Friday 17 July 2015

Sidmouth

We've been to see our daughters, staying first with Wee One on the south coast and then going on to London to stay with her big sister. We dawdled along the coast during the week while Wee One was at work, staying a couple of nights in Sidmouth
just across the road from the Connaught gardens (A great place for coffee and a great slab of cake!) The gardens are arranged in formal areas with far too much randomly coloured 'civic' bedding for my taste.

So imagine my pleasure to find that beds of wild flowers had arrived in this formal setting.





From the gardens steps lead down to the beach

and a walkway beneath the cliffs that takes you into town.
My photo for Friday Skywatch.
The sandstone is soft and has been eroded by wind and waves so that the names and dates carved into the cliff now look like something from antiquity!





The weather in town was rather English summer (dull and damp)
so we went undercover in the small library with its friendly staff. The information there gave us a good idea what to look out for about town.


First of all we went to the church beside the museum to look at the window given by Queen Victoria in memory of her father.

Then to see the house where the royal family were staying when the king became ill.




The Union Jack was flying.

I've just received the following email from my cousin Ralph.
"Tut tut Cuz, it's the Union Flag unless being flown on the jackstaff of a grey funnel liner,i.e. one of Her majesty's RN ships, when at anchor or tied alongside.
Pickey, pickey. That's family for you!

So, the Union Flag was flying!

There were architectural delights to discover all about the town.


But you can see how grey the sky was, no wonder that the deckchairs were still stacked.

There was quite a display of hanging baskets along the seafront
and stiff competition from small cottage gardens.
We stayed in a fairly new addition to a traditional old hotel. The design, I noted in this magazine, is described as 'New England'!

It was a good place to flop after time spent exploring.

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside.

18 comments:

  1. What charming place to visit, I do love the beach myself.

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    1. They say of Sidmouth that it's the place where old folks go to die - and then they don't! 'Charming' is just the right word for it, Doc.

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  2. What a beautiful place, I love the views of the coastline and water. And the flowers are lovely. Great post, have a happy weekend!

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    1. Thank you, Eileen, the weekend has been good.

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  3. Lovely pics and place, Cher. What red rock too. That portrait of Vicky is in the Dulwich gallery I think.

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    1. The red rock is the rather delightfully named 'otter' sandstone, 245-235 million years old!
      We had intended going to the Dulwich when we were in London to see the Ravilious exhibition but never made it.

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  4. It looks like a wonderful trip with lovely sights to see and explore.

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  5. Lovely post.
    The views of the water, steps to the beach and flowers.
    I would have sat right down at the beach and just looked through all the rocks finding the special ones.

    cheers, parsnip

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    1. I'm taking you to another beach soon, Parsnip - just wait 'tip you see the pebbles on it!

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  6. Never mind the weather, a stay at the coast is always beautiful and a soul refresher :o). Love your photos and would love to get the next flight back to UK. Have a great weekend, Alex

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    1. I didn't go in the sea but swam in the hotel outdoor pool before breakfast.They unlocked the gate for me. The other guests probably thought that I was nuts.

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  7. That looks amazing! Adding that to the list...

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    1. Doc has the right word for Sidmouth, it is charming, an unspoilt, old-fashioned, very English seaside town.

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  8. I live in Japan. Last year, I visited south west England. We stayed in Torquay and St. Ives. Your photos remind me the beautiful landscape and houses of Devon and Cornwall.

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    1. I'm glad to be reviving good memories of your holiday with my photos, Poirot. As you know from my earlier posts I am a great fan of St Ives.

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  9. A beautiful post! I like the transition from the floral gardens to the beach beach landscape shots! That buried rowboat is intriguing!

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  10. Glad you enjoyed the trip to Sidmouth, it's very far removed from your amazing desert!

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