Ramsgate

On Wednesday morning I checked out all ready to leave London. I was heading to Ramsgate for the next week. Why Ramsgate, I hear you ask. Well, you see it is where This Museum is Not Obsolete is located. Pretty much one of the reasons I planned to return to the UK at this time of year was so that I could visit here. Last year when I arrived I was going to check it out only to discover I had poor timing and had arrived just as it had shut for the winter break. So this time double checking it had opened (it did while I was in Melbourne in April) I planned to check it out as I arrived. Well I spent a week in London as it was closed on my first weekend I was in the UK, and so now I was finally travelling to Ramsgate for a week and checking out this coastal part of the UK.

So here I am. Trying to get a taxi by waiting at the taxi rink proved foolish after my National Express bus dropped me off. It was like a £5 bus ride here. After waiting for a bit, I looked up the local bus route and found that went right by where I was staying so hopped on that. Try to know the name of the stop you want to get off at as saying I need to go 3 stops to a bus driver they just look at you like your an idiot and make some comment about I don’t know where that is, the bust just drives that way… This is why I hate buses. I much prefer a coach that I just get on at a particular place, and it takes me to a particular place and the driver tells me where I am. Also, Swansea bus drivers and nicer than Ramsgate bus drivers is what I have deduced in my time catching buses in the UK.

Anyway, I got to the pub I was staying at. I have never actually stayed at a pub before but it had decent reviews and was a good price for a week long stay. After checking in I went for a bit of a wander to get my bearings and see what Ramsgate was like. I headed back down to where the bus dropped me off, which was down by the docks and beach. I went for a walk along the sand and stopped and read some signs about the history of the place. I grabbed a bite to eat before heading back. I popped into the pub for a drink, met the owner, had chats with the locals and found out about the Ramsgate Tunnels. I headed back to my room and ended up booking myself a ticket for a tour the next day.

Slow travel is great for managing work as I go. Especially at the moment when there are a bunch of things I am trying to get through. I just chilled in my room and did some work until it was time for me to go check out these tunnels. These wartime tunnels were built to shelter people during World War II. It was interesting to hear about how they were built and stories about life underground. There was some great personal anecdotes from our tour guide who was a child living in Ramsgate at the time. I’m really glad that this was mentioned to me and I went along. It was a great way to discover some history of the area.

So obviously with these tunnels teens and stuff over the years have gotten into them. They guides have been trying to spot the earliest dated tags down there and I think it was 67? One fun game that got played was that they would take a bicycle down there and in the pitch blackness they would try to see who could ride down the tunnel the furthest. I just don’t think I would of taken part in giving that one a go.