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Saturday 10 March 2012

A day at the seaside

On Thursday we decided to take ourselves off for the day - we felt the need of a bit of a holiday after the winter.  Want to come along and see where we went - it's been a while since I took you on an outing hasn't it?  Some of you may remember that back in September we took the Jurassic Coast bus along the coast to Beer see here.  This time we decided to go in the opposite direction and go to Weymouth which a friend had told me had been spruced up and was looking fresh and bright probably in readiness for the Olympics.

We drove to West Bay, a 45 minute or so drive through beautiful Somerset and Dorset countryside where the banks were sprinkled with primroses and here and there a swathe of cheerful, sunny yellow daffodils nodded as we passed.  It all looked lovely with the sun shining on it.  Having made good time we parked and had a while to wait so we decided to have a cup of coffee which we took sitting at the table outside in the sunshine at Sladers Yard.

The bus ride was a most enjoyable hour - made all the more enjoyable as it was free to us oldies on production of our bus passes (long may they continue!)  We passed through quintessential English villages where the yellow stone cottages - some with their thatched roofs - slumbered in the early spring sunshine.  The roads were never intended for double decker buses though and the thatch was often very close to the windows of the bus!  I love being able to look into people's gardens from the upper deck of the bus and the views along the way were stunning - wonderful green countryside, fields filled with plump wooly sheep some with little lambs and in some places we had the sea to one side with the sun glistening on it and in others it could only be glimpsed between the hills.

I must admit that I didn't think Weymouth looked much different although there were signs of painting being done in readiness for the summer season.  I loved this pretty wrought iron work on the shelters along the front which had been freshly painted - maybe you remember the photo I took of two old dears sitting in one of these back here?

We wandered round to the harbour and this beautiful ship was moored there, along with many more workaday boats used for fishing by the look of them, ....

...here it is seen from the other side of the harbour - it is apparently used by Adventure under Sail a charity which claims to enhance young people's lives do check out the link as it shows the ship in full sail which is fabulous!

I love this side of Weymouth which is a far cry from the beach with its Punch and Judy, donkey rides and so on - not that any of that was in evidence on Thursday of course but just wait till the school holidays and the summer months in particular!  We had lunch in a little cafe just round the corner from these lovely buildings and then decided to wander over to the Nothe Gardens the Fort was not open but the gardens are a peaceful little oasis with birds singing, flowers in bloom and squirrels so tame I thought one might run up my leg as it let me get so close to it and eyed me with its beady eyes (not like the ones here in our garden which scamper away when we venture out through the back door)

These photos may give you an idea of the calm, peaceful nature of the place now although if it has a fort I guess it wasn't always so!







By the time we had wandred round the gardens and back into the town we had time for a cup of tea in Marks and Spencer before it was time to get the bus back to West Bay - as they run only every two hours we didn't want to miss it!  These bright cheery little flowers were outside the Pavillion.


The return journey was every bit as pleasant as the outward one and this is a picture looking back towards Chesil Beach - pity the bus windows needed a clean though!  We drove back in the early evening having had a very pleasant day out and are planning to go again and to do a walk from Weymouth to Portland where the Sailing Olympics are to take place.  I haven't been to Portland since I went on a teaching practice visit back in the 1960s when it was freezing cold and very windy there and my memory of it is of a dreary grey place and I want to see if it's really like that.


Thank you for all you kind comments on my earlier posts - I am gradually getting round to visiting you all again.

20 comments:

  1. Thank you for sharing your day with us. It's nice to see sunshine in the UK, tee hee!
    It seems like spring is well and truly on it's way.

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  2. What a lovely tour - it made me want to revisit Dorset. It is so lovely to see Spring on the way.

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  3. I love this time of year when everything is just coming alive again before the bustle of crowds.
    Julie xxxxxx

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  4. What a lovely day you had. I love it when I know the places that you talk about! England is so pretty in Spring - wish we were there !
    This morning it was quite cool when we woke up - about 16C - though it reached 30C by lunchtime. Autumn is on its way thank goodness.
    Cheers

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  5. This brought back lovely memories of a family holiday MANY years ago. Are the donkeys still there? and the man who does the sand sculpture?

    Lenten Blessings

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  6. Can't remember when I last went to the seaside - thanks for taking me along on your trip!

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  7. What a lovely outing - thanks for sharing it. I've never been to that part of the country but it looks a very nice area - aren't seaside resorts great out of season!

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  8. Gorgeous views -- I'm so envious!

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  9. We had many childhood holidays in Weymouth Jane. I used to love the Jubilee clock and the old chap at the end of the beach who did the most amazing sand sculptures. Sometimes I think Weymouth got stuck in a bit of a 1960's/1970's time warp but I suspect that gearing up for the Olympics has pitched it into the 21st century. Beautiful photos and a great day out. Thanks for letting me come along!

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  10. We stayed right on the harbour over a cafe in West Bay overlooking the sea, but unfortunately the windows were so covered with salt spray it was impossible to see the view! One day they were filming "Harbour Lights" which I'm sure you remember, but we were pleased to say we have never watched!! But it was fascinating watching all the comings and goings.

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  11. It looks a lot better than I recall it being. Last time we were there we were shocked by the amount of 'Do Not' signs - no parking, no roller-skating, no fires (!) even.

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  12. Lovely pictures! And nice to see the sun shining! I was on a bus recently,,,,,and you couldn't see out of the windows,, they were that dirty.

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  13. Glad you got such a lovely trip in this mild weather.

    For me I prefer the car as I like to stop in all the pretty villages.

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  14. Looks lovely! We have friends in Dorset that we keep meaning to visit. It sounds as if you had a lovely day out.
    Dan
    -x-

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  15. Beautiful views Jane, you're so lucky to live within reach of a beautiful coastline!
    Vivienne x

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  16. How lovely to have a tour with you again! Thanks also for updating us in your previous post - I can quite see why you've hardly had time for blogging! Lovely to have you back though.

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  17. What a treat your photos are! I appreciate being taken along on your visit because I really enjoyed seeing the homes and the beach and everything else. It all looks so English (well of course!) and unlike anything I've seen over here. I couldn't help thinking I would like to stay in one of those homes with the bowed windows overlooking the harbor...perhaps the white one that is just a thin one-room-wide sliver in between its two neighbors!

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  18. Thank you for the wonderful outing. I wish I was there to do it in person!

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  19. I have never been to Weymouth......... it looks so lovely in your photos.

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  20. Thanks for letting us come on your outing. Lovely photos.

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