Sunday 29 November 2009

The Shipping Forecast

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8383178.stm

















Came across this video on the BBC News website, which tries to go some way to explain our attraction to the shipping forecast on Radio 4.

I'd like to hear your views on this. Obviously, we in Cornwall have a far greater attraction to this than most...in fact much more of a necessity in many ways.  There is no doubting that the shipping forecast does evoke a nostalgic quality for me; a quality which reminds me of home, of course of the sea and also the men and woman who live their lives from the sea. It is also a poignant reminder of the danger of the sea. The lady who gives the shipping forecast has a great voice, but it is also a somewhat menacing and sobering one....it reminds of the vast expanse of uncontrolled natural waters out there. Quite simply, I think it's rather beautiful and an absolute treasure to still be able to hear it

Newquay to be Hawaii of Europe??? Sorry?!

Brining my attention to a article posted here - on the This is Cornwall website - about Newquay being compared to Hawaii....

Yes, Newquay could very well be a world class tourist resort - but I'm afraid one of the key elements of visiting somewhere like Hawaii is the weather and the climate! I know I wasn't supposed to take the heading of this article particularly literally, and no offence to its creator, but surely this is a little far fetched?

I can, however, see what's happening here. Newquay would do well to shift its anti-social reputation....but one thing Hawaii does have which Cornwall does not - is a vast sum of money. Newquay does need to be updated in a very many ways...from its hotels to its attractions as a whole - and I'm not sure whether the money will be sacrificed. Anyway, fantastic if it is as I would be amazingly pleased to see Newquay's position begin to grow in Cornwall once again.....for more information check out the Visit Cornwall website.

Saturday 28 November 2009

Cornish Twibes!

If you are a user of Twitter, and from Cornwall, I would strongly recommend visiting the Cornwall Twibe pages at http://www.twibes.com

General Twibe 'Cornwall' Group : http://twibes.com/cornwall 

'Cornwall Photography' Group : http://twibes.com/CornwallPhotography  


Go check them out, they are certainly are useful for networking and being updated in what's going on in Cornwall...even if you're not there!

Thursday 26 November 2009

Keen to See What's Happening in Cornwall? This Might Be Useful To You...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/cornwall/webcams/webcam_penzance.shtml

Obviously there's more than this, and I'm sure many of you have already heard about it....just thought it was a nice touch to bring some nostalgic memories to those away from their home county.

Monday 2 November 2009

Penzance Harbour Row Continues to Divide Community

It is with great interest with which I read the continuing debate concerning Penzance Harbour and the Penzance Harbour Redevelopment which is continuing the be a source of major debate in the local area.

I believe the the forecast for Cornwall is generally good; there are many exciting opportunities and it is generally hard to see what the debate is concerned with - of course, local pride will always play a part - but the row over switching the Isles of Scilly port from Penzance to Falmouth has caused an outrage throughout the area.

I will not get bogged down in personal opinions over the Penzance Harbour Redevelopment - suffice to say that I only think it can be a good thing. However, Isles of Scilly tourism has always been the preserve of the reasonably weathly...In fact it has dominated Isles of Scilly news for a while now that there is a lack of accessibility - I'm not sure how moving the port from Penzance will help.

Hotels in Penzance often do reasonably big business around the peak times for travel to the Isles of Scilly. Penzance harbour is major attraction in many ways, but having the Scillionian dock there is pretty much the only way it can sustain itself. Many people visit Falmouth for a variety of reasons, but it is becoming increasingly evident that people do not visit Penzance in the frequency in which they used to. Tourism in Cornwall is in a very strange state of flux but it still reamins pretty much the only way Cornwall can maintain the beauty it has to offer.

It will be interesting to see how this one develops. If you have any suggestions, feedback on what I have said or any opinions yourself then it would be fascinating to here them. Whatever happens, I trust that it will not affect the attraction to me of either locations.