Rye, another contender for the prettiest town in England....

One conversation leads to another and you hear go to this place and see this. As we have no set plans we decide to drive to Rye a Cinque port town about an hour and a half away. There's a host of unusual shops in Rye; antiques, collectors' book and record shops and many art galleries, selling works by local artists and potters. A general market takes place by the station every Thursday.

The last part of our journey is narrow country lanes and then we land in town and every bus in the UK is here today. Also every car as we circumnavigate the the town twice to find a car park.


I visit the Antique and Art Gallery's and have a lovely time in this very old and beautiful village.
Yes it is full of people and the market area is crazy but after a short time I keep clear of it and wander the alleyways and cobble stones of Rye.

Ardingly Antique Fairs...

Our stay in the UK is partly structured around attending the Ardingly Antique Fair which is held several times a year for 2 days at a time. On the first day we are off early to beat the rush and are parked waiting for the gates to open at 9.00am in plenty of time. The weather is cool and cloudy but it doesn't really look like rain.

Avenue upon avenue of open air stalls....

And then there are the acres and acres uncover.....

We have been to Ardingly before and so thankfully know what to expect. After the first hour and a half of walking and concentrating looking for that sparkle of glass that Jenelle collects, we don't have very high hopes as it is becoming harder to find and we have no purchases yet.

At last Jenelle finds a stall that holds a lot of the special pieces that is run by people we have met and dealt with before. We purchase one special (but pricey) piece from them.

Chis and Martin's stall is Jenelle's glass nirvana...

After that we seem to hit a patch of the fair that is full of glass and several more purchases made. John is the bag carrier and it is back and forward to the car for him. After lunch he then sits out the rest of the time while Jenelle combs the lanes expectantly looking for more bargains.

It is really hard to take in the full extent of the Antiques and Bric a Brac. The beautiful furniture and china is unlimited. There is also a lot of replica antiques like this magnificent old world luggage.

Then there is the really weird and wacky stuff.

A Bison skull...

Parts of the "Harry Potter" movie set....

The are people here from all over the world. Having said that we saw very few Asian buyers or heard many American accents. One lady we spoke to while we queued for lunch said she had driven overnight from Paris to be here today.

We constantly ran into the TV cameras filming the Bargain Hunt show. The red team and blue team buy at fairs to see who can make the most profit at an Auction. We think several teams were on the go at the same time as they seemed to be everywhere. We are probably (hopefully) background people in a couple of shots.

The Bargain Hunt Red Team...

And in this corner is the Blue Team...

Jenelle walked for nearly four hours almost non-stop and felt she had covered the Fair reasonably well. That gives you an idea of the scale of the event .

We decide to come back on the second day (free entry for day 1 tickets holders) and find that there are more stalls, some remote sections we missed and more pieces put out than the first day. Also because it is pack up day for the sellers they are inclined to take a lot less than the asking price. On the second day because we were not really looking for anything in particular it is easier to admire the vast range of goods on display.

Now the fun is over and the endless wrapping in bubble wrap and packing begin. Then weighing the boxes trying to keep them under the 2kg which is reasonable postage. As soon as you go over 2kg it becomes very expensive to post. As we are continuing to travel it is impossible to carry anything extra with us and so this year the Royal Mail is making a fortune from us.

The posting is ready...

“The Chapel” Cottage in Belmont Lane...

We have told you a little about our cottage "The Chapel" but finally we have now some photos for you. After being here for over a week it is a real delight to be in the quiet English countryside. We are slowly becoming used to driving the narrow lanes. This is like home away from home.

The cottage is really a garage converted into a 2 storey one bedroom unit. The cottage is attached to a converted chapel (the owner's home).

Cottage is brick section on the left.

Downstairs is the kitchen, lounge dining;

Lounge/Dinning

Kitchen (note stable door; how English is that?)

Upstairs, in the converted loft, is the large bedroom and ensuite.

Bedroom (note the sloping walls)

Bathroom

For the first few days we both kept bumping our heads on the sloping walls/ceiling upstairs. The bedroom has dormer windows on the side and a large picture window in the gable end. The room is light and airy and the views into the garden and countryside beyond are wonderful.

