During last week we went down to the sea every day. Sometimes we stayed local, sometimes ventured further afield. Sometimes it would be early morning for breakfast (as in these photos) sometimes for lunch, or an afternoon stroll, sometimes evenings.
We watched the sea and the sky in all weathers, from the brightest of sunny days through to the darkest of rain of storms. Rain or shine, morning, noon or night, crowded or deserted, beach, harbour, pier, promenade and cliff I just love love loved being by the sea.
These first pictures were taken earlyish (9.30am or so) on Easter Monday, and as you can see the weather was absolutely glorious. The intense blue of the sky was magical.
It was actually quite hard to photograph the seascape on this morning because the light was so bright and intense as it reflected off the water. We strolled the promenade, sat on West Beach and drank it in.
We were there for breakfast on this morning. Can you see in the above photo look, across the harbour is a row of "Snack Shacks"? That's breakfast calling. Shall we walk round the harbour and go see what's on offer?
There is hot competition at this side of the harbour. Oooooo, shall we go to JB's, Mungo's or the Snack Shack? Which one?
J chooses by scrutinising the various menus and I choose by the colour of the painted wooden tables. Snack Shack it is then because the tables happen to be the exact colour of the sky.
We order bacon and egg rolls and cappuccinos for the Big People. Icecream for the Little People, which they thoroughly approve of. Not every day you get to eat icecream for breakfast, hot on the heels of chocolate easter eggs.
Our breakfast, with the above view was completely scrumptious.
A stroll round the harbour and as always I find myself going off on a giddy little spin all of my own. I get such childish pleasure from harbours and boats, they never fail to make me feel like squealing and hopping with pure excitement, which I quite often do.
My children have come to think this is quite a normal way to behave, they don't bat an eyelid. They even make suggestions as to which boats will be the best for photographs.
Look Mum :: orange buoys against the blue of that boat!
Oooo yes!! Squeeeeeal hoppity hop, camera-click-click, ahhhhhh!!!
My husband tolerates me in this mood, but doesn't get it really. He rolls his eyes a little, becomes slightly impatient with the halting exclaiming progress. Obviously he doesn't experience colour in the same enormous way that I do. I mean just look!! Look at the colour of that boat there above, Isn't that blue just the most perfect boaty bluey-blue?? Doesn't it make you want to go oooooeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee and hop with pleasure?????!!!!! :o)
I find it all so beautiful, exhilarating, heart-expanding. Even though I've walked round this harbour a gazillion times since I was a small child, it still never fails to thrill me.
Beautiful.
It's all so perfectly beautiful.
We are around the harbour now to the other side, and this is East beach, with East cliff towering vertically in the background. East beach is an unpredictable, ever shifting bank of shingle. Some years it's almost flat. This year there is this huge mound to negotiate up and down. The Little People are expert mound-negotiators. Roly-polies are the way to go here. Endless satisfaction and amusement. I squash the urge to try it myself.
Crocs are abandoned and bare toes are out for a wiggle.
This cute row of houses sits at the back of the beach. I have always loved them, even as a child I always wanted to live in The Pink House.
And another fabulous house of childhood fantasies. Can you see the whale on the weather vane?
We have moved on now....these photos were taken last Tuesday, on a rather more cloudy, grey day. This is the East Dorset coast, at Durdle Door. When you arrive at Durdle Door, the car park is located high up on the cliff top and in order to see the Durdle Door itself you need to walk. Down, down, down you go along the descending cliff path, with stunning views of the cove below.
The colour of the sea here is magical, even on a grey cloudy day such as this one.
And eventually you come down low enough to see The Door, in all it's geographical splendour. You then need to decide whether to turn round and huff and puff back up the cliff, or whether to descend even further to one of the two little curved beaches either side of the arch. You really do want to go to the beach, but you know that aaaaaaallllllll those steps that you walk down to get to the beach will eventually have to be walked back up again. You put it to the vote. Three against one in favour of the beach :: hooorrraaahhhh, and down we go!
A very pebbly beach. Chocolate for energy. Building stone towers to make targets for throwing competitions. Enjoy the moment, then eventually prepare for the inevitable climb back up the million and one steps. Was worth it though, wasn't it? Yeah, definitely worth it.
Ajoining Durdle Door is the small village of Lulworth, with its popular curved cove and beach.
Its extremely, impossibly pretty but extremely impossibly crowded here. It's hard to photograph because people are everywhere, and I have an issue about having strangers invade my photographs, I don't like it one little bit. So no pretty pictures of cute thatched cottages, winding lanes, dinky shops or picturesque beach scenes, sorry.
But there is this fabulous bucket tree to show you.
And these delightful windmills.
Quite a lot of hoppity squealing over brightly coloured buckets and windmills I might add.
Ahhhh Seaside Days, I just adore them with all my heart.
I've got one more Holiday Story for you tomorrow.
See you then
xxx
I had nearly forgotten that the UK is an island nation with tons of coastline, until reading your blog and others from there- it is TRULY magnificent and I hope to see it for myself some day! Thank you for sharing. There is just nothing like blue spring sky after a long winter!
