Monday 9th April 2012

Bank Holiday Monday.

Or waiting for the rain to fall.

When I looked at the calendar at the beginning of the year and saw that Easter was the fall on the first weekend of April this year, one's mind was full of images of sunshine, daffodils and thoughts of long walks through the springlike countryside. What we got from Easter 2012 was one sunny Good Friday, a rainy Saturday, a cold, windy and foggy Easter Sunday and now torrential rain on the Monday.

*Sigh*

So, Friday morning, despite wanting nothing more than to just lay in bed and snooze, we got up early and by eight o'clock were out on the roads heading towards Tunbridge Wells. Being Good Friday, the roads were clear, and with the sun shining from a clear blue sky, it was wonderful to be out. We drove through Maidstone and headed west towards Tunbridge. We found a place to park near the centre of the town, and set of for the bright lights.



Tunbridge Wells is a fine Georgian town, which most of the intervening years have hardly touched; so it is a wonderful mix of styles from the last 400 years.

Our plan was to head to the most beautiful part of the town, The Pantiles, which used to be the market, and in Georgian times, where the great and good would parade up and down in their finery. Now it is a mix of clapperboard buildings filled with shops and eateries.



We walked towards a large building we could see down the meandering street we came out in, and found what looked like the main street running through the town and down towards the railway station and The Pantiles. On the left hand side were a collection of square 1930s buildings, all in the same style; one being the town hall, one being the police station, one being a theatre and the final one the public library. Although they look ok, the collection of grand buildings don't look at all welcoming and give the impression that the town had ideas above its station. But then it does have the prefix 'Royal' before the town's name.



Anyway, we walk down Mt Pleasant Road, past a 1930 cinema waiting to be pulled down, The Grand Hall, the railways station and a church with the grand name of The Parish Church of King Charles the Martyr, over the road to the Pantiles.

As it was now some three hours since we had our usual breakfast of cereal, we thought we might have another, and so we found a nice place with tables out on the Pantiles itself, and so sat down and ordered, then ate Eggs Benedict Royale (for me) and huge bacon butties (for Jools).



Once full we wandered around, and I bought two bags of coffee beans from a place called The Daily Grind, where a nice young man from Chicago advised us which beans we might like to buy and he suggest places we might like to visit and photograph.

I looked in the independent camera shop; I need to replace the 50mm lens I have has the motor failed when we were away in Devizes. But I baulked at the price, some £25 more than I can get it online.

We walked back over the main road to the church, to find it a hive of activity as it was being readied for the Easter service at midday. I got the shots I wanted and we made our way out before we could be invited to stay.

We walked back along the High Street towards the car, stopping off in a large park behind the Grand Hall, hoping to see some spring colour. There were daffodils and tulips, but still much was yet to bloom, but we sat for a while on a bench in the warm sunshine watching the world go by or play football on the grass in front of us.

We headed back to the car, but instead of driving directly back home, I thought we should call in at some of the churches we saw on the way up; so we stopped at three fine churches, but failed to get in any of them due to there being two Easter services going on, and in the other the doors were locked because of a recent spate of thefts. Sad but true.



Saturday, as promised dawn grey and damp and just got damper. I listened to the radio as is my want, and managed to get back onto the cross-trainer now my cold appears to be loosening it's grip. And, it being Easter, I made a fine batch of saffron buns, which as the day wore on, rose nicely in the bowl, and then once in the oven filled the air with the fine smell of yeast and saffron. There really is nothing better than a warm saffron bun out of the oven, smeared with lots of salted butter and a nice big cup of builder's tea.

In the afternoon, I tried to stay awake on the sofa whilst listening to the football; Norwich came from behind twice to draw with Everton at home, and so reach the Holy Grail of 40 points for the season, and get to be even safer from the threat of relegation.

Sunday, if anything, was worse weather-wise than Saturday, and the heavy drizzle soon turned into a swirling sea fog in the stiff breeze, and our view of the centre of the village was lost. I roasted leg of lamb for dinner, which was rather wonderful, as I had just grapefruit for breakfast after another session on the cross trainer, and by half one I was very, very hungry indeed.

The main task for the afternoon was to try to stay awake on the sofa whilst watching the football on TV; in that I was only partially successful, and missed most of the first half of the Manchester United v QPR game.