Whitstable in April - Tuesday 8th

Yesterday we had just missed the sailing of the "The Chieftain", a 1920s lifeboat.  Today the tour around the bay was the first order of the day. 

After another big breakfast, we headed down to the harbour.  We had done a lot of walking yesterday (for me), so decided to take the bus.  There are three buses that cover that route.  My bus pass didn't work on the first one, but after the driver examined it more closely we were allowed to travel.  

Arriving at the harbour, we booked our tour, chatted to the staff and made friends with more Labradors.  Today, the wind has dropped a little, so the trip is more pleasant than it would have been yesterday.  While waiting, we also watch aggregate being unloaded from a ship.  The company at the end of the harbour makes asphalt.  Once on board, almost taking a dog with us (apparently he does go out on tours sometimes), we enjoyed a commentary about the harbour, the boat, and Whitstable in general.

Views of Whitstable from the boat

In the afternoon, we travelled to Broadstairs.  We had been advised that it was better than either Margate or Ramsgate.  It was a lovely afternoon, after a light lunch in the Albion Hotel, we walked along the sand and looked for evidence of the old funicular railway.  We sat on a terrace, drank tea and watched the gulls.  I had done more than enough walking.  Other birds included parakeets, but they went before I could get a photo, of confirm their calls with the 'Merlin' app. We also found out how expensive the beach loungers are, so we moved on.

A turnstone, possibly a young one

A recovered figurehead from "The Scotsman" on the old lifeboat house.

A herring gull

 

Part of the beach at Viking Bay, Broadstairs, with Bleak House in the background.

To round out the day, and because we hadn't yet had fish and chips, we ate here:

We had decided a while ago that we would not try oysters.  There is too much going on to suffer an upset stomach.

Whitstable in April - Monday, 7th

After a nice breakfast, we headed into town once again.  This time we kept going, because on the other side of town is 'Whitstable Castle'. Our host called it a folly.  It is really only a large house, built in the late 1700s and the garden was originally an industrial site.  The garden was very nice, the roses looked particularly healthy, but are, of course, not in bloom yet.

Whitstable Castle Gate house.

Whitstable Castle Welcome Board

The Castle and Tearooms

The Castle Garden, looking to the bowling green

We sat outside, even though it was quite chilly in the shade, watched the children play, and made a fuss of a Labrador. 

Then it was back to town, we had lunch in "The Tudor Tearooms".  I went in for the crab cakes.  While the meal was good, and the service excellent, the crab cakes themselves were lacking the essential crab flavour.  It meant that we had had two large meals in succession.  

Another of the oddities on the way back to the B&B is this creature (?).  I couldn't get a picture yesterday because the light was all wrong, but today in the early afternoon with a carefully chosen angle, here it is.

We bought some light food for dinner and drove to Herne Bay, where we had a drink in "The Ship", then sat in the car and watched the sun go down. Several people got in the way of this shot, so it is my first attempt that survived. The road we are parked on is next to the sea wall. There is a prohibition against parking on the sea wall (you'd need wheels the size of tractor wheels to get up there!). The road is narrow and has a 20MPH speed limit. Cars were passing us at probably double that, our car moved as they passed. It was lovely watching the sun go down, but I didn't feel that safe. We drove back home in the dark. There is nothing else to do in the evenings on Monday's and Tuesday's.

 

Whitstable in April - Sunday, 6th

Our only chance of a break comes at the beginning of the Easter Holidays. So we have booked ourselves into a B&B. After church on Sunday, we make our escape. The weather forecast is good, dry and sunny for the whole week. It's only about an hour to Whitstable, and travelling after 3pm on a Sunday afternoon is a good time - the traffic is light. When we arrive at the B&B we have to find our nominated parking space. We have been warned that they are small, so driving down Norfolk Street, (a very narrow road with cars parked down the left-hand side) we get to the parking space and turning into it is not possible. From our space onwards, the cars are parked on the right. I drove down to the end of the road, turn around, and return. Now there is room to turn in. Each time we do this, we will have to use the same procedure. The room is lovely, just what I was expecting. We are given the guided tour by our host, and then left tour own devices. 

At this time of year, there's still plenty of light left, so we stroll into town. There are a few interesting things to see on the way into town.  The first is this diver on the railway bridge, and soon after a tribute to Somerset Maugham.

Further on there is the "Peter Cushing", a Weatherspoons Pub.  After a walk around the harbour, we had dinner in the Duke of Cumberland.  A nice well cooked meal, with good service.  Then back to the B&B to try to get some sleep.  We are not used to sleeping next to a main road, so our night was a little disturbed.