I have seen some very dear friends and family this week, seen some amazing sights, eaten some wonderful food and been very good at exercising.  So a good week in many ways.

In 1749, during a severe gale, the Amsterdam was shipwrecked at Bulverhythe (between St.Leonards and Bexhill) and when the tides are very low, you can see the remains of it.  The tides were very low this week so on Thursday morning, we went down to the beach at 7 am to have a look.

It was a beautiful morning and I am so pleased we made the effort to go down to the beach as it was tempting to stay in bed.The low tide is usually 1-2 metres but on this day it was 0.35 so the water was very far out, which gave us plenty of time to walk around the exposed ribs of the remains of the ship.Lots of interesting smells for Milton.If you want to find the wreck, it’s near the railway crossing at Bulverhtythe.We all enjoyed our early morning trip to the beach.On Thursday evening Jane and Vicky came to visit me.  I didn’t take any photos but be assured I had a really lovely evening.  We walked over to the Old Town and had dinner in The Stag which has a Balinese themed evening on Thursdays.  I had a delicious vegan dish of stir fried vegetables with rice and a side of fried tofu with beansprouts.  It was so lovely to see them both and I look forward to them visiting again.

Last night I met Laura and Jeremy, who I was at University with, so we could celebrate Laura’s birthday.  We had a table booked at The Oxo Brasserie.  It was fun walking along the Southbank, watching the skateboarders and then the cyclists and of course, enjoying the view of London across the Thames.

Photo credit to Jeremy for this one, taken while he waited for us to get there.The Brasserie had a vegetarian menu with vegan options clearly marked so choosing dinner was easy.  Choosing the cocktails was harder because any of them would have been enjoyable.I had the falafel and pomegranate salad to start with which was delicious.My main was stuffed mushrooms with a side of broccoli and chips.  Enhanced it must be said by a very decent Sancerre.For dessert I had a banana cake with a ginger and pear sorbet.  It was a delicious meal in a splendid setting with dear friends.Harvey and I went to Canterbury today.  It is such a pretty little City, filled with charming independent shops and enticing cafes.  We went in this one.  It was great.This is a vegetarian cafe that serves mainly vegan food.  We both had ‘special boxes’ and both really enjoyed everything we had; the salads in particular were delicious.  Lots of raw and fermented foods so very nutritious.  I had the white bean burger and mixed salads with seeds, sauerkraut and vegan mayo.  It was really very good indeed.We were sitting near the cake counter so we naturally had to try a cake too.The cupcakes were moist and with the right proportion of icing to cake;  we each had half a chocolate and half a vanilla.  Mine were enjoyed with a good strong coffee.  I highly recommend this little cafe.Our reason for being in Canterbury was to go and see the Cathedral.We had been given a free family ticket and I was really looking forward to going.  Harvey less so but he was interested once we got inside.The scale of the place is jaw dropping and the quality of the craftsmanship is hard to believe.There is a lot of restoration work underway so we couldn’t see everything but we loved what we did see.Beautiful pulpit.One of the 4 sides of the Cloisters.We have a light as large and ornate as this one in our modest sized sitting room.  I noticed this one because everyone who visits my house comments on it.  I will change it eventually as it is too big and fussy for me but it would go well in this Cathedral.We were lucky enough to be there while the choir were practising.  The sound was so beautiful it sent shivers down my spine.  I really like choral music and in such a splendid setting it was a sound to behold.  I could have stood there for hours.When we left the cathedral we pottered around the shops for a while which was lovely, ambling along in the Spring sunshine.  Canterbury is a charming City and one we will visit again.

We then spent a couple of very happy hours at my cousin Katie’s house in nearby Blean, having tea with her and her husband Twig.  Our lovely day out ended on our front patio, where we enjoyed a drink as the sun set.I have been really good at walking this week and have an average step count of 13,197 steps each day which I am very pleased about.  Hopefully that will help work off some of the lovely food I have had this week.