Ramsgate Harbour, Kent

Ramsgate Harbour is the only Royal Harbour in the UK, and is a lovely place to walk round on a sunny day, which is just what my friend and I did in March.

Beautiful boats in the Harbour, and a lovely blue sky to go with it :)

I wonder where some of these boats were going to sail to next?

The Harbour is very busy and picturesque, and is well known for being one of the embarkation points of the 'Little Ships' , the fleet of small boats which crossed the Channel in June 1940 and played such an important part of the evacuation of Dunkirk during WW2. Just under 43,000 men passed through Ramsgate Harbour after being rescued from the beaches of Dunkirk. Those men must have been so happy to see the harbour!

This photo shows the steps up to the promenade, the building in the centre of the photo is The Sailors' Church and Harbour Mission.

Inside the Sailors' Church, the models at the back of Church are beautiful :)

Looking towards the Altar, such a pretty little Church.

The Harbour today is full of privately owned boats and yachts, and is still an important harbour.

We decided to hove our lunch in the local Wetherspoons, which is housed in the former Casino. We were lucky enough to get a table by the windows, this was our view, lovely to see from inside, as you can guess there was quite a wind blowing that day :)

The waves crashing against the Harbour Wall....

....and crashing together to make brilliant photos. the photos have really come out well considering they were taken through glass :)

Lunch over, we went out onto the terrace, this photo taken looking North towards Broadstairs and Margate.

Just one last photo of the amazing waves :)

Finally looking towards the Clock Building from the terrace, the first time I have seen this building from this angle. It now houses the Maritime Museum.

We both enjoyed out visit to Ramsgate, especially as good food was included :)

Walmer Castle in Winter

Finally I have managed to get a blog together, since my last post I have had the horrible flu that has been doing the rounds, but one Sunday in February the sun shone and I needed to get out and get some air and excercise, so I arranged to meet a couple of friends up at Walmer Castle, which has been open most weekends during the Winter.

 

The sun shining through the trees on the woodland walk.

It is always lovely walking through the wooded part of the garden

Underneath this beautiful old tree was a patch of lilac....

....it was a beautiful display of cyclamen :)

I had thought of doing a series on the Castle and its grounds during the seasons, and, as this is the first year the castle has been open in the Winter time, it seems a good season to start with. It is nice to be able to have a walk round at this time of year, it was still cold but the signs of Spring were already starting to show.

The Queen Mother's Garden, looking a little bare at this time of year.

The orchard and part of the Kitchen Garden

Looking up the Broadwalk towards the oval lawn and the woodland area.

Are these pots for forcing rhubarb?

Inside the greenhouses there were still plants in bloom, including the Bird of Paradise flower above,

I am not sure what this is, but it was lovely to see in February :)

The scent of this  Jasmine filled the greenhouse, it was lovely :)

Hyacinths.

The full beauty of the Cloud Hedge can be seen clearly at this time of year :)

As can be seen in the photo below, there was still frost in the shaded parts of the gardens.

Walmer Castle in Spring, Summer and Autumn will be along sometime during the year, but in a months time I will be flying off to see my daughter in Beijing :) There will of course be rather a lot of photos of the holiday, I am so looking forward to going again :)

Funny start to the year!

January sunrises, almost the same spot, but different mornings..

I realized that I have not done a blog this year but it is only February so I suppose that is not too bad really!!

Who has been sleeping in my bed?? Oh its Loki having a lovely sleep :)

January went by in a flash, mainly because for three weeks I was suffering with the horrible flu that everyone seems to have had, it took two lots of antibiotics to clear the chest infection that the flu left me with, but I am all ok now, thank goodness.

I made these for a lovely friend, Kumihimo braiding, good fun to do and it grows quickly :)

Needless to say not many photos were taken last month, but I did manage to get a few odds and ends which I will share here.

Sunset this time, photo taken from inside my sitting room :)

The Super Moon, as seen through the leaves of our neighbours tree :)

Our other cat Merlin, staring at the radiator because his mum (me!!) hadn't lit the fire!!

Happy New Year

End of the Year 2017 Part 1

Here we go again, a record of my year in photos, I really enjoy doing these two blogs, as I am reminded of  all the lovely things that have happened during my year, that I have been able to catch in photos.

It has been an up and down year for us as a family, but nothing too serious thank goodness. Our daughter has been home from China three times, which has been lovely even if one of the visits was an unplanned one due to health issues. Thankfully she is fully fit now, and we have had a lovely Christmas with her home. Our son is currently in Canada, working and improving his skiing, he was missed by us all at Christmas. 

JANUARY

St Peter's Church, Sandwich, looking good in the winter sunshine.

Sun rise and misty fields on the way to work.

This is just about the only thing to remain of Walmer Place, a once luxurious Manor House built on Walmer seafront in 1901. The house was owned for some time by the Marke Wood family, who paid for the building of our local Victoria Hospital, which was left to the people of Deal, and also contributed to the Marke Wood recreation ground, which was left to the children of Walmer. The photo shows a very small part of the wall of the grounds of the house, which was demolished in 1965, and it shows in the background the new flats which were built on the site.

FEBRUARY

A beautiful present from my daughter, a Chinese dragon on a silk background, it is too nice to use as a place mat, which is what we think it was intented for, so I am keeping it safe until I decide what to use it for .  

Daffodils hiding in a corner in Sandwich, so lovely to see, especially as it was only February :)

Part of an art display my friend and I went to in the Turner Contemporary, Margate.

MARCH

A reminder of a lovely night spent in the Mermaid Inn, Rye. I want to go again!

On our way back home from Rye, we visited this beautiful church, St Thomas a Becket at Fairfield, which sits all alone in the middle of a field, and is famous for its interior, which has its original Georgian box pews still in place.

The beautiful blossom on an old tree in the grounds of Walmer Castle, every year it was such a lovely sight, as can be seen from the photo below. Sadly the tree has now gone, I did try to find out why it had been cut down,  but I think it had just gone past its best and maybe was no longer safe to leave. Whatever the reason I am very sad that is is no longer there.

APRIL

Rochester Cathedral, we had a lovely day out :)

Blossom :)

The River Stour at Sandwich.

MAY

A tiny statue of Pan, who lives in an alley in Wingham!

A duckling at Russell Gardens, Dover, all his brothers and sisters were duck coloured so this one was very special :)

A swan at Kearsney Abbey, I have to have a swan, I love them!

Russell Gardens looking especially beautiful, having the seagull in the photo was just a bit of luck.

JUNE

Under the pier, photo taken from the lower deck, it makes for a good photo.

A Hollyhock in Sandwich Library Garden.

Just lovely, photo taken in Walmer Castle meadow.