Dorset Holiday - Corfe to Swanage

[Horus]

Well I imagine that by now you are all getting a bit fed up with looking at my holiday snaps and although we visited a few more places that were of interest to us, I will finish up with this one.

I mentioned that we also went on the steam train from Norden which is near to Corfe Castle into the lovely seaside resort town of Swanage, but as Grandad is also visiting that part of the world shortly I will keep my images and descriptions to a minimum so that he will have something to report on when he gets back again, so to summarise:

Norden is the inland starting point for the train journey into Swanage.


You may stop off at several stops en-route, one being the village of Corfe with its magnificent castle.
Corfe Castle from the train


We intended to travel both ways on the steam train, but because of time restraints we went to Swanage on the steam loco and returned on the diesel engine
Annie travels very well and loved the train journey


Swanage itself is a lovely ‘old fashioned’ seaside resort with very little of the brashness seen in other UK resorts. It has a lovely beach area with lots of typical beach huts that seen so popular in the South of England.


It also has a recently reconstructed pier much of it paid for by public subscription (as may be seen by the brass plaques on the timber walkway) it is a lovely place for a stroll and to date completely uncluttered with amusement arcades or other modern distractions.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Lovely lovely lovely H! Lovely seaside town that does seem to have quite a relaxed atmosphere from your photos.

Quite a BLING collar little Annie has! Name 'n all!

And - in the second photo on a sign there is a menu: hot pasties, hot soup, cream tea, hot chocolate - What is "Cream tea?" please? Are they meaning tea you can put milk or cream into? or ?

And - this is an aside, but kinda related as you're dining & drinking on your trip - are all the restaurants you're going to featuring soy? As in soy milk or coconut milk or almond milk? Lately and finding it more and more in all our coffee shop type places here you get your tea or coffee and then can add: Skim milk, 2% milk, whole milk, cream, soy milk, coconut milk, almond milk (not quite a popular) but the MILK section on the counter overflows lately with choices of what you're going to put into your drink. Same there?

[Horus]

Ah yes the 'bling' collar, it was bought for her by my daughter, so now I always have to buy new collars that will take the name letters on it and I always buy red ones (that's a compromise from my daughter wanting her to have a 'Pink' one, er )

Regarding the 'Cream Teas' that is just another quaint English custom of sitting down in the afternoon and partaking in a freshly made scone, either fruit or plain, cut in half and each half buttered, add a good spoonfull of Strawberry jam spread on top, (I think that Americans and Canadians also use the same word 'jam' for a sweet fruit preserve, or you may call it Jelly) then the whole thing is topped off with a really big dollop of thick fresh cream (not whipped). The whole thing is washed down with a nice cup of tea which should be made with milk and never cream, cream is only used in coffee. Our milk comes in various choices of 'Full Cream' 'Semi Skimmed' & 'Fully Skimmed' the later having all of the cream removed, all of our milk is either pasturised or sterilised with fresh milk from a cow being a rarity. Other types are available such as Soy or Almond, but you would not likely find them in a typical cafe that sold Cream Teas.

[Jayway]

Swanage looks like a step back in time ,, I would love to go sit in a deckchair on the beach - - - wow! As for cream teas, one of my favourite things, the best one I found was in a tiny tearoom in a village called Nunney, so long ago but never forgotten. What a lovely day you had, I am quite envious - -

[Horus]

Thanks Jay, I have more pictures, but left that side to Grandad when he visits there later.

By a strange coincidence I baked fresh fruit scones on Sunday and we had them with Jam & clotted cream while sitting out in the garden

[Mad Dilys]

Better explain clotted cream Horus! When I had 4 Jersey cows it was a favourite of mine.

Just teasing LLL

[Grandad]

No excuses now then, I am committed, when we get there and IF we do the train. If not you can add a bit to your latest account. Swanage does look like a typically old fashioned English sea side town, probably a bit like Whitstable just a few miles from where we live.

I like your latest shortened report Horus leaving me an opportunity to add to it when we get to Dorset.

Don't know what a cream tea is LLL? Horus has enlightened you but they really are weightwatchers naughty indulgence.

[Horus]

Oooh MD, Clotted Cream from Jersey cows, all thick and yellow

[LovelyLadyLux]

Ohhhhhhh ok - we definitely have scones, jam (usually strawberry) with HUGE globs of cream but they're known here (Canada and don't think I ever saw this in the USA) as scones, jam + cream! I hadn't heard of them as Cream Teas. I personally love them.

