O blest SCILLONIANS! Favourites of Heav’n! To whom so wise a Governor is given. Robert Heath

I’ve always wanted to go to the Scilly Isles because I’m very silly. 

This stunning archipelago off the tip of the Cornish coasts consists of 5 islands and boasts white sands, turquoise sea, outstanding natural beauty, unique flora and fauna and is known as the English Caribbean. If I remember rightly I think Prince William and Kate own it, or a bit of it, and go there on holiday too. 

The islands look absolutely stunning and simply must be on many people’s bucket lists. However, it’s one of those places that gets booked up very quickly and you really need to be committed to getting right down to Land’s End or Penzance to catch a boat or fly there and I’ve already told you how long it takes to get to Cornwall. Plus, Cornwall has so many beautiful beaches you kind of get a bit complacent and settled once you’re in situ.

My mother showed up in Cornish Cornwall a few days back and we decided that it would be very silly to not go to Scilly since we were just a jump away. After a bit of research on her part (because I was too busy galavanting and trying to find the best Cornish pasty) it was found that all flights were booked, hotels were chocked and just a few rooms were available at a premium. The cost ran into thousands for a few days which was just downright ridiculous. Britain excels at being expensive. 

Perhaps we should just go for a day?  

But not on a boat. Not on a boat that takes two hours and is fondly known as the ‘’Vomit Vessel’ or ‘The Big White Stomach Pump’ what with the strong currents and choppy waters of the Atlantic. 

Eventually, we snagged a very early morning flight on the Twin Otter from Land’s End.

“That can’t possibly be what I’m going on – It’s a toy,” I said.  Vague, traumatic memories of a propellor flight to Scotland flashed in my mind and I started to feel a bit fluttery. 

Once on board, I could smell the fuel and the engines roared so loudly I thought I might go deaf. The pilot only seemed to be moving two levers to make the plane rev up. He gave it a load of throttle and off we went like a piece of torn paper in the wind.

Me and the Almighty had a lengthy conversation during that take-off. 

Twenty minutes later we landed in St Mary’s, the main island in Scilly and made our way to the port to go straight to another island of outstanding natural beauty.  

Every day in Cornwall so far has been glorious and the rest of the week was set to continue with sunshine but somehow it missed the Scilly isles on that day. On the day when I went on a boat in just a thin T-shirt and cardy. The wind tore through me and the sea whipped into my face and I said, Mother of God I am frozen to the bone and the first thing we do when I get off is buy myself a fisherman’s coat.  

“Isn’t this refreshing!”

I love being on boats but I like to be roasting hot.  Because we only had a day we opted to go to the island of Tresco to visit the famous Abbey Gardens. The large sub-tropical gardens are home to over 20,000 plants from over 80 countries within the ruins of a Benedictine Abbey.

My mother is very fond of gardens so I agreed to go as she doesn’t like rock pooling and looking for treasure on beaches as I do. That is because I am a pirate and I am 12 years old. Max.

To be fair, it was absolutely stunning. All the way around my mum was saying, “You couldn’t get that to grow in mainland UK, the frost would kill it.”

“Another good reason to move to Cornish Cornwall,” I said.

“Think how nice your garden would be…”  

Then all of a sudden the mad woman toppled over and went head-first into a rockery. Her husband and I picked her up, dusted her off, made sure she wasn’t cross-eyed and watched her arm start to swell up a bit.  The lady at the cafe got her a sling and we continued very slowly around the rest of the garden. 

We got a faster boat back to St. Mary’s where I sat on a seat with springs and spent the whole journey bouncing up and down like a Jack-in-the-box next to the captain with my mother in hysterics behind me. 

We had a wander around St Mary’s sighing at the beautiful beaches and turquoise waters, picking out which cottage we would live in if we had a spare million, and finding the best pub for medicinal rum to ease the pain of my mother’s accident.  We ended up getting her a gift that I saw in a shop and pointed out to her. A tote bag that said, “Scilly ‘Ol Bag” on the front.  My mother found it funny but the sales lady thought it was terribly mean. Some people have no sense of humour. 

We flew back home to Land’s End and my mother got a small cast for a possible hairline fracture and now we are all going to pay for it as she uses us like butlers. Most annoyingly, she was knitting me a Cornish blue jumper from Cornish wool which has had to come to an abrupt stop. I personally think that continuing would help with finger exercises.

Apart from the disaster that occurred on our one-day trip, we all want to return to the Scilly Isles for a long holiday next year. This is definitely a place that needs exploring and I am totally hooked.

And that, my friends, is as Scilly as it gets so far.