Short take: errands, gardens, games, and another good dinner.
First thing in the morning we said goodbye to Lidia and Bonnie, who were returning home after 15 days of hiking and sightseeing. Probably needless to say, but they will be missed.
Then I wandered off to the Halloween-themed Mother Boswell's Laundrette (complete with a witch on a broomstick) to do a clothes wash. Easier said than done. First I found that I didn't have any pound coins. One visit to a nearby bank later that was solved. Then the soap dispenser didn't dispense (although it was quite happy to eat my £1.50). There was a number on the wall to call for help... no response. So, I wandered off and found somewhere to buy detergent. Then back to wash the clothes and put them in the dryer. 20p for 10 minutes it said, so I put in two coins and sat down to read. A short time later I realized that it was quiet... too quiet. The dryer wasn't going. More like 2 minutes for 20p. Sigh.
Eventually I made it back to our B&B, rounded up the others (minus Russ & Sally) and we set off for the Lost Gardens of Heligan. I should mention at this point that I was limping... badly. Another gout attack, I'm afraid -- too much rich food over the last several days, probably. I promised myself (again) to start taking the medication against gout as soon as this attack was over. But I wanted to see the gardens, so off I limped.
45 minutes later we arrived at the entrance. The gardens at Helligan fell into ruin as a result of the general impoverishment of the country due to the two world wars (hence "Lost"), and only started to be restored in the 1990s. They are thus a strange mixture of order and disorder. For example, there are many neatly manicured paths where you have to duck under low-hanging rhododendron branches that grew wild in the years of abandonment.
Some things I liked (in particular the Jungle garden, with the largest rhododendrons I have yet seen, and some massive trees), but overall I was a little disappointed. There were at least three reasons for this: for one, yesterday's storm had blown off countless flowers and the azaleas and rhododendrons looked somewhat the worse for ware. For another, the gardens seemed less advances (from a seasonal perspective) than others we have seen (perhaps because they are less well protected). And lastly I had the general impression that the rescue/renovation project was only half-finished. And maybe there's a fourth reason: it would have been difficult for any garden to profoundly impress me after seeing Trewithen two days ago.
Afterwards Russ, Sally, Rochelle and I played a couple of games, then we all had dinner again at the excellent Salamander restaurant, and eventually I limped off back to the B&B for an early bed, hoping that my foot would feel better in the morning.
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