Are we nearly there yet? A trip to the seaside.

Who remembers the excitement of a trip to the seaside when a child?  Let me tell you that even in my 70s I still get a feeling of excitement at the first glimpse of the sea and am likely to ask Are we nearly there yet?  Though with Mr M being somewhat deaf he doesn't always answer!

Anyway a fine sunny day unusually coincided with there being nothing in the diary today so we took ourselves off to the seaside.  It was very cold but the sun was bright, the sky was blue and our chosen destination was once again Weymouth.  The last time I was here was the week before the school holidays and I felt the need for another breath of sea air and Mr M was happy to come with me this time.

We got the bus from the Park and Ride car park on the outskirts of the town and soon arrived at the sea front - just look at that blue!  From here we walked along the almost deserted beach to the harbour end.

I bet I couldn't have captured that bird in the centre of my photo if I had tried, truth is I didn't even realise it was there as I looked back the way we had come!

 The walk along the beach was certainly bracing and the wind was whipping up the sand  here and there and it was good to reach the end of the beach and cross over to the harbour.

Although I know nothing about boats and sailing I love to look at them and notice all the different types - this one with its white sails appealed to me.  Where will it be going and what would it be like to be on board I wondered. 

We decided to stop and have a fish and chip lunch here as by now it was just after mid-day. The wind chill factor had given us an appetite and we enjoyed our lunch inside out of the cold before setting off again along the harbour heading for the Nothe.

We climbed the steps and followed the path to the other side of the promontory and suddenly we were in another world - sheltered now from the wind and in the sun it was warm enough to sit on a bench and luxuriate in the sun's rays enjoying the view.

 This naval ship seemed to be on manoeuvers going round and through some yellow buoys in a figure of eight and we watched it for a while as we sat in the sun, back and forth it went round and round till we tired of watching it and continued on our way.

It all seemed so tranquil if you disregarded what seemed to my untutored eye to be some sort of battleship, the occasional crump sound from the firing ranges in the distance at the military ranges at Lulworth and at one moment a helicopter flying overhead!  But scenes as peaceful as these  would need more than some military practices going on to spoil them.

We walked on along the coast path looking back now and again and marvelling at the beauty of it all and enjoying the shelter on this particular path.

 The sounds of the gentle lapping waves against the stones, the smell of seaweed on the fresh air and the colour of it all added to the taste of the delicious fish and chips we had eaten and the chilly feel of my ungloved hand and all my senses had been employed in making this memory snapshot which I can return to whenever it is raining and grey.

I think that is my shadow you can see in the bottom left hand corner of this one taken just before we

turned off the coastal path and back to the harbour and the chilly winds.

 Back now at the harbour and over the town bridge into town where we got the bus back to the car park and home - I didn't want to leave it all but the sun was already getting lower in the sky and it would soon be really cold and home and a cup of tea called.  When can we go again I wonder.