British beaches - a lesson in ecology.
What? Only 1 in 8 British children have been to the British seaside?
Tug of War - boys against girls.
Unbelievable! Especially when we are comparatively so close to the sea anywhere in Britain - 70 miles is the furthest you can get. We raise our kids to expect warmer, more luxurious beaches in France, Spain and Asia.
Do we spoil our children by raising their expectations? Being a New Town girl myself, I have an aversion to being cold. Perhaps it's also the fault of my Mauritian, Indian Ocean blood. Although, having a Swiss mum, I was taken to crystal blue, cold mountain lakes where I would entertain myself for hours bobbing around on floating logs, coming in only for barbecued bratwurst. I could be out for 14 hours at a time. I made a "camp" in the trenches of peaty woodland of Queensland near Bracknell before it was flattened to build new homes. Definitely, nature played a big part in my life, in my childhood and early teens. The British seaside did too, and Whitby, where my mum lives, is magical; fortune tellers, donkey rides, and even organic ice cream these days.
This weekend I rediscovered the British seaside, in windy North Wales - Anglesey to be precise. My mate Joey's family has had a caravan there for 50 years! People come back every summer, kids grow up together, develop crushes on each other, marry other people and vet each other’s partners, then hang out together, as do their kids. Heaven! A community that doesn't move, even though everything else these days seems so transient.
Olympic themed sandcastles
Saturday, the whole of Britain was under a rain cloud, and Wales seemed to get the worst of it. Sunday, the sun shone brilliantly and the annual sandcastle competition was held on the "Olympics" theme.
Jerome, my son, and his friend Iellen won Gold with their swimmers sculpture under the title ‘Free Tibet’. There were all kinds of interpretations of the ‘Birds Nest’ stadium- amazing stuff!
So, get a cup of tea and a wet suit and brace the British seaside – even north Wales holds treats we have near forgotten.
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