Did not do the castle on this occasion and could not do the cathedral, dominating the other end of town, as there was a wedding, complete with RAF sword in attendance. We did manage the parish church, where I wondered about the mechanics of Cromwell smashing up the castle with cannon fired from the church tower, thinking here of the stories of chalk cliffs being shaken to pieces by the naval guns mounted inside them in the second world war. Boats can move around in the water, and soak up the recoil that way, an option not available to church towers. It is a short and stumpy tower, sturdy enough, but one would have thought that firing cannon big enough to smash the castle would not have done the tower much good. But I could not see any side of damage on that account.
The interior of this Anglican church was rather Romish in flavour, despite being rather plain and the stained glass being rather faded. One could also take a look through the glass at the Fitzalan Chapel which had taken over the east end, a chapel with a fan vaulted roof which looked to be made of timber rather than stone. Wikipedia unhelpful on this particular point, so question noted down for resolution in due course.
The main street contained a print shop which featured a Monica Poole print in the window, very like one in our own possession. Curious as to the price, which was not marked, I went inside to find the proprietor very sensitive to time wasters, people who asked the price of things then did not buy. He eventually softened a bit when I claimed acquaintance with the artist, but he left me thinking that his business was neither good nor helped by his manners.
Next stop the apples mentioned at reference 1, then down to the river bank for a picnic. Spent some time wondering about in which direction the sea was to be found, given that the tide appeared to be coming in. Was the sea coming in or the river going out? The flow was strong and muddy, suggestive of recent & considerable rain. For a short while there was also the suggestion of a bore, just about visible in the snap above. For the record, you get to the sea by going under the bridge, but I forget to record the direction of flow.
Took a walk the other way, at one point coming across a lady in an interesting soft cloth hat, with sewn on horizontal stripes and flower potted in shape. Pleased that we noticed it and even more pleased to be able to say that she got it from a charity shop. Quite a lot of Southern trains trundling across the meadows, so perhaps there is still plenty of traffic to nearby Bognor. Two water rats, or some such.
Then, a little less than two days later, we were able to inspect the mouth of the river at Littlehampton from the West Beach side. Very much the old and once important river port and it once did time as Henry VIII's royal dockyard.
West Beach a nature preserve and very handsome. Altogether a splendid beach, complete with two car parks and a flock of starlings. I imagine that parking would be something of a problem summer weekends, but it was fine early on a September Monday morning. We met a publican's daughter, a publican who used to keep a pub in Arundel and a daughter who was still smoking, well into middle age. She was now resident in Swindon, so I was able to air my knowledge of the town. It turned out that she knew all about the Windmill pub on Windmill Hill, living just nearby.
Reference 1: http://psmv2.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/aquamarine.html.
No comments:
Post a Comment