I often start posts bemoaning my not having done anything towards the various lists I am curating, but a day out this weekend has seen me tick off 3 tasks. Sadly, they are all part of those cumulative tasks that I have chosen to fill my various lists with; those tasks that require me to do ’50 of something’ or visit a number of places. However small steps are always preferable to standing still.
#11 -Visit all of the ceremonial counties
This weekend I was invited on a spontaneous day out with my Mum and Step-Dad. After a few hours in the back of car, we arrived in Devon and I was able to tick off one more county. While I have visited the place before, I haven’t been there since I started my list, and that is one of the rules – no point adding something to a list you have already done just to tick it straight off. (Admit it, we’ve all done it!) My self-imposed Bucket List rules mean I can only count counties I have visited since the task started in January 2016.
This one takes me up to about 14 now, but all the ones I have visited have been in the south, so I feel I need to look into heading north – any suggestions or recommendations gratefully received.
#44 Drink 50 coffees in 50 ‘cities’
I’ll be honest – my definition of ‘city’ is pretty free. It’s basically any new place that can be loosely considered a town. Which is why Lynmouth totally counts! The page for this task needs serious updating, and my lack of selfie skills are evident in the photos. They are going to need work if I want to get some glamorous shots of me in Hollywood next month.
#46 Visit 50 Coasts
It was surprisingly warm for September, so I was able to wander about without a coat in my inappropriately short dress. While the beach at Lynmouth is a bit of an ankle breaker, and not one to lie out on, there are plenty of large rocks to sit on, if gazing out at sea is your thing. It is definitely my thing.
I once had a penfriend who lived in Utah who had never been to the beach, or seen the sea. As someone who lives about a 25 minute drive from the sea, I can’t get my head around the idea of being thousands of miles from a coast.How amazing is that feeling you get as the horizon disappears and someone in the car shouts “I can see the sea”! There is something almost claustrophobic about being so far inland; surrounded and closed in. Perhaps that is why the whole concept of the traditional sea-side break took off? As an escape?
One of the items on the Kettle List is to visit 50 different coasts. This one required a bit of think, as I will have to decide what constitutes a ‘coast’. Can I just pop around the bay and consider it a different coast? It’s academic at the moment as I have only ticked off Lynmouth and Weymouth, down on the Dorset coast. Will be able to add a Pacific coast once I get to LA and have a wander down Santa Monica beach, which I am, maybe, a little bit excited about.
Over to you
Do you have a favourite coastline? Are you more of a “mountains” sort? Which is your favourite kind of natural landscape to relax in?