Saturday 20 May 2017

Kessingland

Last weekend we went away with friends to Kessingland.  The site was chosen by them as it was a site that they really like and had been to several times.  As it was an overnighter we decided to sleep in the van, which Pete has converted to a micro camper.  We also have a small tent that goes up in seconds and which we can put all our bits in.  We can back the van up to the door of the tent so it becomes almost one unit.  Well, that was the plan.





Our friends had said there was a good pub next to the site that served good food.  Great we thought.  Anyhow we arranged to meet them in the pub, which turned out to be like a sports bar with pool tables, live music etc.  Not a quaint little pub that the UK is renowned for.  Things went from there.  We pulled into the camp site (which was huge) and before we said a word, a little jobsworth came out and said 'I hope you are not sleeping in the van, it's illegal as it has no windows and curtains'.  Who knew it was 'illegal', maybe against site or council rules but certainly not against the law of the land!  He took a look at Alfie and said 'the dog has to be kept on a lead', fair enough but it was the way he said it.  Another couple were due to join us but the lady had only come out of the hospital that morning after having had a reaction to chemotherapy.  But the jobsworth explained that as she was now out of hospital we couldn't get the deposit back (we should have lied!)  The children in a nearby camper were not allowed to play ball and apparently our BBQ was not the regulatory height off the ground.   So many rules for old rebels like us! The final nail in the coffin was the two great big wind turbines each side of the camp, whirring away.



If it had been just Pete and I, we would have told him where to put his deposit and left, but our friends were so keen and we didn't want to upset them, so we laughed it off.  We did have a lovely BBQ that evening and played Rummikup, which was a game new to us but we loved it so much I have bought a travel version for us to play.  We put the van side-on to the tent and crept into the van under cover of darkness.  It was like being in a nest and I had the best night's sleep.  We couldn't have slept in the tent as the sound from the turbines was like camping on the runway at Heathrow airport.
We went to a boot sale the next morning and picked up a couple of bargains and then made our escape as soon as we could without being rude.  We will not be returning to Kessingland and next time we will pick the site!

Next weekend we are off to Hampshire and staying in the grounds of a seamen's mission.  I keep telling Pete that we can book his place while we are there.  Will keep you up to date.

Oh and here is a gratuitous picture of a Pete trying to talk Alfie into going for a walk in the rain.  Alfie was so comfortable that in the end Pete gave up!


13 comments:

  1. Sometimes there are so many rules that they take the fun out of our sails. It's camping . . . which means roughing it, right? My Steve refuses to camp anywhere where we can not have a campfire. Sitting around a campfire at night and cooking on the ground is one of the best parts of camping.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately most sites here don't like campfires but you can usually BBQ xxx

      Delete
  2. Can't stand a jobs worth, it's your weekend break not a military camp, we had one years ago when the girls were young, he was not happy with our trailer tent, they had a rule no wheels on the grass, as we booked as a trailer tent, hubby got our deposit back and we moved to another site.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. How daft is that, at least you were able to leave xxx

      Delete
  3. So much hassle. Glad it ended out okay at least. Here's a new word for my vocabulary, jobsworth. At least you didn't find any "toe biters" creeping through the grass. - Margy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No toebiters thankfully! A few mozzies around the BBQ though xxx

      Delete
  4. Gr'rrr I absolutely and intensely dislike people like that who think that rules are rules no matter how ridiculous the making keeping is.
    All of which enforced me to leave the uk and live in a country that recognises that Rules and Laws are not black and white but shades of grey in varying degrees.

    Great photo of Pete and Alfie.

    Six attempts to pass the word verification- same attitude as the obnoxious rule keeper - what a b****x!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry I didn't realise there was one on there. Got rid of it now xxx

      Delete
    2. I knew you were a rebel too xxx

      Delete
    3. Yes you did and so do most of my relations and friends ha' ha' ha' xxxxx

      Delete
  5. Urrrgh! Obnoxious jobsworth - hate them! So glad you broke the rule and slept in the van :) x

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh Fran, I agree with everyone here...and you too...how horribly off-putting! Good for you for being the rebels you are! It sounds as if you had a good time in the end, so that's the main thing, isn't it? xxx

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for some other magnificent post. Where else could anyone get that type of information in such an ideal means of writing? I have a presentation subsequent week, and I am at the look for such information.
    Ruby888

    ReplyDelete