Vole Explosion

Sunday 13^th November 2022

   I check out of the hotel and have my backpack with me again. This is another sightseeing day – Pevensey Castle this time, site of William the Conqueror’s landing in England. I flash my English Heritage card and take the audio tour. A little bit Roman, a little bit Norman, a little bit World War II. What’s not to like? Here’s how it looks:

   Afterwards I visit a really small museum housed in Britain’s tiniest courtroom. Cute!

   I then have a drink in The Royal Oak and Castle Inn, where the very friendly landlord is a hiker and chats to me about my walk. I sit in the beer garden – it is very sunny and warm today – and I’m tempted to have a Sunday roast here but decide to move on to my overnight stop in Eastbourne.

   I arrive at the station in good time, only to find that the Southern Rail service has been cancelled, because of course it has. The next one is in an hour and even that is already running late. I’m tempted to go back for my roast, but instead I snooze for half an hour then read my book until the train arrives for the short hop to Eastbourne.

   I’m greeted into town by two foxes – the first is standing in a field just outside town, staring at the passing train. The second is a mangy individual actually on the station platform. It is lapping sudsy water from a cleaner’s bucket. Welcome to Eastbourne!

   After Hastings’s mildly bohemian pretensions, Eastbourne presents itself as more of an ordinary, slightly rough town centre. A homeless guy asks if I can spare “the price of a cup of tea”. Old school! I haven’t heard that line for years. I didn’t realise they still said that.

   My hotel is easy to find as it’s right opposite the pier and it’s huge. I immediately fall in love with it. Grade II listed, it is one of the grand old seafront hotels, with a ballroom and a vintage lift. It’s slightly faded and worn, but not dirty. The staff are lovely and, best of all, it’s costing me a bargain price of £30 per night including a buffet breakfast. My room is another single – smaller than the last room but with an en suite bathroom this time.

   After checking in, I head straight out to visit the beautiful pier across the road, where I spend the last hour or so of daylight. I buy a beer from the bar at the end and sit outside watching a spectacular sunset and listening to a duo singing cover versions.

Starlings are starting to murmurate around the pier before going to roost on the iron structure underneath. I have a go at filming them against the sunset, with mixed results. One clip has a background accompaniment of the woman singing a cover of No Scrubs by TLC, which is slightly incongruous.

   Anyway, what’s wrong with not having a car and walking? Fuck you, TLC. I don’t remember asking for your number anyway!

Here are three more efforts. The first one is Hard to Beat (see wot I did there?):

On leaving the pier I walk a short way along the seafront but all they seem to have here is large hotels, one after another with nothing in between. This probably explains why the accommodation is such a bargain – they must have thousands of rooms here!

   I have a beer in a Belgian bar near the hotel, then a final one from the hotel bar where I am comfortably the youngest person in the room by about 30 years.

Burlington Hotel, Eastbourne (£30)