Tue 15.Jun.2010
Bournemouth, England, UK
Westbourne Village
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154008.jpg)
Anybody have a clue what this sign means?
If it did not look so permanent, I'd have thought it was some Lib Dem
campaign slogan.
For an American, England puts just a bit of blur on the distinction between English and Foreign Language.
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154011.jpg)
This place must be well-established; it has given its name to the
adjacent city bus stop.
"Thought the sun shone from my
brother's every orifice, he did."
-- A. Dumbledore
Alum Chine
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154054.jpg)
Chines are these beautiful wooded gullies that cut into the shore
from the sea.
Alum Chine is the particular
gully at the end of Beaulieu Rd. I walked its length in both
directions today. Utterly lovely, and an excellent short cut to the
beach.
A (suspension!) foot bridge crosses Alum Chine at Beaulieu Road, and stairs lead down to the path.
This is as good a place as any to mention that, like the Atlantic beaches of
France, and unlike most of the Mediterrnean, these are real, made of
sand beaches. Miles of clean fine-grained sand.
All this and white chalk cliffs down the way in both directions.
On t'other hand, a local resident I chatted with described today's
broken clouds, mid-60's °F as a gorgeous
day. I will definitely be outta here before winter sets in.
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154014.jpg)
What are these gorgeous lilac-colored flowers called? Or is that what
lilacs are?
They grow in clusters on huge dark-leaved bushes.
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154111.jpg)
One humongous monkey puzzle tree.
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154115.jpg)
![default title default alt text](pix/2010/p6154142.jpg)
OK, the photo is washed out, but I had to show the Tropical Gardens sign. The gardens
sit on a low bluff overlooking the long beach. Their content is mostly
a huge variety of yuccas. Some of the tall-stemmed ones could even be
accused of posing as palms, other stubby ones as cacti, though no sign
actually makes such claims.
Contents Copyright 2012 Jeff Bulf