Wight one

Last weekend to Ryde, by train. Which is convenient from Epsom and which served to test what life without car might be like, when that time comes.

Attic

While waiting for our train to Guildford, we noticed the Southern version of an attic, with various stuff stored on the roof of a shed. I learn that Southern is a joint venture between Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Société nationale des chemins de fer français and Go-Ahead Group PLC (from up north). Rum that flogging off the railways results in a chunk of them being owned by a couple of French governments. Is this what we voted all those Brexiteers from Eton in for?

Just before we got to Guildford we passed a group of half or dozen trees, quite large, which had been wrapped up in what looked like a translucent white plastic. We speculated as to whether this was a work of art from the Guildford branch of our university of creation (see reference 2) or protection from the nearby building works.

Minor muddle about where to catch the train to Portsmouth from, the result of careless proof reading of the display timetables. But we got there in the end. And before we got to Portsmouth, we learned that Liebherr, which I had thought to be just the company which makes lots of the cranes to be seen on our building sites, also makes our trains, or at least pantographs for trains. While reference 3 reveals that they are also into hotels.

We took our picnic in the Costa between the train and the ferry. Some activity in the Solent, including first a small patrol boat making a lot of wash and spray and spray but not much speed and second a much larger fleet auxiliary at anchor, quite possibly the landing ship Mounts Bay. Possible harbour sighting of our fine new aircraft carrier, the one without any aircraft.

BH admiring the seaside

We took a break in the small park adjacent to the entrance to Ryde Esplanade station, a park containing three fine stripes of crocuses, a change from the more usual random scattering. From whence our hotel was a short stroll down the esplanade; a hotel which my telephone revealed had been built as a private residence on what was then the sand dunes in 1833, becoming a hotel about a hundred years later. See reference 1.

Smallcombe clock

While we were waiting for the hotel computer to come online, we admired the clock in the lobby, which, having a rather new looking case, I took for a fake. But looking into the matter today, I have suspended judgement, pending more careful inspection on our next visit. Smallcombe clocks certainly existed and seem to crop up quite often in sales and advertisements, but the present clock repair company does not run to history and neither Bing nor Google turn up anything of that sort either, not even a Wikipedia entry. Perhaps in the meantime I should pay a visit to Epsom Library, which I think is quite strong on antiques and collectibles.

Fancy steak

While unpacking, we were amused by the steak to be had in the restaurant downstairs. No idea what double dipped meant, but it did seem to come with plenty of flavourings, just in case the 28 days worth of double dipping had not done the business. An option we did not, in the event, get around to trying.

Bedroom

The back view of our rather grand bedroom, the one behind the triple chimney, of which there was no trace inside. In the original part of the building.

Fridge

Something to do with refrigeration, tucked away at the back of the car park.

Next a walk along the esplanade, first stopping at Appley Towers, a folly once on the edge of the grounds of the house called Appley Towers, now demolished. It used to house a small shop selling interesting chunks of rock, but has now been empty for a while. We wondered why it had not been converted into holiday accommodation, for which one might have thought it was well suited. Perhaps it was not connected to the usual services, services which we have come to expect, even when on holiday.

Installation

A bit further on we wondered whether the concrete snapped above was an installation by the same people who had wrapped the trees outside Guildford (see above), but later on we learned that actually it was a new outfall for a small river which was prone to flooding. Monktonmead Brook which rises south of Ryde at Bloodstone Copse, then runs north to pick up the line of the railway at Smallbrook, only leaving the line just short of the esplanade. New outfall to replace the one which kept being blocked by sand, causing the river to back up into peoples' houses.

Back into Ryde to dine at Michelangelo's, a place last noticed at reference 5. Chose the same wine and spirits as last time, that is to say Pecorino followed by white Grappa, both of which went down well. The staff, we thought mainly real Italians, were very impressed by my picture of a high end grappa glass (from reference 6). To eat, a sort of low end pizza to start, a round of bread topped with a black olive paste and some artichoke hearts. Very good. Followed by breast of chicken in a tomato based sauce. Lemon tart was discouraged, despite having been recommended earlier in the day, it being a cake for consumption during the day, so I settled for a tiramisu. Satisfactory but a little damp for my taste.

Back in our hotel room, for some reason I discovered from my telephone that while pumpkins are new world, melons are old world. Despite both being of the same cucurbitaceae family. Perhaps some genetic tracing of the movements of cucumbers and their ancestors around the world is called for.

Reference 1: http://historicrydesociety.com/history/royal-victoria-arcade/ryde-hotels-and-public-houses/ryde-castle/.

Reference 2: https://www.uca.ac.uk/.

Reference 3: https://www.liebherr.com/en/deu/start/start-page.html.

Reference 4: https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/our-organisation/the-fighting-arms/royal-fleet-auxiliary.

Reference 5: https://psmv3.blogspot.com/2018/07/yaverland-continued.html.

Reference 6: https://psmv3.blogspot.com/2018/10/grappa.html.

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