For want of other things....

I know that I have been remiss at updating recently, an indeed have been told as much; but the truth is that apart from work, there hasn't been a lot to write about of late. With the weather having been rather indifferent I've not done much at weekends either, so if I were to embark on a Pepysian description of my every waking hour, it would be very dull and repetitious just now. This is a very temporary state of affairs, but nonetheless you can be assured that you are not missing anything interesting!

In order to maintain some semblance of momentum here, when I went to get a haircut yesterday, I took the camera with me to take few shots in Tonbridge town centre -a mere 8 minutes walk from Castello Quotidian - for the edification of anyone who hasn't already been to this metropolis of mediocrity.

The oldest and most famous thing in town, apart from my bar bill, is the castle.

Built shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1066 to guard a crossing point on the River Medway, it was, and still is, one the best examples of a Motte & Bailey fort in the South East. The point of this rather unflattering angle is to show you the hill on which the original timber bailey was built, before being replaced by the larger stone version during the "Barons' War" in 1253.

This shot shows the main part of the remaining structure, the gatehouse, and the modern buildings, now council offices, that some twerp in the 1800's thought would make a nice extension. The original thing was apparently rather grand, and built to the same plan as Caerphilly Castle in Wales, for which it was the blueprint. What with being taken in battle by King John, sheltering the Great Seal of England during the Crusades, playing host to numerous royal personages, and more latterly to the personages who work out my council tax, it has had an interesting 900 year life; which I am not going to blether on about anymore here, as those who care to can simply click this link for a proper job of it.

A short walk downstream is Town Lock, which sounds quite picturesque, but on closer inspection proved rather grim of a grey February morn, as the weak sunlight twinkled on the ugly concrete barrages, and flickered seductively over the misspelt graffiti. I stayed just long enough to take this image of the reflection of the lock gates - mainly to justify the effort of walking down there, and being sworn at by two eight year olds, fresh no doubt, from some Asbo Academy for Young Gentlefolk.

On a brighter note however, this lady was doing a brisk trade on her plant stall on the Big Bridge in the high street.

As I went to show her the picture on the camera, I said "Have you ever been to Barcelona?" and she said "Oh yes, I see what you mean!"

So I'm not the only one who thinks it reminds them a bit of the flower sellers of the famous "La Rambla" in that city....

......Which in turn, reminds me how much I need a holiday!