And so this is Christmas.................

 ....well, not quite, but, in keeping with the rest of the past year, my explorations have been curtailed by the lousy weather. It's pointless trying to explore by bike, because there's no pleasure in tramping round villages and towns in heavily wet motorcycle gear.

Similarly, I've put my city walks on hold until after the New Year. The streets will be just too crowded and manic for my liking.

So, I am going to make use of the next few weeks in doing research on future places to visit, and in filling in some of the gaps in my notes on the places I've already featured.

This means that, even if you've already looked at somewhere I've been and photographed, you can now revisit the pages and learn more about what you're looking at. 

I hope we will have better weather in 2024. My list of local places to visit has grown to 16 pages now, and my list of London walks grows equally longer. Add to these, I want to visit a few other places I can reach, investigate, and get home within a day, some by bike, others by train. I'm hoping one of the first of these will be St. Albans - so much history, so little time...........

Anyways, I'd like to wish all my Christian friends a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah to my Jewish friends, and Happy Holidays to everyone else

Most of all, to all people, I wish you a very good New Year. (If you are Chinese, or Buddhist et al, just hold this thought for when you celebrate your New Year)

Islington, and a cat named Bob

Yesterday it was Richard Lovelace, today it was A Street Cat Named Bob. Can you see the connection? Nope, neither can I - except they both created literary history. 

If you have never seen the film, or read the book about a man and his homeless cat, then I strongly recommend you do so.

Today I went to Islington, in search of James Bowen and his cat. I found their memorial fittingly in Islington Memorial Garden.

Islington doesn't have too much to recommend it. It's not the kind of London borough that can afford to go in for high-end architectural design, but nevertheless, it has its' little quirks and charms.

I was a tad disappointed that the Angel, Islington, of 'Monopoly' board fame, was all shrouded in scaffolding, but hey ho, you can't have it all!

Easy to find my write-up this time, because I have had to start a second page for London, and so, for a while at least, it's the first entry there.

In search of Richard Lovelace

 Well, at least a visit to Bethersden church, the parish of his home. 

I'll be updating the Kent page with all the pictures and more information on Lovelace this afternoon. But in the meantime, I just want to say, what a lovely morning I've had today.

Bethersden church has an open coffee morning on Thursdays. I arrived not knowing this, and I couldn't have been made more welcome. The coffee was delicious, the company excellent, and the cakes very tempting (although I did manage to resist)

I walked around the church 'doing my thing', and then went and sat at the long table with my cup of coffee. Within minutes, I was engaging in thoroughly enjoyable conversation with complete strangers, as though I'd known them all my life, and surrounded by doggies who were very interested in what was in my pocket. (Sorry Cali and Dakota, I've given away some more of your treats!)

Anyway, soon as I've finished a few investigations on what I found, I'll be updating the Kent1 page

And then there's Ashford................

 No longer the busy little market town of my childhood, or the place of my teenage years that was more rocker than mod.
The town centre is  run down and shabby, and there's a lot of ASBOs needed. Outside of the town, there's too many houses being built, swallowing up the countryside and farmland, and causing over-population and urban sprawl.
But in amongst the decrepit buildings and empty shops, there are still some treasures to be found. The town centre has been added to the Kent page, and I will explore the suburbs at a later date.

And there the Kent Coast ends.................(well, almost)

 So today, I visited Ramsgate. It used to be a favourite place when we were kids, and every year, the village would get a little coach trip up to go and see the Ramsgate lights (like Blackpool, only a little smaller). 

Built into the cliffside the full length of the harbour are little cavelets, mostly with seats in them, but some with little flower gardens and waterfalls. These would all be lit with coloured lights, and up the top of the hill, where the road turned right, away from the seafront, there used to be a theatre, a little motor museum and a flashing display of coloured lights depicting a ram jumping over a gate.

Now it's all gone and the water gardens are stagnant and dirty. The bandstand up the top, opposite the Plains Of Waterloo, once was the only bandstand in the world, with a polished dance floor. No more. Ramsgate, I'm afraid, has lost a lot of its' charm. Still, I found enough of interest to keep me busy for a while, mostly thanks to Augustus Pugin. 

I rounded off my trip with a return journey briefly visiting Cliffsend, Sandwich, Eastry and Elham. So these places have had more information added. They're divided between the two Kent pages

Now I have walked around every coastal town from Whitstable to Rye, but several of them still have far more to discover.................

Days, weather, boredom.....

 So, this year hasn't been productive for me as regards this blog. What with almost continual bad weather, health concerns and family life, I've got a bit behind with my travels.

