Aldeburgh in Sunny Suffolk

Picture 1 Beautiful Aldburgh cottages

Picture 2 A perfect day but this fisherman is having the day off.

Picture 3 The large shell with Aldeburgh in the distance.

Aldeburgh in Suffolk has been a port since Roman times however the Roman area is now under the sea. It is a delightful typical English seaside village with a beautiful long stretch of shingle beach where the village fishing fleet finds rest when it is not at sea. The boats are launched from the beach itself and you can buy fresh fish from the fishermen's huts straight from the sea. The village itself is quite small but perfect for a quiet weekend away with some lovely shops and places to eat alongside some traditional English cottages and a nice pub. Following along the beach towards the north one finds a rather stunning shell sculpture made of steel embedded into the shingle which provides a great place to picnic and it is perfectly situated to enjoy other attractions nearby which will follow this entry. England is cool

Dungeness

Tuther day I took my lion cubs down to the south coast, we went to Dungeness. Let me tell you a little bit about Dungeness. It's the site of one of the largest expanses of shingle in the world and the variety of wildlife in the area extends to over 600 differing types of plant, making it one of the best places in England to find insects such as moths, bees, beetles & spiders. The flooded gravel pits behind the shingle provide habitat for many migratory coastal birds. Another thing situated on the shingle is a massive Nuclear power station which oddly enough does not actually look out of place, in a strange way it enhances what Dungeness is, or at least it does to me. There are two lighthouses at Dungeness which warn ships not to get too close, as the English channel is the worlds busiest shipping lane. There is a nice little pub by the name of the Brittania inn, the fish & chips are 'morish' and the liquid refreshment very nice. We had munch then took a stroll along the shingle, beach fishermen were casting their lines out to see and the waves were canny high, it was a beautiful sight, my young cubs enjoyed running at he waves and collected some lovely sea shells left over by the fishing boats which lie in various states of repair along the shingle. Some of these boats are obviously still in use but others have seen better days and remain alongside their delapadated huts reminding visitors of Dungenesse's rich heritage. We walked around the boats and other relics of the fishing trade that can be found on the shingle and vowed to come back in the summer for a picnic and to collect more shells. I may also pop into the Brittania for a swift half. If you come to Dungeness you must also check out some fo the dwellings littered along the road, especially Prospect and Ness cottages, they have done some remarkable things in their open gardens using items washed up on the beach along with fishing relics, very artistic indeed. Dungeness is well worth a visit, I anticipate many more visits in the coming years. Why not give it a try!