The backyard

The large lawn and the mown fields beyond are inhabited by rabbits, squirrels, huge wood pigeons, magpies, foxes, woodpeckers and crows.

Bunnies in the garden; now where is that gun

Wood pigeons half the size of chooks; dinner!

Squirrel...very cute

The chapel was part of a now defunct boys boarding school called Belmont. From what we have read and from what we can see on the Internet, close by there is the large school building (presumably converted into a grand home), and other school buildings which have been subdivided and sold off also to be converted into homes. Once the weather clears we will get our walking shoes on and check out the neighbourhood.

Chichester...

Don't believe every thing you read on the internet. Today we are wandering off to have a look at 2 car boot sales advertised for Friday and then onto the city of Chichester. We make our way with Kathleen's help to Lancing. When we arrive at the advertised 9.00am the sign on the door says 9.45 to 11.15. As this is a local hall we decide to not wait around as it is too small to worry about.

Next stop Arundel which is a true quaint English town with a Norman Castle in the middle and a very grand Catholic Gothic Cathedral. We land in town without the coin needed to pay for parking and so Jenelle dashes off to buy a coffee and finds the yummiest deli she has seen for some time and dreamily makes her way back to John with a coffee and the parking coins.

We walk the streets and find it full of Antique shops but while some pieces are seen they are too damaged to purchase. A quick walk in the Cathedral as there was a service on and we are off to another car boot sale.

On arrival all signs point to the beach car park for the car boot. On the way we have a closer inspection of the signs and we find the car boot on Friday is 5pm not our timing at all. Pity the internet wasn't updated! We put our next address into Kathleen and should soon be in the centre of Chichester however we end up in a small coastal village of Selsy at a residential house. Hmmm not where we should be. Turn Kathleen off and just follow the sign to Chichester.

Chichester Cathedral

A little more success here as the Farmers Market is on in the city centre and we stock up on Olives and Local cheese. We walk to the Chichester Cathedral and they are setting up for a concert tonight. What an amazing venue. The building of the present Cathedral was begun in 1076 and consecrated in 1108. Makes you think about what these walls have seen. As we are running out of puff we decide to head home.

Chichester Market Cross

Charleston...

A seriously windy, wet and wild night. It was great snuggled up in bed all warm and safe. The cottage we are staying in is just wonderful even when the weather outside is ugly.

With a force 5 gale blowing and heavy showers sweeping in from the English Channel, the coastal city of Chichester is probably off the itinerary for today. We decide instead to take a drive in the country to visit a house called Charleston which was an artist colony for most of last century.

We had very little idea of what a treasure Charleston would turn out to be for us.


The modest two storey house, is in the country, on a farm (the smell of the dairy cows is all pervading today despite a roaring gale). The farm is part of a large estate owned by Lord Gage who rented the house (formerly a boarding house run by two spinster sisters) to the artist Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant from 1916 until Grant died in 1978.


The artists, writers and intellectuals who lived or visited Charleston become to be known as the Bloombury group. The list of notable who belonged to the group include Virginia Woolf (Vanessa's sister), TS Eliot, EM Foster, and surprisingly the economist John Maynard Keynes (one of Duncan Grant's lovers). Needless to say if only these walls could talk what incredible stories they could tell of all the art works, the intellectual discussions, and the dalliances. While intellectually and morally uninhibited the residents appear to have avoided the excesses of drugs and rich food, which may account for their longevity.

The artists also created and maintained a walled garden and pond. Not on the scale created by Monet at Giverny but big enough to provide inspiration, refuge and some extra food during the war years. Despite renting the house they painted pictures, floral designs and patterns on almost every surface; fireplaces, doors, furniture etc. Even to the point of painting over varnished furniture no surface was prepared just as they painted what they wanted to any where any time. They were free to please themselves. Four children were bought up in the house and most went onto become famous artists and potters and remember with much love the freedom they had as children living in the countryside.

