Sweetbriar Dreams

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Saturday 31 May 2014

Singing Cockles and Mussels Alive Alive Oh

For those of you lovely people that have been reading my blog for a while, you will know I am not the biggest fan of Summer.  Give me Autumn and Winter any day, however the incessant rain and dreariness on days out and about has even made me a little down in the dumps.  The jousting from last Monday was marred a little with the dark clouds ever looming above our heads (however, on the positive side it did add to the atmosphere around the dark knight!).  So, with the promise of a DRY day and a happy Friday off, we all packed up the car and went for a drive to the seaside... Hunstanton (also lovingly known as Sunny Hunny).  The sun was a little shy to make an appearance but I couldn't resist and capture the bold colours against the bluey steel sky and sea.
Hunstanton took such an awful beating from the winter storms this year and this shows with the famous candy striped cliffs.
However, it was lovely to see that they had dusted themselves off and have made sure that the visitors to the town were not disappointed.  There were obvious signs to warn people not to be too close to the cliff edge and the prominent cracks in the rocks made this quite easy to understand.
But, the birds are still nesting, so all is safe for now.
The tide was going out so no waves going over the breakers.
And this boat was keeping dry today.
The clouds were dotted above us, sometimes clearing to show off this beautiful old seaside town.
And then, occasionally, the cloud bank would bubble up and cast dark shadows.
The eclectic mix of dress on the crowds of people made me smile.  Believe me, it was not warm when the sun went behind the clouds and the wind was quite chilly, but there were strapless dresses, shorts, winter coats, waterproofs - you name it, it was being worn (or not).
Can you spot her?... Mumsy?  The left of the above photo with her stripy crochet bag.  She is showing just how windy it was!  

But let's see what we can see...
With the wind blowing across the North Sea/The Wash, kite flying was a must and this little girl was giggling while her kite danced and swayed above her head.
There's nothing like a paddle in the sea, or even a little sit down, although a tad chilly.
And how about this commute to work?  The tyres on the bike certainly meant business!
I love taking shots like this one where I imagine what they are doing.  Is he building a moat? Is he looking for buried treasure?  I decided that he must be digging for some sort of shell fish, a chef perhaps catching something for the menu that evening.
Mr Teen was thrilled to bits to find this little treasure.  
Unfortunately there wasn't a pearl inside, but I loved the different layers and textures of this oyster shell.  Some layers took on the texture of snake skin and with the different creatures that were making their home within the layers, it was fascinating to look at.  A true treasure.
So that was the cockles oyster and now for the mussels...
Memories of last Monday's paella are filling my mind!  But then the droning noise of a heavy vehicle filled the air and Whizzy pulled up her bow to set off down the beach.  Both Whizzy and Wiley, The Wash Monsters are amphibian vehicles (I have put some details on these here).  Wiley was used as a landing craft for the troops during the Vietnam War.
As they paired up to take some people to see the seals, it was great to see them working so well after all these years, both on land...
 and at sea...
At our feet though was a the biggest surprise...
This little lady had decided to rest amongst the dry sea weed while all this was going around her.

But, it was time to hit the 2p machines in the arcades.  I took this picture shaking, sweating and extremely elated!
I had just spent a stupid amount of money in 2p's to inundate this machine to get a favourite of mine.  I had pleaded with the owner of the arcade to let me just buy it, but no, he smiled at me knowing I would spend far more in getting more 2p's.  Luckily another £2 later, I won it (if you can call it winning after spending too much!).  Here she is... Molly!
One day I will own the real thing but until then Molly is going to come along with Mumsy and me on any little trips out and about.  Stop giggling!

And so, it was time to head off home and leave the seaweed behind.
And Hubby, no you can't bring that the rock back home!
I hope the sun is shining for you, always remember to bring something warm and waterproof with you though.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Take care.


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31 comments:

  1. Oh I remember those 2p arcades. Except in my day it was 1p and you didn't win anything nearly as nice!

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  2. I've never won anything on those machine either. Lovely photos and description of you r day out, I love posts like these, I almost feel like I have been there with you!

    Linda xx

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  3. I love Hunstanton and it looked a lot sunnier than Staffordshire on Friday.
    Jacquie x

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  4. Another lovely day out with the family! Those cliffs are beautiful but do look dangerous. Such a variety of sights to see! I love the little VW van you won....or should I say paid too much for. LOL! It is adorable...:) Have a wonderful weekend.

    Hugs, Vicky

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  5. What a fun beach trip! I love the beach in any weather as long as I'm dressed appropriately. I'd be the one in a sweater and windbreaker on this particular day there. I love your VW bus Molly. It is pretty cute even if you had to pay too much to get it! Those rocky cliffs sure are fascinating and could be quite dangerous. Thanks for the beach trip! We're in a lovely stretch of weather right now, finally, so I hope you get yours back soon. Hugs. Pamela

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  6. We're off to N.Norfolk today - hurray! Thanks for the photos - I can't believe all the blue skies after all the greyness we have had. I am looking forward to our break even more now

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  7. Wonderful photos, you've captured the essence of the seaside beautifully. Glad you had such a lovely time. CJ xx

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  8. My goodness what truly pretty place, I would love to spend a holiday there. What a great group of photos.

