I really didn't want to leave that huge comfy bed in The Reading Rooms, with its silky white sheets and big fluffy pillows, but the trouble with B&Bs is that they involve breakfast. After a quick walk-in shower, there was a knock on the door and mine arrived on a butler tray set down by the window overlooking the square. I'd opted for scrambled eggs on toast with smoked salmon plus lots of other things, including a juicered juice with the zing of ginger in there somewhere. As I waited for Dan to show me Margate's best coffee shops, had a quick chat with Louise and Liam (who's from Bury!), the owners. Louise has a blog about Margate architecture, well worth a look, especially the article about the Pre-Raphaelite studio in Birchington.
After a proper cappuccino at the Proper Coffee House (check out the decor in the Gents) and a visit to the sub-station where the Mr Solo gig took place, I bid my farewell to guide Dan and boarded the Loop bus to Broadstairs. Now when I was last here in 2010 I caught a bus to Ramsgate, that went through Broadstairs but didn't actually go down the front, so I was determined to have a look this time. As the bus turned off the High Street, I could see it was one of those roads that go down, down, down. Which meant just one thing: on the way back it would be up, up, up.
Broadstairs is what Mapp and Lucia would call 'quaint', with olde world shoppes and pubs. At the front, I could see that the beach and harbour were a long way further down, and the lift was chained up (until Summer?).
Ah well, I had a little stroll past Morelli's ice cream parlour, but being full up with breakfast and proper coffee didn't pop in, and on to the bandstand, then headed inland. Broadstairs, tick.
I cheekily caught a Loop bus up to the station and had a look at the Crampton Tower museum (closed until March). Then I had a wait for the Ramsgate train, caught the Charring Cross train to Ashford, then had another wait for the late Brighton train. This unexpectedly decided to terminate at Eastbourne, so I decanted at Hampden Park, crossed the footbridge and caught a slow train to Brighton, which was fine by me as I could get off at London Road. There are still things I haven't seen in Margate: the shell grotto, the lift and Lido tower in Cliftonville, so I will be back!
[More photos on Flickr]
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