I thought you might enjoy the rest of the pictures of my Whitstable visit from a couple of years ago. If you are British and haven't been to this charming old fishing village and trendy village, then go by all means. My London friends had lived in different areas of London for years running varying businesses. Their last neighborhood in London was Crystal Palace, a very ethnic and interesting area with a wonderful view of London from above. Their last business was Lady's Cabs started not only as a business but for humanitarian reasons. Women in London were being taken advantage of by unlicensed cabbies. So Sue Hutchinson started a company with all women drivers for women and the disabled. Long before I met Sue I had heard about ladies Cabs on the American radio show NPR. My friend Jen went in with her to run the business which they did for years.
They decided to leave London and head for the coast and found this delightful little cottage directly on the sea in Whitstable. It is terribly charming and relaxing little house. Sitting out looking at sunset and sunrises is so thrilling.
Whitstable is an immensely charming town with its Fishing village history, fresh seafood markets and restaurants and its old world persona. There are trendy shops all about, pubs, and little tea shops to dive in for a hot cuppa. The seashore and nature are the driving force...the unparalleled beauty and expanse of view. My friends told me it is one of the few places in the world where you can watch the sun rise and set in one expanse.
I have grown up on the seashore here in Florida on the Western part of Florida by the Gulf waters. So I am not unfamiliar with beaches, tides and sea life, but I was unprepared for how different it would be. The rocks and pebbles where I am used to fine white sand, the roar the ocean can have while I am used to calmer Gulf waters, the call of our gulls are not as loud or as insistent, the breeze can be chilling while ours is humid and tropical, the tidal pools teaming with sea life was unlike any I had seen with plant life dependent on cooler waters and even the pattern of the tides seemed different....It was December and the days were overcast, but I loved the softness and grey brown tones in the grasses next to the sea and the lone boat waiting for its next adventurer.
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| Boat only seems as if in waiting for its master of the sea |
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| Eddys dividing like Castle walls |
My friends house sits right across from the seashore and my bedroom looked out on the sea. I could look out at the eddys and long cast winter shadows from my room. But the walks with Freddie, the King Charles, Sue and Jenny were the best memories.
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| Algae in rich greens |
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| Late afternoon sun glistening upon the seashore |
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| Long Winter Shadows reaching down to the Sea |
Even the way the tide receded left different patterns in the sand than our Florida beaches. How would one have even imagined that. Look at the luscious still lives of sea weed and shore life. The long winter light paints sharp contrasts.
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| Charming Sea Side Cottage |
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| Lichen |
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| Quaint Beach Side Cottage with Picket Fence |
The images are so rich in my mind I can hardly wait for another visit and walk about Whitstable with my camera recorded a visual journal that I can draw on later for creativity. I love to look back and see what I have missed, it is amazing when you go back and look at photo's what was happening around you that you missed in the moment. Doing art is as much about living life and the doing of the art..if you do not fill your reservoir of experiences you have nothing to draw from when you sit down to create. Thank you Julia Cameron of the Artist's Way for helping me understand that. An artists date with yourself in an important partner in your creations! Go our and fill those reservoirs of you life!
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