By the by - getting a good cup of tea in the USA can be something of a challenge. They just do not make POTS of tea and hardly even make tea. COFFEE is the drink there. I hated getting tea in silly little glass jar thingys with white paper tops that you burn your fingers on trying to pour. UGH. Even at Starbucks they'll put two HUGE tea bags into your cuppa and tie them to the cup so that your tea turns to tar before you can fish the tea bags out and I do think tea is best made with boiling water being poured onto the tea bags but some of this super pressurized scalding hot (as in more than boiling hot) water is just a tad over the top.

I remember, as a kid, us getting our fresh milk delivered (and delivered could have been from my Grandfather's dairy farm) in bottles that had a pinched in neck that allowed the cream to rise to the top. We then had a special spoon that you put into the bottle that allowed you to pour the cream off and not re-mix with the milk below. Mostly my Grandfather put the spoon into the bottle and he'd drink the cream off the top........(can't say I liked fresh cream enough to drink that) AND as we had goats I drank only goats milk (was not at all partial to cows milk as a kid).

I don't believe any farmers can sell "fresh" milk or, I should say "raw" milk here at all now. I do believe there are laws prohibiting the sale. All milk is to be pasteurized.

[Kiya]

Nice pictures of Swanage it does look quaint & Annie looks a real dazzler with her bling

[Horus]

Thanks Kiya
And LLL, just to clarify, it is the consumption of the scones, jam and cream served WITH a cup of tea that is known as a 'Cream Tea' and not just the scones themselves.

[Grandad]

No excuses now then, I am committed, when we get there and IF we do the train. If not you can add a bit to your latest account. Swanage does look like a typically old fashioned English sea side town, probably a bit like Whitstable just a few miles from where we live.

I particularly enjoyed the train mainly for its convincing 'step back in time' feeling. Swanage was very dull when we got there so if you have more pictures from your sunny day Horus, we would all like to see them I'm sure.

[Horus]

I will sort a few more out Grandad

[Grandad]

A few phone calls have been going around my family this evening about all meeting up on Sunday at Minnis Bay not far along the coast from Margate.

I was reminded of your comment earlier in this thread Horus "It has a lovely beach area with lots of typical beach huts that seen so popular in the South of England." and we will be gathering as a whole family at my sons beach hut which he rents each summer from the council. He has the end one so we have the benefit of extra space and it seemed appropriate to mention this following your reference to South Coast beach huts.

This was an earlier year gathering. With complicated work schedules it is a rare event for all the family to be not working on a same Sunday.

[Mad Dilys]

Oh, I'd forgotten beach huts!

The highlight of our holiday each year in the Isle of Wight was the beach hut at Gurnard near Cowes. It was quite roomy, had glazed double doors, a small veranda, a table with a gas ring and plenty of rom for us all when it rained.

[Mad Dilys]

I just Googled Beach huts and this came up - a bog standard beach hut (shed) on the remainder of a 99 year lease for........... £55,000.

Has the world gone mad?

[Horus]

It does seem to be a Southern thing, not something we see much of up here, a bit like having a day out in a shed, but seriously I suppose it gives you somewhere to go to on a nice day.

Here are a couple of shots I took of the beach huts in Swanage, some of them look very nice and a bit 'up-market'

[Grandad]

I think beach huts are more a south coast thing Horus but they will also be found in East Anglia. I don't think I would like those with the road in front, but they DO look like privately owned huts. It is true the council huts are just 8 x 6 garden sheds but people, like my son, fit them out and they can be a haven on a nice day or for an hour or so even when the weather is inclement. Wrap up, cup of tea, watch the sea and the seagulls.

Here are some of those at Tankerton between Whitstable and Herne Bay. These are privately owned and probably like those described by MD on the Isle of Wight with balconies etc. I think the nice thing about them is that they are away from any seaside amusements or roudiness and are really great fun.

[Mad Dilys]

The ones on the left of Horus's photo are very similar with the glazed doors to the those that used to be in Gurnard, with the exception of the little veranda, which was like Grandad's picture.

I Googled Gurnard and found a website with the current huts. The are basically small sheds now, now doubt the council gets more rent that way, but sadly there would be no chance of a family of four or more taking shelter in comfort these days.

I have enjoyed reminiscing and have put "Beach huts" on the list for the memoir I'm writing for my Grandson. In store I have a lot of family photos that I can illustrate it with, some with my Uncles, Aunts and cousins all in front of our hut. I intend to be busy over the winter and when, Inshallah, I get my other new knee next year!

[Horus]

Grandad, I did notice that the road in front of the beach huts in Swanage seemed to be very quiet, there was even a table and chairs IN the road at one place, so maybe the road is closed off at this point, but not really sure, anyway lets hope the weather stays nice for you all on Sunday, have a nice day out