Sunday 12th November 2023

With rain due to sweep across the county in the afternoon, we were out before nine, heading up to Thanet for a walk round Margate.

Margate was once of the most popular seaside resorts, but suffered more than most due to the package holiday boom in the 1970s.

Since I moved down here 15 years ago, great effort has been put into making Margate shine and become a destination again.

Old Town is a maze of alleys full of retro and craft shops, and you'd be sure to find something worth buying.

The promenade stretches for miles, and the part around the harbour is looking very nice indeed, with small bars and eateries on the harbour arm, but thanks to Government incompetence and corruption, raw sewage is being pumped into our rivers, lakes and into the sea, so much so that the area near the Turner stunk of shit, and a scum was forming on the waterline.

Up at seven, or just a little past. It was getting light and there was even a hint of sunshine. Though that wouldn't last long.

So, after coffee, we got dressed and drove out of the village to the A2, then out along to Sandwich Road to Thanet before turning west along Thanet Way.

Its been a while since we have been through Birchington, and thoughts turn to another church revisit, maybe, before turning back east towards Margate.

We found a place to park on a sidestreet, walked up past rows of closed shops, where we find a Greek café at a junction. We go on and I have Turkish coffee and a cream cheese stuffed bread baton, which was very nice indeed.

Fortified, we march down through the old town, me snapping as we went, back to the promenade and over the road to the harbour arm, where all bars and restaurants were closed.

Rain was beginning to fall, so we scampered back to the car and were on our way back to Thanet Way when the heavens opened.

We retraced our journey back home, and once parked up and inside, I made a brew and we settled down for another afternoon of watching the raindrops run down the windows.

And then there was football, the second game being Chelsea v Citeh, which ended 4-4 and could have been double that. A mad but enjoyable game.

And again, the weekend was over. All so soon.