Penzance is a market town and fishing port in the far west of Cornwall; it has a wildness about it with a proximity to a tempestuous sea. The town is full of festivals: Golwan in June sees ten days of festivities culminating in Mazey Day at midsummer. Penzance Literary Festival follows, then in December Montol celebrates the Winter Solstice with a firelit masked street procession and guise dancing. Penzance is lucky enough to have a sea water outdoor swimming pool, Jubilee Pool, and the Morrab Library, an incredible 200 year old library filled with Cornish treasures.
At the west end of Penzance promenade is Newlyn, the largest fishing port in Kernow, celebrated in a bustling fish festival in August and home to sea spirit Bucca. Newlyn has a strong historical connection to the arts, it was home to the famous Newlyn School of artists and now Newlyn Art Gallery shows modern art.
To the east lies Mounts Bay, and the island of Saint Michael’s Mount, a wonderful windswept climb to a castle and chapel rising from the rock. At low tide a cobbled causeway appears and visitors can walk from Marazion to the island. Sadly, the grounds of the Mount lost over one hundred trees in a recent storm, though the remains of a 4,000 year old forest lie submerged under the bay.
Mousehole is a fishing village with a unique oval shaped harbour with a small entrance, the Mouse hole. It’s famed for Tom Bawcock’s Eve, 23rd of December, when the Christmas lights illuminate the boats, and Star Gazy Pie is served in the The Ship Inn. Dolly Pentreath, the last native speaker of Kernowek, was also a Mousehole resident.