On the other hand, being at home so much has enables me to catch up with research. What started as a byline to my family history searches, has now taken over as  a more interesting delve into the history that makes this country of ours interesting. 

At the start of the year, I had a single page of places I wanted to visit - mostly towns and cities. This has now grown into an 11 page missive that just details points of interest in just Kent, Surrey and Sussex, and any where in London within walking distance (for me) of any of the London train stations that I can get to direct from Ashford.

I'm hoping that, after all the wet weather, this year's Winter will prove to be dry. I don't mind the cold. After all, trains are warm, and I have heated clothing to wear on the bikes.

 So here's to more expeditions, and a reduction of my travel list!

Sounds, colours, smells and tastes in London

 Another short trip to London - specifically, Camden. No, not the whole borough, but Camden Lock, Camden High Street and the Camden Markets.

Never have I experienced such a rush on all my senses - from the beats of Reggae music, through all the colours of the rainbow - and the brighter the better - to the smells of a multitude of cuisines. I finally succumbed to the lure of Thai, when a lovely young man called William offered me a very tasty piece of chicken on a skewer. Anyway, I broke my rule of not photographing people and you will find a smiling picture of William on the London page somewhere. (not a very good one, because the camera decided to throw a bit of a hissy fit)

Anyway, I followed my visit to Camden with a leisurely stroll back to St. Pancras along Regents Canal, and very restful it was too.

The answer....................

 This is just a quick post to answer a question that I frequently get asked - which is why, when I go to a village or small town to explore, I generally start with the church.

Well, it's quite simply history. You can go to a city or a notable town, and the history is apparent. Big buildings, statues of the famous etc. But that's not where my interest lies. You can read any number of books on say, the Tower of London, or the monarchs of Great Britain, but I like finding the obscure, the odd and unwritten titbits of history, the social life of an area, and as the church was inevitably the centre of a community, that's where the history is recorded.

In the words of Sir John Betjeman:

'Our churches are our history shown, in wood and glass and iron and stone"

Just for a change - Sussex.

 Yesterday I caught a train. Unusually for me, I took a train even though it was no great distance and the weather was good. But I was heading for Rye. At the moment, the bike park on the Strand at Rye is being used by a company that is working on the waterways down there and it has made access even more tricky than it usually is, and it occurred to me, that in all my years, I have never been on a train travelling on the old diesel line that goes down that way. We also have 2 of the bikes partially off the road at the moment.

Anyway - Rye. Rye is ancient, and has seen more than its' fair share of history. It was one of our major Cinque Ports, and, in the 14th. century, was attacked by the French and burnt to the ground. It was also a hotbed of smuggling activity, and they left quite a mark on the town.

It is also steep. Very steep............

I took LOTS of pictures. Such a beautiful and historic place deserves it. It took me 4 hours last night to update this blog, so head on over to the Sussex page, if you will, and see what I found

At last................sunshine!

 this year summer has been one of the coldest and wettest on record, but finally, we have  had a few days of sunshine. Enough, in fact, for us to get the two little bikes out and go for a picnic.
We ended up in Egerton, a tiny village, and ate our picnic at a bench table on the pretty green. 
The green is conveniently placed next to the church, so I took the opportunity to have a look round. Being such a small village (less than 1,000 residents) I didn't expect much of historical interest. I was surprised........... go take a look.................

Yesterday's ride

 It was not a good weather day, and there's a train driver's overtime ban on at the moment. So I opted to stay local and carry on looking at local places. Well, I found a lot of things I didn't know about, and got to talk to a lot of strangers.

For some reason, people are curious as to why I'm taking photos of stuff they actually never noticed before. Anyway, a couple of those people filled in gaps in my local knowledge, and I was able to do the same for one person.

So here's a huge thanks to the organist at Lympne church, the lovely church warden in Dymchurch, and the smashing young lady doing the cleaning at St. Eanswythe's

As a further bonus, only 3 of the 15 or so churches I visited were locked.

Why would I go to so many churches when I'm not a Christian? It's because for centuries, the church was the heart of the community, and that's where the lesser-known histories remain

Did so much yesterday, it took me till midnight to update the two Kent pages.

Going over old ground, with new ideas

 So, I had an unexpected free day today, but the weather looked as though it was going to be too hot to do much walking - especially in full bike gear!

So, I decided to head back to Tenterden and fill in some of the gaps I hadn't covered before. It's only 12 miles from home, and with the exception of going from the railway station back up to the High Street, is fairly level and not too taxing, even in hot weather!

