Friday night

It’s Friday night and rush hour in London, but we’re heading out of the city!  My husband and I have booked a short weekend break at Camber Sands in East Sussex and we can’t wait to get away!

We’re already packed and, after a bit of sticky traffic to get out of the city centre, we’re on the M25.  Within 90 minutes, we’re nearly there, and the last 20 minutes or so of the drive are spent crossing the Romney Marshes.  Although it’s dark and I can’t see much, I get a real feeling that the marshes are almost like a buffer between the hustle and bustle of modern life, and the tranquillity and peace of the seaside.

Thanks to great directions, within 2 hours, we find ourselves at our seaside retreat, “SeaBreeze”, located in a unique new development behind the sand dunes.  First impressions are excellent.  We quickly locate the keysafe, get our keys, and let ourselves into a warm, welcoming, and cozy cottage.

We are delighted to find a “welcome pack” laid out for us in the kitchen.  Fresh bread, white wine, milk … all the essentials to get our break off to a good start.  We explore the cottage, impressed with the high standard of fittings and the cleanliness.  I feel like we are the first people who have ever stayed there … but, judging from the comments in the Guest Book, there have been many happy guests before us.

The cottage has a seaside theme, with artwork produced by local artists, driftwood sculptures, and coastal finds.  I immediately feel myself start to relax and unwind.

We’re feeling pretty tired, so we have a glass of wine, and then up to bed for a good night’s sleep.  It’s so quiet compared to London, I feel the peace washing over me as I drift off to sleep.

Saturday

I wake early full of excitement for the weekend ahead.  My husband is still sleeping, so, I quickly get dressed and, because it is such a beautiful morning, I decide to head straight over to the beach for an early morning walk.  Within 5 minutes of leaving the cottage, I am on the truly amazing beach at Camber Sands.   It’s not hard to see why it has been voted one of the “Top ten beaches in the world” by the readers of the Sunday Times Travel Magazine.  Despite that, it remains something of a best kept secret.  Apart from some horses being exercised in the surf, I am the only person on the beach!  I stroll along looking at shells and feeling the sun on my face.  Sheer bliss!  I am impressed with how clean the beach is.  The tide is far out, leaving a huge expanse of golden sand.  I walk right out to the tide’s edge and wander along looking at shells and starfish in the clear shallow water.

Back at “SeaBreeze”, my husband is up and brewing coffee.  We enjoy a leisurely breakfast and look through the Welcome Book for inspiration of how to spend the day.  We decide to head over to the medieval town of Rye, which is just a few minutes drive away.   What a beautiful town, with its harbour, cobbled streets, ancient architecture, alleyways, and feeling of timelessness and peace.  Unlike other High Streets, with boarded up shops, Rye is thriving with boutique shops and art galleries and we wander around soaking up the atmosphere.  We stop for lunch at The George Hotel Restaurant and enjoy a lovely fresh salad of goat’s cheese.  Apparently, this is a bit of a celebrity hang-out, Michael Caine having been seen there recently!   It stands to reason, as Camber Sands is a popular film location.  I remember reading that Coldplay’s video for “Yellow” was filmed there, just one of many productions that have used the natural attributes of the area to good effect!

After some more browsing, and buying a framed print of Camber Sands in the Purdie Galley, we decide to head over to Dungeness and check out the two lighthouses.  On arriving at Dungeness, we feel like we have arrived in America in the ‘60’s!  A massive shingle beach is dotted with hippy style beach huts and old boats.  It feels very remote and a little strange.  We go for a long walk along the beach and then head over to the lighthouses, one of which is apparently now used for weddings.

By late afternoon, we’re feeling tired and ready for an early night.  Our little cottage is so comfortable and relaxing that we are more than happy to get bathed, put on the fluffy dressing gowns provided, and relax watching the TV.

Lee Robinson Photography

Sunday

Following a relaxing night’s sleep, we’re up early again.  The sun is shining, so we walk over to the beach again and stop at the Marina Cafe for poached eggs on toast.  We then take a leisurely stroll along the beach, looking at all the large, million pound houses that back onto it.

For lunch, we’ve been recommended to check out The Place Beach Bar and Brasserie, which is located right next to the development where “SeaBreeze” is located.   The Place is an award winning brasserie serving local produce and we tuck into delicious fish and chips served with home-made tartare sauce.  Excellent value at under £10.00 per head.   We retire to the comfy sofas for coffee and to read the Sunday papers.

After lunch, we return to the cottage and it is warm enough to put the sun loungers on the decking and relax in the sun for a couple of hours.

All too soon, it’s time to head back to London.  Although it’s only been a short break, we feel like our batteries have been re-charged.  We are sad to say goodbye to our little blue cottage.  It was extremely cozy and comfortable with thoughtful little touches like Molton Brown toiletries, dressing gowns, and hair dryer.   I suggest to my husband that we spend Christmas here, as I can imagine how cozy that would be … not to mention bracing walks on the beach and then heading back to The Place for a hot chocolate!

All too soon, we’re back on the M25.  The spell is broken and normal life resumes.  It’s been a wonderful weekend and I am already looking forward to returning to Camber Sands.  The beach is truly spectacular and the whole area has a mystical and timeless quality that makes me want to return again and again.

Vanessa Young

Tags: holiday experiences, reviews

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 3rd, 2010 at 1:20 pm and is filed under Where have you been?. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.