Folkestone the Red Arrows photos, Rupert Annuals, Watercolour Painting and the usual stuff

The Photos of the Red Arrows along with all of the photos we took today can be seen by clicking on the
Link to today's photos

Folkestone is one of our favourite towns within an easy drive of Thanet, reasonably good for bookbuying, art galleries, and shopping.

It's the shopping side that really makes the difference, if you have children and young adults with you as the normal chain shops form part of their leisure day, a bit like some watercolour painting forms part of my day.

 I bought three Rupert Annuals, 1947, 1948 and 1949, these were still wartime economy editions so paperbacks that now sell in the £15 to £100 ball park, depending on the condition they are in.

and a Monster Rupert

hard to find in dust jacket without the cut outs, cut out.

Part of today's books to keep Michael's Bookshop, where I work, here in Ramsgate stocked up
Link to the books we put out yesterday
for the dedicated bookshop followers.

I did a bit more to my watercolour painting of Folkestone, while enjoying a late breakfast at Chocolate Cafe.

Finally a few Thanet photos foe my local history enthusiasts

 Red Arrows at Manston in the 1960s

 float planes in Ramsgate Harbour at the start of WW1

Margate and Ramsgate photos

At the moment I am sitting on the sundeck of the Roy.al Victoria Pavilion aka Wetherspoons.

I started adding a bit to one watercolour sketch until the sun moved round. Apart from not wanting to get too hot, watercolour paint is difficult in direct sun on a hot day as it dries out very quickly. So I moved around to the Harbour Parade side and have sketching, drinking decaffeinated coffee and wondering how Ramsgate maintains such a distinct identity.

I don't think over the years since around 1980 I guess it would be difficult think of much more local government could have done to damage the town. But here it is busy up to the Pleasurama site and definitely different to any other town in the area and not in a bad way.

The local accent has gone, I would have thought that most of the families who lived here before about 1950 have gone, but this just can't be the case as something holds the identity together.

 A bit of painting and a few photos today
link to photos
by way of explanation

I did a bit to this picture until the sun stopped play

did a bit to this one ate a pizza

The painting in of Albion House Hotel being particularly tricky as I wanted the line between the front and the side on the crease in the paper. At some point Armed Forces Day happened and I took some photos from the sundeck. I carried on fiddling with the painting until I realised my legs had all but gone to sleep.

I had some vague notion of doing some sort of then and now, the picture above is about 1890 ans the one I took today. Well the big problem is that I couldn't really see the screen of my mobile phone, wasnt sure if the photos were taking so I took a lot,

I thought the mobile phone would be better than the camera as I didn't really want the people on the beach in high enough definition to be identified, but did want to show how much busier the beach is this year.

Oh well

The Land Train at Ramsgate old Margate and so on

One way of going up the wall at Ramsgate Harbour

 This is Ramsgate's rather pointless pier, you need to appreciate the reason piers were built was so that there would be enough depth of water for paddle steamers to get their passenger on and off, at Ramsgate there was - well sill is - a paddle steamer quay at the end of the east pier.

In recent years, say for the waverly getting on board has been done at the end of the west pier. We publish a book about Ramsgate's rather pointless pier, one to browse in the shop unless you are geographically disadvantaged in which case here is the link when you get there there are also link to further pages about this.

 This is Margate looking towards Ramsgate Road.

 Cecil Square I would guess in 1953 decorated for the coronation

 St John's Margate

 Margate

 and Margate again

 Ramsgate

 This says Ramsgate on it

 but then so does this and I don't think it is

 This is Ramsgate Model Village

I think this is Standen's at Plains of Waterloo

And this Sanden's in King Street Ramsgate opposite us, Michael's Bookshop, this building was knocked down to make way for part of the CoOp now CoOp funeral services.

It seems we are in for a hot weekend and I have been working away in the bookshop prior to skiving off, probably to The Pavilion, to either paint or try to paint something tomorrow.

Lots of local and general history amongst the books we put out today

Link to the photos of today's books

 Apart from this unicorn which had ascended to the peak of it's mistress's available reality

 and another massive car delivery to the council's biggest and most expensive car park

 you can see that here in Ramsgate shop window display can be mind blowing.


Link to the rest of today's Ramsgate Photos

and finally a bit more added to my sketch of Ramsgate seafront

Not finally really