Posted by: Alpacalindy | April 24, 2009 at 02:58 AM
I think that it is absolutely endearing that you decided on the "Snack Shack" because of the color of the tables! ...and I could just die and be buried under that BUCKET TREE and STILL be HAPPY !!!!!! I don't think that I will ever recover from THAT photograph ! I also have a pretty good idea WHERE the three votes came from to continue on down the stair path to the sea !:) GREAT choice !!! Thanks for sharing again ! See you tomorrow !:)
Posted by: Vintageheart | April 24, 2009 at 02:56 AM
Love the photos of the shingle beach--one of my pleasantest memories of Brighton was a sunny day there when I had cramps and got to sit on the hot rocks for an hour or so..bliss at a tough time of month!! Karen
Posted by: Karen Greenfield | April 24, 2009 at 01:44 AM
Oh Lucy, i would dearly love to live there...I love the ocean, it would be so nice to have a little cottage by the ocean and see all the boats going by..
So glad you all had a lovely time..
Posted by: lulu | April 23, 2009 at 11:53 PM
Dear Lucy, thank you for sharing such lovely photos. I really felt i had been there too :)
Posted by: Tatiana | April 23, 2009 at 11:35 PM
Just want to say how much I am loving your blog (I'm a newbie - only discovered you a few weeks ago).
Your holiday pics are just gorgeous. I'm so glad you had a wonderful holiday, but chuffed to bits that you are back and sharing a little bit of your time away with us! I just love the seaside and can't wait for our holiday. Your beautiful photos will keep me going until June when we go to the North Devon coast and get to breath in that fab sea air and lovely seaside-iness ourselves!
Posted by: Marie | April 23, 2009 at 11:28 PM
Lovely pictures, thank you for sharing!! xx
Posted by: Nicola/smilernpb | April 23, 2009 at 10:42 PM
When I was 10 I went on my first week long school trip to Poole. I can remember every bit of it and your picture of Durdle Door was a very sweet reminder.
Posted by: The Antidote | April 23, 2009 at 10:31 PM
tthanks fo sharing more of your lovley photos and memories I have walke dthose walks ad it is lovley to see them though someone else's eyes. I'll never forget the first time we saw durdle door we weren't even sure what it was when we started walking down those cliffs. The first time we didn't even venture down the steps but the next time we did and yes it was definitely worth the climb back up with all it's fab caves. thanks for evoking some great meories
Val
Posted by: valerie | April 23, 2009 at 10:21 PM
I just love love love blue skies as well - there is something magical about them and I just can't get enough blue sky.
Lovely pictures, I can't wait for our holiday early July. We haven't been away since 2005!
Posted by: Lorraine | April 23, 2009 at 10:16 PM
Hi Lucy, just thought I'd check in before I went to bed and 'oh' I am so glad I did!
Your photos are gorgeous and bring back so many memories - almost identical to our photos of the harbour, West Bay and at Durdle Door carrying a buggy 'yes' buggy up that hillside and back down again, just for the view this time three years ago!
Thanks for sharing 'part 2'
nite, nite,
Nina x
Posted by: Nina - Tabiboo | April 23, 2009 at 10:10 PM
its ages since i've been to Lulworth and Durdle Door but seeing your pics makes me want to go back - you forget how lovely a place it is - we used to park in the bottom car park and walk up the long hill and then belt down to the bottom again where there was always an ice cream van!
happy days!!!!
xx
Posted by: wonderwoman | April 23, 2009 at 10:09 PM
Hi Lucy, I am Soooooo!!! glad that you had a lovely holiday, but also totally glad you are back. I always read your blog at work(at the "Dreary Police Station")which totally brightens my day! Now that my day has been brightend, I can get on with my work in a much happier mood thanks to you.. BeBe
Posted by: BeBe | April 23, 2009 at 09:56 PM
These beautiful photos really brighten up my day...thanks for sharing.....
Love Angela
Posted by: angela | April 23, 2009 at 09:44 PM
Beautiful photos again.I really enjoyed visiting West Bay but haven't been to Durdle Door yet.It looks lovely!Love the bucket tree too! How funny.
Rachel
Posted by: Rachel | April 23, 2009 at 09:38 PM
love, love, LOVE the bucket tree!
i sent you a flickr mail(?) about a little something i wanted your help on!! i couldn't find an email link..sorry!
Posted by: bigbucketgirl | April 23, 2009 at 09:16 PM
Oh bliss... I can almost smell the sea and feel the sand under my feet.
The next best thing to being there, thank you!
Love Wend xxx
Posted by: Wendy | April 23, 2009 at 09:10 PM
How fun are all those pictures! Thanks for sharing. :) I don't blame you loving all those sights from when you were little. They are wonderful. The pink house is too cute! The whale house is pretty cool too. The girls said to tell you that the arch at the sea looks like a sea monster sticking its head in the water. Aren't their imaginations funny!
Thanks again for sharing Luce! Bright, colorful and full of joy as usual. :) Off for more comfy yarny work on sweater #2. Can't wait for tomorrow.
xxxxx
Posted by: Kar | April 23, 2009 at 09:05 PM