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"So they lefte that goodly and pleasante citie, which had been ther resting place near 12. years"

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From Bristol, I made my way to Plymouth. I left the train station and passed through the city center on my way to the hostel. Following the signs for “The Hoe” (the section of town where it was located) I soon found the street where it was supposed to be. The problem occurred for me because whoever numbered the streets was…well…insane? Rather than the numbers going uniformly from lower to higher from one end of the street to the other with odds on one side and evens on the other, I discovered (about 25 minutes after I started) that the numbers went up one side of the street and back down the other. And to top it off, they were divided into sections: one section on one side of the park and one on the other. Thus, when I arrived at Citadel road, I started by going to the right. The number for which I was looking was 172. As I walk down the street, I check the numbers and see it going from 166 then a few buildings and 162. Logically, I assume this must mean the higher numbers are on the other side of the park. I turn around and walk back the way I came, continuing on down this side of the road. When I get to the other side, I see the numbers: 201, 202, 203. What on earth? Where on earth is this place? Growing slightly frustrated, I decided to retrace my steps. What else was I going to do? I check the other side of the street as well since I’ve now decided that logic must have abandoned whoever numbered the street. Sure enough I realize what’s been done: the numbers start on the west end of the north side of the road, go up to the park and then continue up the south side of the same section of the road. The portion of the road east of the park is a completely different section of numbers. Because that makes sense. At any rate, I finally found the hostel and rang the bell (the door was electronically locked). Finally, the door was opened, and I was able to drop off my bags and go explore.

Plymouth is a nice, rather charming, port city. It is also home to the Royal Citadel, a longtime coastal defense point for the Royal Navy and now, the Army. I made my way down to the Barbican and stumbled upon the Mayflower Steps. About 10 yards away, I spotted the information center. Fortunately for me (the museum lover), the information center is coupled with the Plymouth Mayflower Exhibition. Since the short video presentation was down that day, I got in for free! I was excited. haha. I was also tired which might explain the excitement. :-P At any rate, it was intriguing to walk through a British museum about the Mayflower. I walked about the Barbican a little, enjoying the view of Plymouth harbor, and then decided to walk around the Citadel via Madeira Road to The Hoe.

The Hoe is a beautiful park right on the waterfront that is the home to Smeaton’s Tower, a beautiful 18th century lighthouse. It is also home to the Tinside Lido. The Lido was opened almost a century ago as an open-sea bathing center. The pool then was filled via pumps with fresh sea-water that was routinely exchanged. In the late 20th century, it was closed after being neglected for years. The citizens of Plymouth mounted a campaign to refurbish and reopen the Lido, now a maintained pool. It’s really quite beautiul. I continued around the coast, discovered some truly lovely houses and scenery, and even a small park the had been built in an old mine quarry. Eventually, I made my way down back through the city center, stopping for some food and finding the city museum and library…just too late to go in. :-P I found something just as interesting, though: Charles Church. Now, Charles Church is no longer a functioning church. After being bombed in WWII, it was left as a monument to those who died. It now sits in the center of Charles Cross Roundabout. Not content to take pictures of it from the sidewalk opposite, I did, in fact, cross the three lane roundabout at quarter to 6pm. I did run. haha. Just after I ran back across the street, I realized that the Devon and Cornwall constabulary building was just across the street with a couple of constables waiting to cross the street. Momentarily, I wondered whether running across a roundabout was precisely a legal thing to do, but they didn’t say a word when the passed me. I’m pretty sure I would’ve been jaywalking in every major US city. hahaha. At any rate, I found some dinner (The Blues bar and Grill has nice drinks and makes a good chili) and returned to the hostel to relax, take advantage of free wi-fi, and sleep. I fell asleep pleasantly looking forward to my two days of rest in Salcombe.

Photos from Plymouth


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