We turned up at Charleston not expecting too much other than a way of filling in the morning, only to come away a few hours later with our imaginations on fire. Charleston is very modest and unpretentious but it is a must see for artists and art lovers.

Brighton...

Chichester or Brighton? The weather is predicted to turn nasty today some we plump for the more indoorsy Brighton itinerary.

We parked at the train station car park in Hassock and catch the train to Brighton, only two stops and 10 minutes away. The Brighton railway station is right in the centre of the city, and was the reason Brighton became a popular holiday destination for Londoners in the early 1800's.

Our first stop and the primary reason for our visit to Brighton is to take the tour trough the Royal Pavilion.


The Pavilion was built in the early 1800's by the Prince of Wales and soon to be George IV. It was built as a holiday home or beach house. It was a place where the Prince could escape too from London and party. And boy did he like to party. Fine food, wine, women and song.


The interior is decorated in the very distinctive Chinoiserie style. A "Chinese-esque" style as interpreted through European eyes and artistic traditions. Photo of Interior Banquesting Room

From here we head to the area close by known as the lanes. Narrow medieval lanes now occupied by jewellers, upmarket fashion stores and trend coffee shops, bars and restaurants.


There were also supposed to be an abundance of antique stores but only one (a high priced type) was sighted. Interspersed with all this fashion are several gun stores selling all manner of rifles, shotguns and hand guns. Here John is selecting his "Rabbit Gun".


We walked out onto and through the Brighton Pavilion Pier. The original Brighton Pier burnt down a while back but part of its skeleton still stands in the ocean a few hundred meters off shore. The Pier is a sort of permanent side show alley of rides, games and overpriced takeaway food and drinks.

We spend a bit more time wandering the streets of Brighton but find little else to excite us.

Home on the train to buy an Indian dinner in a brown paper bag and a bottle of Pims from Tesco. We master the art of mixing (and drinking) Pims while our dinner is heating. It may seem odd but Indian food and Pims are as quintessentially British now a days as fish and chips, and gin and tonic.
Both the Indian and the Pims were a success; cheers to another day.

Uckfield Art Trail...

Yesterday at the Ditchling Art Show we picked up a brochure advertising the Uckfield Festival Art Trail. Today finds us driving down a lot of very very narrow country lanes on our way to Uckfield. You guessed it; of all the places to meet an on coming car (thankfully only a car) was in one of the narrowest of lanes. We squeezed passed (slowly) with only inches to spare while the passenger side of car caressed the hedge on the side of the lane. Mr Hertzs won't be too happy if there was anything sharp hiding in that hedge. A later inspection revealed no obvious damage, whew!!

The day is cold, overcast and showery. Real English weather. A Cumberland sausage and coffee are necessary to fortify ourselves against the elements.

The art trail is made of 11 venues in and around Uckfield. There is a wide range of different disciplines on show but most works are paintings. The venues include an early 15th century cottage, a coffee shop, a framing factory, the local TAFE, a display home in a new housing estate and an artist's studio and gallery deep in the country (back along that infamous narrow lane).

We wile away the day moving from venue to venue. In some places we are able to chat to the artist which always make the visits much more enjoyable and rewarding.

The sky clears during the day to reveal a sunny and warm afternoon; this is becoming a bit of pattern for the days this week.

Lewes...

Today we are off to Lewes (pronounced Lewis as in Wally) for no other reason than it is there. What a discovery. We had intended just a short visit but ended up spending the best part of the day in Lewes. Antique stores that resemble a rabbit warren of Aladdin's caves. Jenelle was breathless. Another day another much sort after bowl.

Lewes is a very old town on the banks of the river Ouse. It boasts a ruined castle that hosted a historic battle in 1264 (yes 1264), the very busy Harvey's Brewery founded in 1790 and an church dating from 1320, that was founded as a chapel by Thomas-a-Becket in the 12 century.

Lewes is full of small studios of artisans and artists. Silversmiths, potters, painters, glass-blowers, musical instrument makers. One day in Lewes is nowhere near enough!

We stocked up on local cheese from a shop called Cheese Please. Being in the shop and buying cheese was an experience in itself.

