Pegwell Bay and Macaroons

 

Pegwell Bay stretches from Ramsgate in the north towards Sandwich in the south.  On a clear day you can just about make out the coast of France, although it's much more clearly visible from Deal.  The last time we came out here was just after the lockdown was lifted last May.  We met up with my brother and his family, played Billy 123 and picked some asparagus left after a local farmer had already harvested his crop.  It was the freshest I've ever eaten. Just look at this fabulous bunch of gleaned asparagus! What a difference a deep blue sky in May makes too.

This morning we met my brother for a walk and headed up towards the chalk cliffs headland.  My brother was telling me that In Victorian times, Pegwell Bay was famous for its potted shrimps and was even visited by the Duchess of Kent and young princess Victoria to sample them in the local tavern.

Today it is a peaceful place and is a large nature reserve of saltmarsh and bird populations.  We saw a Cormorant diving for food and some redshanks at the water's edge.  My brother often comes here to look at the birds and the rockpools as he lives close by in Ramsgate.  It was pretty cold and windy this morning but luckily the cafe was open for takeaway hot drinks.  I think it's only the second takeout drink I've had since lockdown 1. We normally bring a flask as we can’t use our keep cups during the pandemic - and also we like to save money bringing our own - but sometimes it's really welcome to have a steaming latte to drink.

I really love seeing the chalk cliffs, as although its only 20 minutes away from our beach, it's very different in its character.  Variety is greatly appreciated at the moment as our world has shrunk considerably in this last year.

My brother gifted us with the most delicious macaroons from The Modern Boulangerie in Ramsgate.  They are raspberry and filled with a mango flavoured jam. Just DIVINE!  It's worth visiting Ramsgate just to go to this boulangerie.  I had one when we were back at home with a cup of tea in my grandma's best china.  It seemed appropriate.

I'm planning a restful remainder of this Sunday, pottering about and hopefully doing some knitting.  I hope you've all had a lovely weekend too. x