As I was going to St Ives . . . .

As I was going to St Ives
I met a man with seven wives

Each wife had seven sacks

Each sack had seven cats

Each cat had seven kits

Kits, cats, sacks, wives

How many were going to St Ives? 

We didn't meet the kits, cats, sacks and wives but we did find a parking spot because the town wasn't very crowded at all.  It's off season in St Ives so we were able to get a parking spot in the car park adjacent to the beach with no problem.  Navigating through the winding, hilly, narrow streets was a bit of a challenge and must be a headache in this congested town in July and August.  

Speaking of the beach, there is a surfing school on the beach in St. Ives.  Just as we arrived, a small group of kids was going out for a lesson.

The waves topped out at about 2 feet, so I'm not sure how much experience the kids would get.  The surf was more like a ripple, really.

Right across from the beach parking lot was the St. Ives branch of the Tate Museum, which unfortunately does not open until later this spring.  I would have liked to spend some time there.

St Ives definitely has that summer community vibe about it with signs out for weekly rentals, gift shops, tea rooms, fudge shops and really great beaches.  The town cascades abruptly down the hill from a farmland plateau. It forms a bit of a peninsula, so that the town is surrounded by water on nearly three sides. 

Although tourism appears to be the primary source of the economy, there is also a lively waterfront commercial aspect.  I could not detect that it was fishing, necessarily, but there were a lot of traps on the pier.  They are similar to, but different from, the lobster traps used in the US, so I'm guessing that they might be for crabs or some other crustacean.

We stopped in to a waterfront tea room for afternoon cream tea, during which time I entertained myself by watching this bulldozer carving a new lane from the waterfront to the water's edge.  I was very curious what the project was about, but by the time that we finished our tea, the workers had called it a day and there was no one around to ask.

There are several places in England called St Ives, just as there are many cities in the US called Springfield, but this St Ives is the one that lays claim to the nursery rhyme above.  I think that they seem like a probable candidate.



How many were going to St Ives?   Two.  Larry and me.  


.