On the way home on the spur of the moment we dropped into an art show in the local hall of a small village called Ditchling. The art show is put on by members of the Attic Club (a bit like the Half Dozen Group back home). The work was mostly paintings. A lot of watercolour. We found the paintings of flowers by a artist called Elizabeth Hellman very impressive. Just the sort of work Jenelle is trying to do herself (Photo)

More wine, bread, olives and cheese. Today was a diamond day!

A Cottage in the Country...

Our first planned stop for today is at an antiques fair in the coastal town of Worthing. As usual we arrive a bit earlier; 8.05 am for a 10.30 am opening. The drive down from Heathrow was uneventful, although John did go within a whisker of asking Hertz to change the car.

The morning is gloomy and showery. What to do now? We share a coffee and roll at BP servo on the “beach-front”. A very short walk on the shingle beach and we are convinced what we are doing needs to be indoors. As luck would have it we buy a local paper and by accident notice an add for a car boot sale in some place called Fontwell. Within half an hour we are at the Fontwell racecourse and Jenelle is in raptures. She picks up a big green bowl for $7.00 and small vase for $1.

Back to Assembly Hall in Worthing. Again there is depression glass in abundance. Here Jenelle pays $20 for a complete green Hollanderin float bowl and a vase with frog for $8. She is totally rapt. By the way the Assembly Hall is home to the largest Wurlizer organ in Europe. Organ maestros from around the world come here to perform.

We join the conga line of traffic back to Brighton where we hope to fill in a bit more time before we check into our cottage. Brighton is full of holiday makers and day trippers; there is no room at the inn, so to speak. We continue to drive east along the coast for a few kilometers and discover the Brighton Marina. Jenelle had read about the Marina in some tourist info, so we decide to have a look. Another car boot sale. The whole Marina complex which is more a mega shopping and entertainment complex than a harbour for yachts. The car boot sale takes up the top floor of the multi story car park. While Jenelle looks around, John gathers a box of fruit; 2 pineapples, a bag of cherries, 8 bananas, 20 plums, 3 peaches, 2 avocados, 3 pears, a bag of mushrooms (lost on route) and a punnet of strawberries for $20. Now that's a bargain!

At around midday we headed for our cottage in the country near the village of Hassock. Kathleen does a wonderful job of guiding us to our final destination. The cottage is about a 1km down the quintessential English lane.

The cottage is totally cute. The hosts, Pam and David Hampton, are incredibly welcoming, helpful and friendly. The weather cleared to a warm, sunny afternoon. This is as close as you can get to heaven on earth. Some cheese, fresh bread and a glass of wine capped off a magical day.

Hanging Out in London:

After another good night's sleep there is a definite spring in our step this morning. This afternoon we are going into London to meet our friend Maria; but first we needed to pick up our Hertz rental car.

We had booked our rental car online and we had checked online the night before. But still we are assailed with up-selling offers. The selling is obviously designed to bamboozle the recent arrived and jet lagged tourist. “For only 25 pound per day you can have this diesel VW” the rep said. After a little more inquiry what he meant to say was 25 pound 'extra' per day; effectively double the rental charge.

We located our car in the acres of cars ready for dispatch. Check it over and find multiple unrecorded dings, scratches and chips. Spare tyre, check. Jack, check. Tyre brace, NO. At the check out we tell the little man that the tyre brace is missing. “Oh these cars don't have spare wheels”he said. John seen RED. We decline to take this car and return for round two in reception. Finally we get a car and get out of there. Never again Mr Hertz, never again.

After lunch we decide to throw caution to the wind and drive into central London to meet Maria.
With our trusty Garmin GPS “Kathleen” (from the song Take Me Home Again Kathleen) and a new set of Europe maps(brought from a man in Italy on Ebay for $70), we head off. Kathleen does a wonderful job of guiding us into London and Jenelle does a wonderful job as co-pliot. The somewhat scenic route Kathleen takes us on twist and turns but we stick with it with out fault; but it does take two.

