And so the three day weekend arrives and the question is, what to do? Well, it seems that as Jools did some shopping on Thursday, we don't need much as we are going to eat simply over the weekend, just pasta salad and fried aubergine. So, what then?
I remembered that there was a rail tour running, just a Javelin running on some lines it don't normally use, but still, something different and it seemed ages since I went train chasing. So, at little after nine we were heading out to Minster so I could snap it trundling round the sharp chord from Sandwich to Canterbury lines. As we headed through Deal, we realised that we were hungry, so were on the lookout for greasy spoons, but they all seemed to be closed for the weekend, so at Richborough we stopped at Subway for breakfast. Breakfast was little different from eating there at other times, but grilled sausage sub with extra pickles and onions and ranch dressing hit the spot I have to say. So wet up for a while, we drove on to Minster station.
I tried a few different angles, but decided on the platform opposite where the chord joined the main line. As I thought maybe a different lens, I heard the screeching of train wheels on check rails, so raised my camera to see it coming round the bend, slowly. Inside the train was full and people has huge smiles on their faces. Call me crazy, but eight hours on a train going round and round Kent might get a little tiring after a while. But hey.
We headed over to the butchers in Preston before returning home where it seemed to be lunchtime, so better prepare something. Something turned out to be cheese and crackers followed by a huge bowl of fresh raspberries from the back garden. Lovely, I mean really, really good. Nothing tastes better.
After lunch we headed down into Folkestone to check on the demolition of the coastguard tower beside the Harbour Railway station, which is the start, I guess, of the redevelopment of the area. So, imagine our surprise when we found that Tram Street is now two way rather than the one way it has been for decades, but we did get down without indecent. We found a place to park outside the Grand Burstin, and after grabbing the camera we headed to snap the demolition and what is left of the line that carried hundreds of thousands of soldiers to war and their deaths 100 years ago. It is grim seeing the station in such a state of decay, but now the tunnel has been going for 20 years, it really is not needed any more.
The whole harbour area was full of people, which is good, and maybe gives hope that the area might recover. But then wouldn't a preserved railway running down the branch be a fine centrepiece? Maybe.
We drove back out the town, up through Hawkinge and onto Lydden across the A2 to Shepherdswell so to be in time to snap the raitour as it came out of Lydden tunnel. Now, I should point out that for the previous hour, a rather important game was taking place, the first game between City and Ipswich for some 30 months. I was concerned that we might not be ready for such a hostile map so early in the season, and so decided to head out and avoid the game on the radio. But after an hour of play, I could stand it no longer, and switched oon the radio, only for the BBC fail to mention it for about ten minutes. I was going mad by this point, but when the update came, we were leading 1-0 and in command. And despite a late Town rally, we held on, and so beat them yet again.
I got the shot as the train came out of the tunnel, and that was that. We headed home for coffee and for me to listen to more football and edit shots. The new computer is pretty much set up now and so editing shots is a doddle. And a pleasure rather than torture as it was with the old laptop.
At six we cooked the aubergine, and tucked into a wonderfully fresh summery meal, with a nice pint of ale to wash it down with. Yum.
That night we sat in the dark watching a young fox eating the badger food in the front garden. Simple but wonderful.
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