Tintagel, England

Tintagel, England is almost certainly the most beautiful place I have ever seen.  I first heard about Tintagel in a small clip from a documentary I saw.  It mentioned that Tintagel is supposedly the birthplace of King Arthur, that there was the ruins of an castle, and a cave in the cliffs called Merlin's Cave.  Based on these bare facts alone, I knew that Tintagel had to be on our first tour of England.  Although I was excited to see it, I had no idea how strikingly beautiful the place was going to be.

Tintagel is a small village in northern Cornwall.  It consists primarily of a few shops, pubs, and inns, the castle ruins, and a small cliff-top church called St. Materiana's.  It is situated along the coastal path which runs along the craggy, headlines of the coast.  Rocky cliffs and outcroppings jut out into the sea, making this one of the most dramatic and atmospheric landscapes I have ever seen.  As soon as we arrived, Jordan and I dropped our bags and ran out, exclaiming in delight and astonishment over what we saw.  The pictures don't begin to capture the experience.

We went first to Tintagel Castle.  There isn't much left of it now, but it must have been an impressive place once.  There are actually two parts to it, part of it built on Tintagel Island (not a real island, as it is actually connected by a narrow isthmus) and part on the mainland.  The view in the above picture is from the island looking back toward to the village.

While browsing in a bookshop, we found a picture of a waterfall in a book on Tintagel.  We asked the clerk where it was located, and moments later we were on our way.  It was a short hike to the top of St. Nectan's Glen.  The waterfall is so old that it has carved out a deep chasm in the rock and even a perfect circle where the water flows through.  According to Arthurian legend, this is where Arthur's knights were baptized before their search for the Holy Grail.

This is a view of the coastal path.  Had we world enough and time, we would have walked miles.  As it was, we managed only a small section.  But it was amazing.  Rugged sea coast on one side, pastoral fields on the other.  Absolutely astonishing. (Can you see the moon in the picture?)

This is inside Merlin's Cave.  It runs the entire way under Tintagel Island, and can only be reached at low tide.  At high tide, the sea rushes in, so we became friendly with the tide clock at our bed and breakfast.  I definitely wouldn't want to be caught down there with the tide coming in because it does seem to come in fast, at least to someone who is used to the benign rhythms of the mid-Atlantic coast on the US side.  We wanted to traverse the entire length of the cave, and so waded through a crystal clear and cold pool and came out the other end where the waves were crashing about.

Tintagel is quite a ways off the beaten path.  Although we came across a few German tourists in the village, ours were the only American voices we heard the entire time we were there.  Tintagel was the whole reason that we rented a car and drove hours across the English country-side.  And it was beyond worth it.  I almost feel disappointed, in a way.  I'm afraid that no matter where I travel in the future, I have already seen the most beautiful place in the world.  I just can't see anything topping it.

Packing Light: Ten Days in England

We are leaving for England Friday, granted that the stupid ash cloud doesn't shut us down. This trip has been a life-time in the making. I have wanted to go to England for as long as I can remember - my academic career has been devoted to British literature, and I probably know as much (if not more) British history than American. I have no doubt idealized England as a mythical fairy land - the land of Stonehenge, King Arthur, Victoria, and Jane Austen. But I am going!


I posted earlier (months ago, I think) that I was looking for a trench coat to take. After much searching, debating, and considering, I landed on the Travex jacket from Eddie Bauer. It is light-weight and waterproof, and has pockets everywhere. The sleeves can be buckled up. It is belted and can be packed up in a small space. It is not a classic trench - it has a more military/safari look to it, but I rather love it. It's perfect for England in May.

Here are the contents of my bag. We have decided to do carry-only, and I am determined to pack light - I don't want to stick out as a clueless tourist and I don't want to lug forty pounds between train stations and hotels. So here is what I am taking: one pair of jeans (Gap Curvy, boot cut), one pair of gray cords (Aeropostale, straight cut), long-sleeve light pink cotton/cashmere sweater (Fair Indigo), 3/4 sleeve coral cotton sweater (Gap), long sleeve white T-shirt (Target), white camisole (Gap), black button cotton/cashmere cardigan (Gap), black track pants and pink camisole for sleeping in, brown Mary Jane walking shoes (Skechers), black flip-flops, scarf. Also pictured: liquid toiletries in Ziploc bag and non-liquid toiletries in pink bag.

I believe that these can be easily layered, they all coordinate (pink, white, and black), and they are light-weight, but warm. The scarf is great. It is a wide retangle that can be worn around my neck or as a shawl and can also be used as a blanket on the plane. I am bringing the track pants instead of pajama pants so that they can be worn out if need be.

Here are the contents of my purse. I have had my Ameribag for several years and it is great for travel. It is not the most stylish-looking bag, but it is designed to feel lighter and it has tons of pockets for everything. Top row: Totes umbrella (tiny folded up, but expands to full size), Fodor's England 2010 (this is the heaviest item I am taking, but I can't bear to tear it up and I can't leave it behind and I need too much out of it to make copies), travel journal (Moleskine cahier), pen and pencil. Bottom row: wallet (Vera Bradley - very cool design with wrist strap so it can be carried on it's own) with cell phone, camera (just the case, since I was using the camera at the moment - my trusty old point and shoot, Olympus FE110), passport, reading material - Diana Gabaldon's Drums of Autumn. This was a point of some consideration - I needed something long enough to last the whole trip, interesting, but not too fluffy. Gabaldon's fourth installment in the Outlander series should be just the thing. Sunglasses (Armani Exchange for $20 at Ross - I love that store!) and their case.

Here is everything packed up. One carry-on (my Nine-West valise, also from Ross) and one purse. The carry-on is actually only about 2/3 full, so I should have room for some souvenirs.

I actually love planning what to pack, and this trip was thoroughly researched. Of particular use was One Bag, a website with an exhaustively annotated packing list - it is really geared for more tropical, exotic travel, but also worked for thinking about the England trip. I also love the articles that Harper's Bazaar includes about how to pack. Of course, those trips are super-luxurious (heli-skiing!?) and include suggestions for thousand dollar zebra striped Kate Moss bags, but it helps me get in the mind-set of super-chic, jet-setting luxury. Here is an article in their latest issue: Packing Like a Pro: Tips for Travelling Light but Fashionably. I also just like to see what people carry around with them. The Flickr group What's in Your Bag is voyeuristic fun.

What I Will Be Doing This Year

There are several things I am determined to do this year. I am not calling them resolutions. I am calling them plans.

1) Get the bulk of my dissertation written. Prospectus is done. I began the first chapter this morning. It is harder than I anticipated. I am working from seminar papers that I wrote for classes, but now I am sitting staring at this seminar paper wondering what I am supposed to do to it to make it a dissertation chapter. But I am going to figure it out, and I am still set on being a PhD by May 2011.

2) Go to England! Lifelong dream, often deferred. I think I have low self-efficacy when it comes to travel. I almost feel like I'm not allowed to go anywhere. Partly because Suze Orman would tell me we don't have enough money, and partly because no one in my family travels. But this is going to be the year. I will see London and Stonehenge and stand on a moor. Tentative travel dates are set for the middle of May. I have my own copy of Fodor's England 2010 that is becoming thickly crusted with pink post-it notes.

3) Write the novel. I know, how crazy do you have to be to write a dissertation and a novel in the same year? But this is one of those projects that I have been imagining all my life ("Oh, yes, when I grow up, I will write a novel and travel to England.") Well, I am grown up. I have the concept, the characters, the plot, and if I don't write it now, it will slip away, vaporized by academic paralysis.

Expect frequent updates on these three projects. In fact, if I don't update you frequently, get on my case. I need the motivation.