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  9. I love the way you describe your trip Chel...And of course you had to spend £2 to win the lovely Molly :-)
    Tracey xxx

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  10. Good to know that you achieved your hearts desire.

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  11. A great beach adventure. I like summer except when it is hot and humid. Humidity does nasty things to curly hair. Not to mention my disposition.

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  12. Hello Chel, looks like the family had a lovely time at the beach.. beautiful series of photos..I love the beach and the cliffs. Thanks for sharing your trip. Have a happy day!

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  13. Brilliant photos. Thanks for sharing your day out, x

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  14. Dear Chel
    I love Hunstanton - it is almost a second home. We always went there for family holidays as my great aunt had a house on Victoria Avenue which members of the family could stay in (although you were never quite sure what state it would be in when you arrived!). It was the house Rebecca West stayed in to have HG Wells' son and now has a blue plaque! Hunstanton is the perfect place for a holiday by the sea and eating fish ad chips on the green while watching the sun set is an abiding memory (and the funfair, of course!)
    Thank you for sharing your trip.
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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  15. And still people sit under those cliffs! The guy is probably digging for lugworms for fishing bait.lovely photos of a favourite place.

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  16. You make wonderful pictures! Thank you for visiting my blog and become a follower...
    So nice to get to know new people, isn't it :-)!
    See you, love from Mirjam.

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  17. Unfortunately, I suspect it'll take a LOT of 2 pences to be able to buy the real version of Molly! The wee version is very cool! :o)

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  18. I love the little version, are we going to be seeing more shots with it featured? Seaside, travels, touring...

    Lots of happy people at your beach, and it's so good to see those far horizons, I really miss that.

    Jen

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  19. What a fun visit for a day by the sea! So many things going on and I can feel the blustery sea air and taste the salt on my lips! I'm not much of a summer fan either, though I enjoy the summer break with no work and can let my days slide lazily along doing all the things I love! It's the heat which gets to me in the end though!
    Yes, I really loved my stay in London! It's such a marvellous place to be! I wish I lived closer, but I always need a plane to get there and then stay in a hotel... no family left there now.

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  20. Your description of what people were wearing had me smiling, you do tend to see outfits for every season at a seaside resort. I'd still have my 'cardi' on!
    Glad you managed to get Molly.

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  21. What an enjoyable post filled with so many wonderful and interesting things. I loved it all.

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  22. Wow Chel, what a lovely day you had with your family at the beach! It looks like it was so much fun. I loved all those wonderful photos you took of everything. I know you don't like the beach but after this post I really miss it and looking forward to summer. Thanks and have a nice week. P.S. Molly is adorable!
    Julie

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  23. Wow, what a great day out!!! It looks like a lovely place and as though the weather was great for you. Molly is delightful and I can quite see why you wanted her so much, I hope that she loves your days out! It is so funny looking at the different things that people are wearing on days out, I often notice people in shorts and t-shirt and sandals walking with someone in a coat, hat and scarf. We all have different thermostats I know, but it does make me chuckle. Here's hoping for lots more dry and sunny days. xx

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  24. Thank you for finding me and becoming my latest follower and introducing me to your lovely blog. I enjoyed joining in on your day out at the sea too ,and your observations of watching what others were doing! Love Molly too! Sarah x

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  25. I enjoy all your getaways thank you for the amazing photos. Nice of you to take mumsy on your outings what fun to be with you. Enjoy all your time together.

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  26. Hunstanton looks like a wonderful old seaside place and I've loved my virtual visit. I adore the Penny Falls games and my Mum and I used to save up our 'wages' aka spare 2p's for when we went through to Portobello for a day trip-simple pleasures. Molly is great and I think that is lovely to have her as your mascot but I am with hubby on refusing you the souvenir 'pebble' you were planning on bringing home.

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  27. Thanks for the tour. Congrats on Molly. My husband also cannot resist those machines. It was a lovely day at the beach. Thanks for sharing.

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  28. Forget a big Molly (when you get her!!) You will need a coach as I think we will all want to come with you!!! There is still a couple of 2p machines at Lyme Regis!! Have been so lucky lately, managed to visit dear (as in lovely, not expensive!)Dorset and had an unexpected jaunt up to London!!!! Yay-hey!!!!

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  29. Great post, Chel. The missus and I are suckers for those 2p cascade machines too! I wish you and Molly many happy journeys. Very impressed with your photo of the oyster shell.

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  30. I love your Molly VW! I'm so glad you won it and it's always worth it to get something you love. The vehicles that go out to sea are amazing! I've never seen anything like it. Love seeing everyone on the shore....looks like such fun! Enjoy your week my friend! Hugs, Diane

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  31. lovely set of photos, I've never been to Hunstanton, didn't know they had those vehicles there, hubbie would like them haha! We have those 2p machines in our arcades too, they are so addictive!

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