Islington on Sea
Whitstable AKA Islington on Sea is now boasting a house for sale at 1.758 Million pounds
Expected sale price? £1,755,000.
Funny thing is; 'It's in the Flood Zone!'
Of course lesser mortals could enter the property ladder by buying a beach-hut with scope for improvement for a modest £22,000.
Makes you wonder what we are sitting on? garage, patio garden, hmm?
Might even think about it some time....
Oyster Festival
House prices aside, Whitstable (or most of it) has just enjoyed the opening of its great Oyster Festival; held primarily in the harbour which over the weekend boasted a cornucopia of exotic food stalls; goat curry, thai fish stew,
Vietnamese rice cakes with …., Belgium crêpes, bacon butties, fish cakes with
chips, Indian finger foods, salmon sandwiches, olives, peppers, strawberry,cherries, home made fudge and chocolate, cakes, indeed stalls almost
too numerous to count, selling nibbles, substantial meals, or
snacks.
Of course the biggest attraction is oysters!
To wet your whistle, there were English wine producers, dozens of cider makers, apple juice producers, local beers, strange cordials,
coffee stalls and many others I do the discourtesy of
forgetting.
We visited it Saturday morning before the crush arrived; listened to some music, tried a glass of pink champagne (style) wine from Meopham, very nice too!
Luncheon was Jamaican Goat Curry sitting on the beach, watching the throng. The whole place was heaving.
Despite the rain, even Sunday looked as though it should have been 'reasonable' for the traders, judging by the people heading towards the harbour as we walked the seafront with our current doggie charge, I think everyone put a lot of effort into making it what it was.
2015 so far...
In no apparent order, but so everyone can catch up on what we have been doing, here's a few bits and pieces of the year so far.
Camping in June.
With the French revolting and closing docks all over the place, our intended destination of France didn't seem as good an option for a holiday this year, hence we found ourselves camping at Ridge Farm, on the edge of the aptly name village of Steep.
Suffice to say a cycle from the campsite into the centre of Petersfield (the only town we know where four cars can create a traffic jam by being so polite to each other; ‘after you,’ 'no, after you.’) takes about 4 to 5 minutes; the return to the site however is more likely to take forty to fifty minutes.
The site itself was brilliant; for me anyway.
Chris would have liked a few more facilities than just a chemi-loo and a tap, both a good hundred yards apart from the other, but at £10 a night, I think we did pretty well.
Our new tent. Being unable to stand up in our old one, I threw my toys out of the pram, stamped my feet a few times for good measure, and said if we didn't get a tent I could stand up in, I wasn't going camping ever again.
Chris rather likes it too! (£75 well spent)
It had been used once by a courting couple at a festival, and shall we just say he's much happier with his new wife!!!)
Admittedly the neighbours were a bit nosy, and the adolescent Tawny Owl was noisy as he kept yelling for food, (apparently as chicks they stay reasonably quiet, but into their teens, phew-hoo, can they shriek!) but in almost every other way the quiet was a drug.
(oh yes, and Badgers tend to snuffle as they eat the slugs under the groundsheet)
Of course Snot-Cilla’s 21st birthday party at nearby 'Poshknob Hall’ disturbed slumber one night; (friends arriving in their helicopters gives you a clue of their 'klarse') but other than that? ZZZZZ.
Never long enough
Most holidays prove insufficient to see, visit, go to, or experience all the things one wishes to experience.
The Watercress steam train line we did manage, ditto Portsmouth, likewise Reverend Gilbert Whites home and garden.
With scant regard for health or common sence we scaled a local mountain (climbed an ancient hill) & swam in Petersfield's open air pool, or 'Lido.' It's so reminiscent of 'Enid Blyton,' it's a delight.
One evening we even went to a auction to raise fund's for Nepal, and experienced the A..... local flea pit; one to see 'Holmes,' a film of Holme's later years (6 out of 10), and ??? some thing that eludes me. Perhaps that says some thing about what ever it was that we'd gone to watch?
Time for some pic's. Portsmouth first
The Spinnaker observation tower
Portsmouth is Britain's principal naval harbour
View from the Spinnaker tower, of some of Portsmouth's harbour, a lot of it dug out by hand by French prisoners of war in the 18th/19th century
From the tower again, with old Portsmouth to the right of the photo
Isle of White on the horizon
View of harbour
Chris standing on the Perspex viewing window set in the floor,
this was what he saw when he looked down!
The Watercress line is something entirely different
 |
| I know some one will correct me if I say this is an 'xxx' engine, so I won't |
Didn't expect to see one of these here.
Apparently they have a sort of MOT on the boiler, which permits them to run on main lines at full pressure for seven years. Then they have another year when they can be run on historic lines.
There is a difference regulation on 'ordinary' trains.
Handyside Bride
What a beautiful view.
Reverend Gilbert Whites home was far less interesting, but what is amazing is his book; 'Natural History of Selbourne' printed in 1789 which has never been out of print
His 'grounds' or gardens are quite nice, though just a touch quirky.
The wild garden
Chris in a barrel, positioned I think as a focal point.
Gilbert had a desire to have a Greek statue, but couldn't afford one...
So he had a '2D' one made out of a board.
The climb up Ashford Hangars (a big hill) was a extraordinary, as large amount of the hill side consisted almost entirely of Yew. Even those felled by time or wind seem to rejuvenate themselves by growing shoots that become new trees.
This fallen Yew may well be thousands of years old. The poor soil restrict their size.
The fungus' that grow on them are beautiful.
The picture of this one really does not do it credit, but it does give an indication of their various colours.
