Lifestyle: Exploring Kent

It took me a while, but I finally think I’ve gotten a bit more about the fabulous county where I went to university. Get me – past tense about university because I am now officially a graduate! Me and W decide to make a mini-break out of packing up and cleaning my final year house – so we took a few days extra and made the most of having no lectures, no coursework, no exams and a car to get around.

On the first day we approached Canterbury at lunchtime, hungry, hot and a little grumpy. There was only one solution – driving straight into Whitstable, parking up, filling up with food and sitting on the beach. The day was glorious, with Whitstable being one of my favorite beachside spots. Something about the waves crashing against the stones is so soothing to the soul.

With W not being a fan of Fish’n’Chips (I know…) and our previous favorite eatery no longer in business, we set about finding food. Stumbling across a sandwich shop, we found a bit of a hidden gem. My Roast Beef & Mustard sandwich was divine. Tender and rare roast beef, just the right amount of English mustard, good seeded bread. Will was equally pleased with his Ham & Cheese choice.

The next day we traveled out towards Margate. I’d heard a lot of good things about this seaside town from other bloggers, plus my Nan visits regularly and raves about it. But, honestly? I was hugely disappointed! Maybe I was missing something, but the highstreet was like any other slightly grimy highstreet in the country, the beach was quite dirty with rubbish and it was all a bit ‘meh.’ Dreamland had clearly been done up nicely on the inside, but ride prices are high and it just didn’t seem worth it. We did have a ball of a time playing the two-penny slots though!

Moving on we drove around to Broadstairs, a slight improvement being a more traditional seaside time. As we parked up there was a massive flash, a crack of thunder and the heavens opened. Que eating our picnic whilst sat in the car! Eventually we ventured out under an umbrella, watched the Armed Forces Day parade, had a mooch and a wander, then retreated rapidly when the sky blackened again. I didn’t even manage to grab an ice-cream!

The day ended with a quick trip to Westwood Cross, a shopping complex that even managed to impress W. I picked up my first maxi-dress and finally hit an NYX stand.

The next few days were spent in Canterbury, completely exploring, finding some lovely hidden gems and finally, finally going on a boat tour. It honestly was the most delightful little break, the weather treated us relatively well (look at the gorgeous blue skies!) – a nice end to my time in Kent!

Was there anywhere super-special I missed in Kent? I’d love to go back for a long weekend in a year or so, so hit me with some suggestions!