A Little Kentish Magic

Seeking out little moments of magic amidst the humdrum of every day life.

travel

  • A – Z of Kent: Aylesham

    “Hey,” my daughter messaged me one day. “How about doing a blog series called the A – Z of Kent? We can work our way through the alphabet, visiting towns and villages beginning with each letter.” Of course I loved the idea and couldn’t wait to begin. We decided that our destinations would be picked… Read more

  • The Darent Valley Path From Shoreham to Eynsford (The Walk That Keeps On Giving!)

    We have a lot of books of walks, and are constantly discovering new ones online, but it is very easy to fall into a routine of the same familiar favourites – especially when we are reliant on public transport, so travelling a bit further afield can sometimes seem a bit of an effort. Whenever we… Read more

  • A Mini Break to Stamford: Four Counties, Angel Roofs And A Stately Home

    I am so fickle. Two nights away in Stamford, South Lincolnshire and it’s my new favourite town (outside of Kent!). It was my turn to organise a surprise destination for our half term mini break and I am feeling pretty smug that I absolutely nailed it! I’ve never really thought of Lincolnshire as a destination… Read more

  • Celebrating Sussex Day

    Sussex Day is celebrated on 16th June, the feast day of St Richard of Chichester: a day to appreciate the rich heritage and culture of the county. Obviously it is not quite such a great county as Kent, but it is our neighbour, and the paternal line on my dad’s side of the family all… Read more

  • Kent Coast Walk Part 10: Ramsgate to Broadstairs

    I have always been very attached to Ramsgate, maybe because it is somehow rooted in my DNA. My maternal great grandparents used to holiday in the town every summer, travelling from their Lambeth home with their six sons (one of whom was my grandfather), on the steamer from London Bridge. The steamer would stop at… Read more

  • Celebrating May Day

    May festivities were first recorded during the Roman period, when the Festival of Flora (the goddess of flowers, fertility and spring) took place. Later, in the Gaelic world, a Pagan festival known as Beltane was held on 1st May, and people would light bonfires and decorate their houses with flowers, and later still, May Day… Read more

  • A Day Out In Essex

    Despite being a neighbouring county that you can see from Whitstable on a clear day, and despite the fact that I actually spent three years of higher education living in Chelmsford (though I hated every minute and came home almost every weekend, leaving no time for exploration), Essex is not a county that I am… Read more

  • A Perfect Easter Walk: Ham Street Circular

    Bluebells are my absolute favourite flower. I would even go so far as to say that I am obsessed with them. We have a few glades of bluebells near us that I try and visit as often as possible during the short bluebell season, but after discovering several years ago that Hamstreet Woods has some… Read more

  • Kent Coast Walk Part 9: Pegwell Bay to Ramsgate

    I caught the train back to Thanet Parkway to finish off what, in ideal circumstances I should have managed to achieve in one go. I was the only person alighting, and in about 15 minutes, I was back on the coast. The first thing that I saw was the sand banks at the mouth of… Read more

  • A Mother’s Day Mystery Tour: Winchelsea to Rye

    This is the first year in a decade when I haven’t been suffering from a CFS relapse, or struggling to stop myself slipping into one, and to celebrate this fact, my daughter decided to take me on a Mother’s Day mystery day out. She co-opted one of her brothers to accompany us (with the advantage… Read more