There are places that, as soon as you discover them, make you feel at home: breath-taking landscapes, cliffs overlooking the sea, small fishing villages that transmit calm and peace.
This is what happened to me in Cornwall, the narrow peninsula in the southwest of England stretching towards the Atlantic Ocean, a true paradise!
Cornwall is the place for you if you are incurable romantics who could spend hours admiring the beauty of nature and fantasizing looking at the shape of the clouds, if the cliffs overlooking the sea have enchanted you since you studied English novels in high school, if the wild nature captivates and fascinates you, if you love peaceful villages, green pastures and small sea harbours, if you love the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and would like to know more about them and if you are a fan of Cornish pasties as much as I am!
Low tide in Cornwall
Plymouth and takes you straight into the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table.
From this port the Pilgrims set out to discover the new world aboard the Mayflower and it is here that we can best admire the English maritime and naval heritage.
The place where this atmosphere is most felt is the Barbican, a very lively neighbourhood where wooden houses and Tudor-style buildings overlook the fishing harbour and its boats.
In the evening, the colourful pubs offer excellent fish and chips, pasties and beer and, although the atmosphere is quite mellow now, it is possible to imagine these pubs full of people and life in normal times.
Close by I visited Polperro.
Polperro is an old fishing village that looks like it came out of a pirate movie.
In reality it used to be like this because the inhabitants of Polperro dedicated themselves to sardine fishing during the day and smuggling at night.
The village winds its way through alleys and streets where flowery cottages, tiny and charming shops, tea rooms and restaurants will transport you to a magical dimension marked by the song of the wind and the flight of seagulls.
Lizard Point was my next stop.
The Lizard Peninsula is the southernmost inhabited place in the United Kingdom and it is a breath-taking corner of paradise.
Uncontaminated nature, cliffs plunging into a transparent sea that changes every hour according to the tides, a place where nature and soul come together in a single symphony.
Cape Cornwall
Cape Cornwall is the promontory that juts out into the Atlantic and marks the point where the Atlantic currents divide.
For a long time, it was mistakenly considered the westernmost point of England, in reality the extreme point of western England is Land's End, a record that was then assigned to it, the fact remains that Cape Cornwall is less touristy and more suggestive in my opinion.
I then continued on towards Land's End where I made only a small stop and where I decided to continue towards Sennen Cove, much worth the visit.
Sennen Cove is a small village completely exposed on the spectacular bay with a stretch of white beach of over 3 kilometres.
From here you take a long, beautiful path overlooking the sea and through meadows dotted with flowers you will arrive back at Land's End. There you feel like you are absolutely at the end of the world, the point where the earth ends.
Legend has it that, once upon a time, it was believed that this was the point where the planet ended and if you look at the horizon you will only see blue, without distinction between the sky and the sea, one would think that this is still the case.
There are so many tiny villages around and the places where to have some fresh seafood for lunch is virtually endless.
Beach
If you ever make it to England, pay a visit to wonderful Cornwall.
To me it felt like it’s what England is really about: a land of discoverers.
