The British Invasion: Part V - Plymouth

[shanmonster]

We'd been so exhausted the day before, so when I woke up actually feeling rested, I knew something was wrong.

"Uh, Shan?" said knightky from the bathroom.

"Yeah?"

"It's 8:30."

Our wake-up call was supposed to have been for 6:30.

"Oh shit! I guess no harbour cruise for us."

I was disappointed. I'd been looking forward to going out on a boat. I hadn't been on one in years.

Then the phone rang. It was Steve, the tour director, wondering where we were. Kyle explained we hadn't gotten our wake-up call, and I rushed to throw on my clothes which I'd had the forethought to lay out the night before. We hauled ass and got down to the bus 15 minutes after it was supposed to have left.

No breakfast for us, save for one buttered scone which I hadn't eaten from the Tintagel trip the day before. I split this meagre repast with Kyle. My guts were in foul form, this morning, from the fried food and legumes of the preceding few days. I had to move with extreme caution, lest there be an unfortunate explosion.

When we got on the bus, everyone began clapping. I felt bad for having made them wait. I am a punctual person, and hate to make anyone wait for me. Fortunately, no one seemed upset, and we set off to the Mayflower Steps in Plymouth's port. Although this particular location holds great historical significance in terms of the pilgrims going to America, it held little interest to me. It was just a couple of stone steps leading down to the water. I didn't even bother taking a photo, because it didn't strike me as being particularly photogenic.

I was far more interested in the statuary of the area, like the memorial to Sir Francis Drake. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get a photo of the statue on Plymouth Hoe. This is a view of the harbour from the Mayflower Steps, though.



Traffic in Plymouth was jammed because we were there during the America's Cup sailing race. People were lined up everywhere watching sailboats zoom through the water. I had no idea it was going on until I saw it, because I've never paid attention to sailing races. In retrospect, I guess it's a good thing our hotel bookings had been prearranged, because I'll bet accommodations were in high demand.

Well, this morning Kyle and I would get to go on a boat, even if it wasn't a particularly fast one. We got on a boat and went around the harbour, viewing Plymouth Hoe and the Royal Navy Dockyard.

This is a view of the Royal Citadel as seen from the water.



Even though he was hungry, Kyle was quite pleased to be on a boat.



We saw several Navy ships, including a nuclear submarine and a few gunships. The sailors were friendly and waved to us, which is preferable to opening fire, any day.

This bridge, the Royal Albert, is yet another architectural wonder constructed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.



It doesn't look like a 19th-century construction, to me. It seems much more modern.

Our boat docked over in Saltash, and it was time for us to spend hours on the coach, touring the Cornish countryside.

For more and larger images from Plymouth, check out my annotated gallery.