Not much to report today. I needed to just do very little. It was great yesterday as I spent the afternoon in the restaurant for lunch and a carlsberg and fixed up my blogs and emails. I also did some washing which was a scary and note resting experience. Where do I get the washing tablets/powder from? How would these washing machines go with my clothes / new clothes? Which setting is the dryer supposed to be on? Will it shrink my clothes? All questions that I would find out after they had done the job properly or not... It turned out fine, besides a dodgy laundry powder smell that really was much better than the smell the clothes went into the washer permeating with! I got through some TV shows whilst I stressed about the condition of the clothes, which was very relaxing. That killed two hours of time, and then I ventured down stairs for a meal best described as... Terrible. Seafood linguini sounds great, but a massive plate of linguini with flicks of some not-so-flavorsome fish, is not what I was expecting. No prawns, scallops, squid, crab, lobster... Very disappointing. As well as that I swallowed a bone, and found another. Eeerrwww...
Thursday I got up at 9am, put the 'Do not disturb' sign on the door and slowly started the day. My stomach thanked me for skipping breakfast, as one more fatty sausage or oily fried egg in a Full Cooked English Breakfast may have sent it over the edge! I spent the morning until 12noon sorting out finances - checking credit card accounts, moving money to my travel card, uploading a few photos from my 5.5GBso far to Facebook and checking emails. I forgot how much easier emails can be handled using my laptop vs two different mobile devices! So I feel all sorted now and refreshed with new clothes and a bit of a chill out under my belt. I have felt like I had to tick every box being over here: checking every record for nankivells; going to ever landmark the ancestors may have gone to, lived at been near etc. when really just being here has been the point. Any thing else I do, take a photo of, speak with, check out or do are bonuses. I've really only got to find out something about the ship 'the Nile' if I can for my time in Plymouth to be worth something. Especially to recharge a bit before heading on to Ireland on Saturday.
I journeyed into Plymouth and got a blow by blow description of landmarks from the cab driver which was good. Plymouth was extensively bombed in the second world war and there are parts that were flattened and parts that have been half destroyed and left as monuments to the war. A church that was semi destroyed is an example of this - an eerie monument in the middle of a roundabout (or circus) as we drive by. I get to the barbican and it is wet, wet, wet. I see some monuments dedicated to the Mayflower trip where American forefathers travelled out from many many years ago, and also monuments to those that travelled out to South Australia for mining in the 1800s. OMG, that monumeithaca talking about the Nankivells (and maybe a few others)! That's a plaque I'm certainly very proud to see, and has certainly made the trip worthwhile. Even if I only got a few photos and dashed out not the rain to take a photo!
I stopped in on my way to the library, at the Plymouth Gin Factory. I wasn't going to, but the taxi driver talked me into it (!) he said its very good... For historical and research purposes!! I went to the barbican for lunch and it was sensational! Apparently owned and operated by celebrity chefs in the UK. Posh without being posh. I liked it as I sipped on my Saviougon Blanc... Very ritzy! The Salmon Teriayki with Seasome noodles was fantastic. Restored my faith in 'seafood' plates in Plymouth. Well done kids. They buy their fish from the fish market across the road, so I guess it was bound to be pretty good. Yum! Although having got the bill and being charged £3.50 for a bottle of still water, I thought I'd ask for the lid and take this rich water with me. Cheeky buggers.
Off to the library to see where all the cool peeps hang out. With cardigans. And glasses on lanyards... That's how they roll in Plymouth! I was able to look at some Devon Town Historicals produce every 5 or so years. And I also found some Cornwall ones as well. The have a description of the town, important people and land values etc. unfortunately no Nankivells in any of the towns in any of the years. I'm sure I could find some replies on the maternal side, but I haven't really gone into that as yet. I stayed there until closing and got kicked out! A first for me!
A quiet night at the hotel restaurant. A massive lamb roast for one was delivered, and to my surprise I fitted it all in as well as the fruit salad! Yummo. One more sleep in Plymouth...
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