Preparing for an adventure!

As many of you may already know, at the beginning of June I am headed down to Cornwall for a month. With only 80 days to go, it is fair to say that I am unbelievably excited (it’s all I have been able to think or talk about for several months now and sometimes it’s the only thing which gets me through stressful days at work).

The biggest element of this adventure for me though is the fact that I am going completely on my own. I have literally been dreaming of living or even spending a summer in Cornwall for so many years now, but I never imagined that I would do it solo. It is both exhilarating and terrifying to think of. Of course it’s not as if I am travelling half way across the world, but Cornwall is far enough for now and hopefully one day I will become brave enough to venture further!

Every time I have mentioned my trip to someone, they have always asked me - ‘So why Cornwall?’. The answer is pretty simple – I genuinely love the place. I have holidayed there with my family for as long as I can remember, so I feel as if I have partially grown up there. I first took up body boarding when I was around 9 years old (possibly younger) and have been riding the waves ever since. I absolutely love the surf scene but most of all the different way of life – I have always thought of the place as existing in its own small bubble away from the fast- paced, mundane life I live up North. If anyone reading this is familiar with the beauty of Cornwall, I am sure you will understand what I mean. I am definitely looking forward to escaping into that bubble for a whole month and delving into a world of surfing, exploring, reading and writing.

Since I am travelling by train I thought the easiest way to carry everything would be in a backpack, which means I have to pack light, yet my PKU never makes this an easy task – exactly how I was going to transport an entire month’s worth of supplement along with clothes, a wetsuit and an array of other items certainly stumped me for a while. However, with the help of my parents, we have come up with a couple of solutions to this problem – I pack a few days’ worth of supplement and either post the remainder to my accommodation or see whether Healthnet are able to deliver that month’s supply to me in Cornwall. The latter is certainly the cheaper option, so I decided to get in touch with my dietician to see whether this would be possible. Currently I am waiting to see whether this can happen... (I would like to mention here, if anyone has any information or if you have done a similar thing yourself, please let me know!).

For anyone who is interested in following my journey (from a non- PKU related angle), I have created an Instagram account – simply search for yorkshire_girl_in_cornwall and I'll see you over there!