Back to Where We Once Belonged

We spent almost two decades living right by the sea - just a couple of hundred yards from where I took this photograph.

On our last visit,  it was wintery and almost deserted.   Perfect!

   

During the summer months there are plenty of  attractions for all the visitors and holiday-makers.     Sandy beaches, donkey rides, paddling pools, a boating lake, bingo and  'penny' arcades (my boys loved those!), big stretches of sand dunes, the long promenade...

Over the years we have walked our various and assorted dogs (Trixie, Kim, Pip and Toby 1)  for miles along the prom,   paddled in the icy seas, collected seashells  to decorate the countless and increasingly complex sandcastles and fortifications built by our children, wolfed down sandy sandwiches and eaten many ice cream cornets, always reserving the 'flea's cornet' for the dog.   We watched kite flying competitions on suitably breezy days, shivered in our jackets as we watched the firework displays and bonfire on the beach, and enjoyed the annual carnival parades.   

When we lived there the best fish and chip shop in town was tucked away down a side street, well away from the prom and all the tourist bits.

Like so many things, that has changed.

The old pier is now a highly regarded fish and chip restaurant.    Eat in, or eat out.      We decided to treat ourselves to some today, and they certainly passed muster.     Crispy batter and perfectly fresh, tasty fish, proper chips - £4.25 for a medium portion.

A very nice treat.   The only trouble is that neither of us could finish our meal, the portions were ridiculously large.    We took the leftovers home for the cats and Toby, the birds did pretty well from them, too.    Next time we'll one portion between us, if we go again.    I hate waste.

This photograph was taken in the late 1950's.   My mother and I are in the middle, my older brother is on the far right, the other people were neighbours.      We had travelled by train for a day at the seaside,   not many people had cars back then.


It is the seaside town of Cleethorpes.   





The Greenwich meridian line runs through here,  with a helpful signpost which tells us:

London is 143 miles.
North Pole 2,517 miles
South Pole 9,919 miles
New York 3,481 miles

Back in 1830 there were about 480 residents, and it was becoming known as a health and holiday resort, with bracing air and good sea bathing.       These days the population is in the region of 30,000.     

We used to live in the old part of town, the avenue led straight down to the beach

and this is our old house.       It was a wonderful place, full of character,  with spacious rooms and a really friendly atmosphere.     We had it for almost two decades.   Our children did much of their growing up in that house.     

The biggest problem was the roof, every time there was a gale I feared for the tiles.   We had the highest roof in the street, the wind would come rushing up from the shore and our roof was what it crashed into first, it gave me many sleepless nights.

We had to make several insurance claims over the years.

Of course the day came when a big house was no longer needed.      Two of our brood had flown the nest and the third was away at university.   

That is the longest period of time that I have spent in one place.

Happy memories. 

It was an enjoyable visit but it was good to get home.




Today I am linking in with Good Fences from around the World where you can find links to plenty of  other fences.