Whitstable, Kent

...and so back to the last full day of the Wedding anniversary, next stop was the highly recommended fishing village of Whitstable (literally *everyone* I had spoken to had said "Oh Whitstable is lovely" when asked for places to go in Kent, so it *had* to go on the list)...the only problem (apart from a *complete* lack of available parking - and remember, this was firmly out of season, heaven only knows what it is like in summer) being the absolutely stinky weather, it was blowing an absolute gale, and was freezing cold with it...so when we finally found somewhere to park the car and made our way towards the harbour, it was only the most fleeting of visits (for fear of being blown into the sea and swept away by the tide) -

- if these pictures could move you would see the swell lifting the boats more than a meter(!) with each wave - Flyingpops wouldn't come within fifteen feet of the edge, it looked that scary -

- and for all that I'm not sure the trip was actually even worth it, pretty far from being "lovely" it actually verged on the industrial...certainly not the charming harbour I had been picturing in my mind (after all the glowing testimonials)...

The fish market was quite pretty -

- (on the outside, anyway) -

- but after a quick peep at the beach (sand and stinging sea spray blasting our faces) -

- pebbled and packed with boats (so much so that there wouldn't be anywhere to pop your towel at high tide, although if I had tried on this occasion it certainly would have blown away) -

- we made a dash for the high street, where *thankfully* the wind was less direct, and certainly less bitterly cold, and began a pleasant walk up through the town, stopping in the odd shop (like this old fashioned sweet shop where we loaded up with supplies) -

- and gradually, as the sun came out, we began to see some of the potential charm of the place -

- it was quite nice, certainly not Devon and Cornwall nice, but it did have a charm of it's own...We stopped for lunch in a little pub called the "Royal Naval Reserve" -

- which served me up probably the best fish and chips I have ever eaten (so fresh, tasty and crispy, I did wonder if it perhaps hadn't been landed in the very harbour I had just criticised) -

- with home made tartare sauce and a simple slice of lemon......and I admit, as my tummy filled up, I melted even more... ;)