We drive to Guy's Hospital where the internet had informed us that we would find a large 24/7 car park. Kathleen says “arriving at destination on right”. A slightly obscurred sign car park sign says “FULL”. Not that we really even seen the entrance into the car park. Nothing else to do but drive randomly ( made worse by the roadworks and detours) to find another car park. Luckily, after only a few twists and turns, we spot a car park that is open and with parks available. Unfortunately it closes at 6.00 pm and we expect our stay to be much later than that. “No bother” the attendant says, “park over there in that vacant lot”. The plain clothed attendant and his “assistants” look more like gangsters, than parking attendants. John's already a little edgy about getting damage to the rental car now he wonders if the car will still be there when he returns in the dead on night in this dark and seedy part of south London.

The after noon is hot and humid. London is full of people, locals and tourist. We wander the Borough Markets (http://www.boroughmarket.org.uk/) for a few hours, inspecting and tasting the wonderful food. It is at this point that a idea beings to form for a long revisit to London next year. Unfortunately we can't buy any produce to take with us because we don't have a fridge at the hotel.

We catch up with our friend Maria over dinner and talk ourselves almost hoarse. We haven't seen Maria for 6 or 7 years but our conversation continues like it was just last week. Amazing!

We find our car (all intact) and set Kathleen the task of getting us home. Unfortunately with road works and detours (London is getting ready for the 2012 Olympics) our route takes though the very heart of London via Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly, Knightsbridge and past Harrod's. The traffic is bumper to bumper, the pedestrians are wall to wall, the roads are in chaos. After 5 minutes we have traveled about 5kms. Once we hit the open roads we make the rest of the 20km in half and hour. Thankfully it is mid-summer here so the sun doesn't set until after 9.00pm. That drive home through London would have been a nightmare after dark.

Brisbane to London:

At half time in the 3rd State of Origin (Qld uncomfortably ahead) Pearce drove us to the airport. At 9.00 pm there is apparently not a lot going on at the Brisbane International Airport. No queue at check in. No queue at security. No queue at immigration. Within 15 minutes of being dropped off, we were air-side (about 2 and a half hours before our scheduled departure). By this time NSW had scored twice and things were not looking too rosy for the Maroons. Jenelle wandered the duty free shops and John wandered the empty airport corridors chewing his finger nails. After ten or fifteen minutes of denial we found a TV and watched Qld finally put NSW to the sword.

Singapore Airlines is amazing. All our flights left on time and arrived on time. The planes were immaculate; including the toilets which can become a bit unruly after a 13 hour flight. The staff were impossibly attractive, polite and attentive. Our only complaint was that the seats were as hard as rock; jagged rock at that. By the end of our trip both of us could barely sit down.

We arrived at Heathrow at 3.20pm. We were through immigration at 4.30pm. We arrived at the transit bus station at 4.36 only to see our Hotel Hopper bus drive off. Waited until 5.05pm for next bus. Then had to wait ten minutes for the next driver to take over. Finally arrived at Hotel at 5.30pm.

Although we had had a fair bit of sleep on the flights and we had had a few hours in the Transit Hotel in Singapore we both arrived totally wrecked. After a nice chicken salad at the McDonalds, conveniently located next door to the hotel, we both crashed for the night.

The next morning we felt somewhat refreshed but not 100%. We spent the day hanging out. Sorting out our housekeeping, getting connected to the internet ($75 for 50 hours unlimited download over 90 days) and organizing our UK mobile phone ($14 including $10 credit). In the afternoon we had a pint of beer in a genuine local pub; listening to the banter between the locals, watching a young lady flogging illegal DVD movies for a fiver each and wondering why there would be a copper ashtray on the wall featuring the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge.

Let the wandering begin....

Well here we are again, packed and ready to roll. In a bit over 24 hours we will be on our way to the UK and Europe for almost 3 months. We are traveling light and free. We've booked our accommodation; mostly one week at a time in each of the areas we are visiting. Some YHA hostels but mostly cottages or gites as they call them in France.

We will start off our wanderings with two weeks in the UK and then eight weeks in France.

See you on the road!!