Avalon

The Cheesewring

O susto me deixou faminta. Após uma boa pint, como um ogro devorei um prato de battered cod (bacalhau empanado), salada, ervilhas e batatas. Planejara acordar com as galinhas para caçar brumas no Dozmary Pool, mas acabei dormindo demais: quando cheguei ao refeitório, o café já estava sendo retirado. Felizmente o garçom me deixou pegar iogurte e cereais, que levei para comer no quarto.

As pedras foram esculpidas pelo intemperismo. /
The stones have been shaped by weathering.

The shock had left me starving. After a delicious pint, like an ogre I devoured battered cod with peas, salad and chips. My plans were to wake up very early to chase mists at the Dozmary Pool, but I overslept. When I entered the dining hall, breakfast was finished. Fortunately the waiter let me take yogurt and cereal to eat in my room.

Eu toda feliz , como sempre, antes de entrar numa roubada /
Me, always so happy before getting into trouble

Vendo o dia ensolarado, chamei um táxi para me levar a Minions, vilarejo onde se localizam três círculos de pedras juntos (The Hurlers), pouco antes de um afloramento de pedras, lajes de granito semelhantes a pilhas de pão árabe, The Cheesewrings. O nome deriva da semelhança com um antigo artefato usado para fazer queijo.

The Hurlers

It was a sunny day, so I called a taxi to take me to Minions, a village where three stone circles stand together (The Hurlers), next to a stone outcrop of granite slabs, resembling stacks of pita bread, called Cheesewring. The name derives from the resemblance of the piled slabs to a press-like device that was once used to make cheese.

Cheesewring fica no lado leste de Bodmin Moor, cerca de uma milha a noroeste de Minions e 6km ao norte de Liskeard/  it stands on the eastern flank of Bodmin Moor, approximately one mile northwest of Minions and four miles north of Liskeard

Esta formação rochosa, reza a lenda, resultou de um combate entre os gigantes que ali viviam e os padres que começavam a chegar para cristianizar a Britannia. Um dos maiores gigantes, chamado Uther (!), recebeu a tarefa de livrar a região dos “homens santos”, e confrontou o fraco St. Tue, que lhe propôs uma prova de arremesso de pedras. Se o gigante vencesse, os padres deveriam ir embora da Cornualha. Se perdesse, seu povo se converteria ao cristianismo. Começaram, então, a jogar as pedras, uma a uma, formando pilhas perfeitas, até que na décima terceira pedra Uther errou. St. Tue, seu oponente, pegou a mesma pedra, levantou-a e um anjo surgiu para carregá-la até o topo da pilha. Assim, Uther foi derrotado e os gigantes tiveram de aceitar a nova religião.
Que metáfora significativa…

Árvores esculpidas pelo vento / Wind carved trees

A local legend says that the Cheesewring is the result of a contest between the giants who lived at the top of the mountains and one of the priests that had arrived to introduce Christianity  to the British Islands. One of the larger giants, Uther, was given the task of ridding their land of the saints. He confronted the frail Saint Tue, who proposed a rock throwing contest. If Uther won, the saints would leave Cornwall. If Saint Tue won, then the giants would convert to Christianity.  One after the other, they threw their rocks, stacking them up in perfect piles. When the score was twelve stones each, Uther threw a thirteenth stone, but it rolled down the hill. Tue picked up this fallen stone, and as he lifted it, an angel appeared to carry it to the top of the pile of rocks. Seeing this, Uther conceded, and most of the giants had to accept Christianity after that. What a meaningful metaphor!

Vista das Hurlers / Hurlers overview

A recepcionista do hotel disse que o táxi cobraria dez libras. Concordei. Segundo meu mapa, não muito longe havia uma mesa de pedra, o Trethevy Quiot, (“Casa do Gigante”) e ainda uma Arthur’s Cross. No entanto, o motorista achava que eu iria a Launceston ver um castelo! Para ir às Hurlers recalculou e pediu 22 libras! Mostrei indignação e ele me sugeriu alugar um carro, pois todos os pontos eram muito longe, embora a garçonete do Jamaica Inn tivesse dito que tudo ficava a cinco ou seis milhas. Não tive opção; o carro estava prestes a entrar na saída da estrada para Launceston; bufando de raiva, fechei a corrida em vinte libras.

Diz a lenda que homens que jogavam uma espécie de hockey num domingo foram transformados em pedra como castigo./ Legend says that men were playing Cornish hurling on a Sunday and were magically transformed into stones as punishment.

The hotel’s hostess told me the taxi would charge ten pounds, to which I agreed. In my map there was a Trethevy Quiot and an Arthur’s Cross near the Cheesewring, or so it seemed. But the driver thought I wanted to go to Launceston Castle! To take me to the Hurlers he recalculated and asked for 22 pounds! I showed indignation, and he suggested me to rent a car then, because those places were too far, although the hostess had said they were around five or six miles away. I had no option: the car was about to turn on the road to Launceston. Very angry, I accepted to pay 20 pounds for the run.

Outros visitantes / Other visitors

Esqueci o prejuízo ao avistar o círculo de pedras quase à beira da estrada. As Cheesewrings eram visíveis pouco mais à frente. Enquanto andava entre as pedras fazendo fotos, me convenci que círculos de pedras merecem fotos aéreas… Um casal de australianos supersimpáticos apareceu e acabamos subindo juntos a trilha até as Cheesewrings. Lá de cima, examinei a paisagem e achei que a forma das montanhas adiante era semelhante às que se via do Dozmary Pool. E que se as atravessasse, chegaria ao lago pelo outro lado, talvez conseguisse um ângulo diferente! Tinha certeza de que o motorista mentira quanto à distância. Uma hora e meia depois, me despedi do casal e tomei o rumo do horizonte.

Fotógrafos deviam poder voar. / Photographers should be able to fly. (Art: Waterborough)

Simpáticos bodes habitam o local / Lovely locals

I forgot the loss as soon as I saw the stone circles next to the road. The Cheesewrings could be seen a bit ahead. While I strolled amidst the stones taking photos, I thought that stone circles deserve aerial pictures indeed… A nice Australian couple appeared and together we followed the footpath to the Cheesewrings. Up there, taking a good look at the shape of the hills ahead, I found it similar to those seen by the Dozmary Pool. So I was sure that if I could cross them, I would reach the pool by the opposite side, and maybe get photos from a different point of view. I was sure that the taxi driver had lied about the distance. One hour and the half later I said goodbye to the Australians and started walking towards the horizon.

Deixando Cheesewring para trás / Leaving Cheesewring behind