By sandy shores

 We have just returned from a wonderful week's family holiday in St Ives in Cornwall. We were lucky to also have the company of our son and daughter and their partners.





 For centuries the little town of St Ives was dominated by it's fishing industry, then came the tin miners who lived at the top of the town. Later came the artists, who were attracted by the clarity of the light, the fantastic coastal scenery and the inhabitants of the town. With the introduction of the railway in the 1870's the tourists soon followed and it has remained a popular destination.



The sun shone (for the majority of the week), as the waves rolled over the firm white sands. We had a wonderful relaxing time, having late breakfasts, enjoying Cornish pasties and cream teas and taking turns to cook the evening meals.



The younger members did go into the sea body-boarding and swimming. The temperature of the water was 14-16 C degrees. I preferred just to admire the water from afar!





As with all good holidays the week just flew by and many activities that we had planned didn't get done. I did manage however to meet up with fellow blogger Leanne from Todays stuff. We had a lovely coffee at Porthmeor beach cafe sitting in the sun looking out over the sands and towards the sea. It never feels as if you are meeting a stranger as you already have made friends and have many things in common. Thanks Leanne for choosing such a beautiful location to meet, it was so good to meet you and chat like old friends.


Leanne recently wrote about the view of the Godrevy lighthouse, which inspired Virginia Woolfe's novel      " To the Lighthouse."  We had distant views of the lighthouse from our bedroom window all week and the view of it was constantly changing with the differences in light and conditions. I am already missing this view of the sea!


This view of the lighthouse is taken closer, at Gwithian.




 The sea here contains so many shades of blue and these colours will remain in my head for a few weeks as we return back to work and home!



Needless to say I took many pictures, so these are just a few and I will be sharing some more in the coming weeks! Wishing you a good week.


Sarah x'

Comments

  1. Just beautiful! We have had such a cool and wet June that your photos look like heaven to me.

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  2. Dearest Sarah, WOW! I can almost smell the salt air - truly! And that picture with the almost tropical plants....one would think you were on the Mediterranean! Just lovely and those cottages where stayed, what a relaxing time. Thank you for always taking me to the shore that I love. Anita

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  3. Its a gorgeous place Sarah and looks like you had some lovely weather too. Glad you had a great time.

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  4. Sarah is that a sunrise or a sunset? sixth picture down my favourite

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    1. It was sunset on our first night- the promenade was full of people taking pictures I haven't come across so many taking pictures of the sunset before! Sarah x

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  5. Yum, Sarah! St. Ives is a dream destination and you captured it so well! It sounds you had a relaxing time (late breakfasts, Cornish pasties, cream tea... all the things I am dreaming of here!). Welcome back and thanks for your this mouthwatering post! Christa

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  6. Love the photo of the sunset with the silhouette figures by the sea. St. Ives is a favourite of ours too -
    We usually stay at Carbis Bay and love to walk from there to Porthmeor Beach and have a coffee in the Loft Restaurant.
    How nice for you to meet up with a fellow blogger, and also for your whole family and their partners to be together.

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  7. What a lovely place to visit, I wouldn't want to leave. Your photos are absolutely beautiful.

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  8. Oh to be down by the sea. Wow! Love the stone houses. Such a great trip!

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  9. Ohhhhh, I loved your vacation, Sarah! Thanks for taking me along through this post! I'm so glad you enjoyed time with a blogging friend, too :) xx

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  10. Thank you! We both love St. Ives too.
    It is a wonderful town with a lot of inspirations, only from modern tate I was not impressed. Cornish pastries we love also.

    Sigrun

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  11. My godparents lived in St Ives and many childhood holidays were spent there. Your photos evoked some wonderful memories - thank you xxxx

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  12. Hey Sarah,
    I'm so glad that you had a lovely holiday. It was super lovely to meet you. And thank you again for the flower seeds. A lovely gift.
    Leanne xx

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  13. Gorgeous photos of a lovely location - one day, I will visit Cornwall.

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  14. Wonderful images Sarah. I would love to visit St Ives again one day. I was were my middle son first dipped a toe in the sea when he was one....happy memories.
    Jacquie x

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  15. I'm so glad that you had such a great time! It looks as though the weather was wonderful. How great too that you got to meet up with Leanne in person. The two tier beach huts are unusual, I have never seen anything like that before. xx

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  16. Looks like you had a fabulous holiday, it must have been so nice to be all together. Great photos.

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  17. Hi dear Sarah,
    oh, what a beautiful time you must have had in St. Ives. We visit St. Ives for the last time in 2009 and we loved it so much. The village and cost is so gergeous. Is it Porth Kidney Beach on the Foto??? I love all the photos you have made, perhaps next year we will go again to Devon and Cornwall :-)
    sending hugs...
    Bine

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    1. The final pictures are around Porth Kidney beach. Sarah x

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  18. I spent a summer working in St Ives when I was a student - and fell in love with it! Glad you had a great stay Sarah.

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  19. Hello Sarah,
    What a beautiful place to send a Holiday. Beautiful photos and thank your for sharing them.
    Regarding the zinnias, no, it seems this year I will not have any. I have tried to sow them and they will not sprout. Maybe it's not their year for them to grow in my garden. I am seriously thinking that next year will be just flowers. I'm enjoying the sunflowers this year and I just love how they glow in the afternoon sun.
    Have a wonderful week Sarah,
    Blessings!

