salcombe on Monday 20^th July. We met Sam for lunch at a pub in Exeter and got to the campsite about 3 pm, to find the usual mist and light rain as we put up the tents, 

but with electricity and a fan heater it was warm and comfortable inside!

On Tuesday we went to the beach at South Milton, where the sun shone. The beach was pretty empty when we arrived,

but it soon filled up. 

Lin and Charlie swam 

and Kai, who says he hates beaches, took Charlie exploring and went rock pooling. On Tuesday night Andrew cooked a nice barbecue, though one of the two instant barbecues would not light properly so it all took a lot of blowing.

 On Wednesday we went into Salcombe and took the ferry over to East Portlemouth and walked round to Mill Bay, where Charlie and Kai got involved in some major hydraulic engineering, damming and re-routing the stream across the beach. 

Kai climbed onto a knoll to get off the beach for his lunch

but Bobby enjoyed his in the sand.

Lin and Simon walked round to Sunny Cove for old times' sake. In the olden days it would have been packed, but today there were only a few people there.

Lin took Bobby for his first paddle in the sea

We walked back to the ferry landing along the beach, now that the tide was out, got the ferry back to Salcombe

and went in to the Ferry Inn for a drink.

 As soon as we arrived, Lin realized that Charlie had left his surf board on Mill Bay, so she went back on the ferry and down to Mill Bay and collected the board. 

When we got home Bobby had a bath.

That evening a pizza cook came to the camp site and we had excellent pizzas for dinner.

On Thursday we drove over to Totnes to visit the Totnes Rare Breeds Farm, which was excellent – the kids could handle and feed many of the animals and there were very good information boards. Charlie drove the tractor.

In the afternoon we went to Overbecks house and gardens. The kids liked the garden best, though Bobby liked reading the leaflet.

 Lin and Simon had cream teas. In the evening we had a pretty awful delivered Chinese takeaway as we sheltered in the tents from the light rain..

Heavy and persistent rain was forecast for Friday, so we drove into Cornwall to visit Cotehele, stopping in Plymouth on the way to get Becky a cagoule. We planned also to visit Saltram on the way back, but Andrew’s satnav kept sending us the wrong way so that by the time we had found it it was almost closing time, so we came straight home.

Saturday, as forecast, was a glorious sunny day. Relying on the forecast we had booked a motor boat for the day. By coincidence, the boat was called Charlie

so Charlie had a go at driving, with a bit of help from Andrew. We passed a skiff out training

 and then responded to a call for help from two young lads, wh.o we towed back to the bag

.

We motored out to the bar, then up to Kingsbridge (nearly running aground because of Simon’s inattention) and then up to South Pool for an expensive pub lunch, which Bobby really enjoyed. 

We anchored to try a bit of unsuccessful fishing on the way back, before leaving the boat at tea time and going back to the camp site for another bath 

and another round of pizza.

Charlie spent the week getting more and more adventurous on his balance bike, though once he rode straight into the brambles.

Sunday morning was pouring with rain, so we sat in Becky’s tent and played Trivial Pursuit. The rain let up at lunchtime, so we went down to South Sands beach, where we watched the ferry coming in to its landing through quite big waves (the ferry was a shilling each way when we first came here. Now it is 3.60).

Kai found wifi in the café and Charlie made sandcastles and wrote his name in the sand.

Becky and the boys had planned to stay until the Wednesday, but realized that they could not get everything into their car, so we all came back home on the Monday 27^th July, with both cars jammed full. Becky and the boys went straight home, but Lin and Simon met up with Sam, who got us visitors’ passes and gave us a tour of the Met Office, finishing with lunch in their excellent (no doubt heavily subsidized) canteen.