Well, that was the theory anyway..................

The Tenterden section on the Kent 1 page has been duly updated. But I reckon there's still more to discover in such an old town with such a rich and varied history.

I would be lost without the fabulous QuizTrails. I've mentioned them before on here, and they're a great source of both entertainment and information, and the inspiration for a lot of my trips around the South East. I've now completed 14 of them, and I've still got lots more to do

If you're looking for something to do during the school holidays, give them a go. I'm sure both adults and children will love them.

A change of scenery...........

 So, today, I fancied a change, and decided to hop on the high-speed train to St. Pancras and have a wander round the locale there.

I have long wanted to include the amazing Carrera Cigarette Factory in my list of Art Deco architecture, so I headed there first. The rest of my walk today, took in the areas of Old St. Pancras, Mornington Crescent, and Somers Town. Loved some of the stuff I found.

London page duly updated with loads of pictures and some of the titbits of research I've done on what I saw.

*naturally, I get home, tell my son where I've been, and he promptly says 'did you go to........did you see........' Why didn't he tell me before I went, then I wouldn't feel obliged to go back and do more.........(well, that's my excuse, anyway)

Herne Bay

Egad, the north wind blowing in off the sea was chilly today! However, out of the wind, the warmth of the sun made for a very pleasant stroll around Herne Bay. 

Not a town I care for much - a lot of it is run down and tatty - but the section of the seafront I explored today is rather attractive. 

It has suffered very much from underfunding by the local council, and you can't help but feel that they're missing a trick here, and a bit of TLC and promotion and it could return to being a lovely seaside holiday spot, especially for older people who want something a little quieter than the brashness of say, Margate etc. 

Pictures and words added to the Kent 1 page

Sounds like Summer

 So, yesterday was the first really warm sunny day this year. The chill wind we've had for  few weeks had done one. 

We spent the day with me showing him roads he'd never paid attention to, and we delighted in the little hamlets along the Kent/Sussex border.

Several of them I've already covered, but one had escaped me as being somewhere to pass through, not to stop and look.

About  a mile outside Rolvenden, lies the little hamlet of Rolvenden Layne. Tiny it may be, but it has an interesting history, and even better, a curious museum! 

All information on the Kent1 page

Oops!

Today looked like a good day to explore Margate, and then drop down to Ramsgate to have a peek at a couple of sailing ships that are in the Royal Harbour at the moment. 

That was the plan, but it didn't all go without incident. For one thing, I think I need to replace the battery pack in my favourite camera. It seems to barely last a day now. 

Secondly, I managed to trip over an uneven flagstone, put out a hand instinctively to prevent myself from falling and slammed the back of my hand into a wall. Unfortunately, it was a very old flint wall, and I've done a bit of damage to my little finger. Luckily the skin isn't broken and there's no blood. However, it is very swollen, with a pronounced groove running diagonally across the swelling.

Went into a nearby cafe to get a coffee and wait to see if it was going to give me any problems riding the 40 or so miles home. The very nice lady not only brought me a really nice cup of coffee over, but she also produced an ice pack for my finger. That reduced the swelling measurably.

I'm just waiting to see how it is tomorrow................I don't think it's broken, which is good.

So, pictures of Margate on the Kent page, and the boats at Ramsgate on Kent2. I must do a walk around Ramsgate soon, and there is still more to explore in Margate.

The closest spot to foreign places

 Today's walk was through part of Dover. I didn't do the obvious bits of the castle, or the docks, but instead poked and prodded the 'ordinary' part of the town.

Dover, to most people, is just a place to leave from or arrive at, and most just pass through as quickly as they can. It's a great shame, as, apart from the Castle (which is easy to get to without troubling the town), it gets virtually no tourism, and it's a town dying on its' feet to a greater degree than almost anywhere else in the country.

However, pictures and bits of info on Kent1

Sunshine after the rain.

 Being left to my own devices on one of the few dry days so far this year, and not wanting to be anywhere busy, I opted to go and poke around the Kent/Sussex border. It's been so wet lately, I actually had to give up and turn round on two lanes, because they were just so wet and muddy. 

However, I've updated both the Kent and Sussex pages with a few small villages

New year, more towns

 So, first dry day we've had this year, seemed to be a good day for starting this years travels. Today's choice was Folkestone, where I went to school, art college and spent my teenage weekends in the 60s. I spent so much time in the Creative Quarter and around the harbour, that I didn't cover half of Folkestone that I wanted to. 

Yet another one for  second visit, I think.............

Pictures on the Kent 1 page