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  20. What an amazing place, it's so beautiful. I definitely agree with the last photo/quote :).

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  21. What a beautiful spot for a holiday, and how fun that you got to meet up with Leanne! Your pictures are wonderful, as always. :-)

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  22. Oh Sarah how lovely to have a family holiday to reignite memories and be with loved ones! The first picture really captivated me I am so drawn to the seaside, it looks like the weather was so lovely and sunny, so pleased you had a good time. It's always so lovely to have a holiday by the sea. I've never been to St Ives, somehow we always reach the end of the holiday before we make a decision to go there and yet I know I would love it there. Hugs Sharon. x

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  23. It looks so wonderful, Sarah. I would enjoy this kind of vacation a lot. You sound very relaxed and refreshed now too. I'm glad you had a nice break.

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  24. Beautiful photo's of Cornwall and the lovely town of St Ives! My husband and I spend our second holiday there on a camping site at Carbis bay. Still have many happy memories of that time!

    Have a lovely week!

    Madelief x

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    1. I'm glad this bought back some happy memories of your holiday in Carbis Bay. Sarah x

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  25. Glad we're not the only ones who go on holiday so close to home. We're off to Kingsand in August! Lovely evocative photos Sarah. A joy to look through. xx

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  26. St. Ives is one off our favorite destinations too :-) So glad you had such a wonderful time.
    Tracey xxx

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  27. St. Ives is a beautiful place and it looks like you had good weather. Lovely that your family came with you too

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  28. St. Ives is a beautiful place and it looks like you had good weather. So lovely that you were able to get together with your family too

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  29. Beautiful. I've never been to St Ives but I've wanted to go there for a long time. I'm put off by it being such a popular tourist destination, and being tied to school holidays, the busiest times!

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    1. We did have concerns as we have only visited here during the day before when it has been very busy. It was nice to enjoy it in the early morning and evenings when it was much quieter although of course it was outside the school holidays! Sarah x

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  30. Dear Sarah,
    This is such a lovely post.
    How I would love to visit St. Ives.
    The beach looks so nice and the sea so calm.
    Think it must go on my wishlist.
    looks like you had super weather. Glad that you had a good rest..
    How super to meet a blogging friend.
    happy 1st July
    val xxx

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  31. What a delightful holiday. Gorgeous pics.

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  32. We are going in a few weeks....you've got me all giddy now! Such a beautiful part of our country :) x

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    1. I hope you have as good a time as we did! Sarah x

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  33. Oh my looks absolutely stunning. We went to Cornwall at Easter for the first time I will definitely be going back its so beautiful. Your photos are lovely as always x

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  34. St Ives is delightful. We went there when Jess was a toddler & we lived in Spain.. it was February & very cold !
    Looks like you had a wonderful time x

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  35. So glad you had a good time - the pictures are amazing and the weather looks as if it was perfect. I haven't been to Cornwall for a few years - it is quite a trek from where we live.

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  36. I have just re-read "To the Lighthouse" and I`m reading a lovely book about the influence of St Ives on Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell ( her artist sister). I would love to go there myself, so thank you for the next best thing!

    What a beautiful part of Cornwall you stayed in! Perfect for a holiday in this glorious summer weather. Hope you all feel well and refreshed after such a lovely holiday :-)

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  37. Absolutely picture perfect Sarah! I've never been to Cornwall, but always wanted to ... these lovely pictures are making me yearn even more xxx

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  38. We visited St Ives for the first time in July last year and really loved it. The colours in the sea are fantastic, it feels truly exotic. Glad you had such a good time.

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  39. Lovely shots - thank you. I need to visit St Ives again!

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  40. So so so beautiful! I have a Florida keys beach vacation scheduled this winter and your photos make it hard to wait. I wish I were in St Ives right now! :o)

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  41. Dear Sarah,

    How wonderful to have a holiday away in Cornwall - St Ives looks like a beautiful place to visit.
    Great that your family were able to all go and to also meet up with a blogger friend. I think I would have been admiring the water from the beach too. I like the water to be a little warmer.
    Thanks for sharing your beautiful photos.

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  42. Your photos really capture the beautiful changing light in Cornwall, Sarah. Such a wonderful place to visit in the summer! I bet your post is making overseas readers very jealous of our beautiful British beaches!!

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  43. Cornwall is in my bucket list of places to visit, especially as I am a HUGE fan of Rosamunde Pilcher! Thanks for sharing the wonderful pictures ~

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  44. I'm sighing a big sigh. Beautiful, beautiful Cornwall. I just got back from there on Saturday, and I'm dreaming of those turquoise seas as well. I stayed a bit further down, near the Lizard peninsula, but I did manage to meet up with Leanne as well. So glad you had such a good week, it really does sound blissful. CJ xx

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  45. What a nice village, it looks like France and St Malo where we were last year. I've never been to UK (except for Londen) but thuis comes high on my bucketlist. I love to see more!

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  46. Gorgeous photos....thank you! St. ives is now on my list of places to visit in the UK :)

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