A pocketful of Rye
We are in Rye, East Sussex for a couple of days. Neither of us have been here before, but we'd heard good things about this small, historic town and are taking the opportunity to explore a new place. Always fun.
We are staying in Mermaid Street in the most historic part of town. It's narrow, steep and cobbled. I'm glad I left my stiletto heels at home.
.
I heard a “beep beep” noise early this morning as the delivery lorry reversed uphill. Rather them than me!
One of the houses along here has the date 1490 and “the house with the secret garden” above the door.
But at the end of the street is a modern convenience. Coffee and ice cream.
People who live here must have infinite patience though, together with tolerance of those who peer through their windows at all times of day and night. Not for me!
I've seen this Banksy image in quite a few windows in town but have yet to find out what it represents.
At the bottom of Mermaid Street we turned right and immediately came across the Rye Pottery. Beautiful glazes, interesting wares, both practical and decorative.
I would have happily brought a number of things home with me, but we're trying to resist further “collection”!
A little further along the street, we noted the sun shining on the castle. Might we go up there later? Perhaps!
There was also a fine railway station there, making this town very convenient to visit and from which to commute.
The pub on the corner of the street was a reminder of the history of Rye, though. Once a really important port, there's still a harbour here…it's just a bit further out of town than it used to be!
Walking along Cinque Ports Street, we came across a somewhat familiar shop. We had watched several series of Design Masters on TV, one of which included a couple of shops in Rye as projects for the contestants, Niche being one of them. I had bought a pair of black wide legged jeans recently and was happy to step inside in the hope of finding the ideal top to wear with them. I left with two! Not only that, we'd had a lovely conversation with the shopkeeper and felt warmly towards this town where everyone knows everyone else. A fine example of small town life.
A little further along, I caught sight of this sign, high on the wall of what might have been a former pub? I frequently recite The Owl and the Pussycat to Arthur, so this reference to the Runcible Spoon chimed nicely with me.
All around Rye are small details, possible references to the town's history or simply modern decorative detail?
Walking along Tower Street and approaching this gateway, we came upon Merchant and Mills which looked a must-visit, were it not for the large CLOSED sign there in the doorway. I noted the opening time as 12 noon, so we carried on further up the street in the hope of finding a coffee shop.
Through the gateway, we did better than that, we found a Knoops chocolate shop! Not only “a” Knoops Chocolate shop either, but the original one. There was a bit of a commotion outside as well and as we sat enjoying our hot chocolate drinks on the bench outside, we learned that a team of Knoops managers were here on a training day for the launch of their seasonal drinks. As we sat chatting, the founder of Knoops came over and introduced himself and for the next half hour or so, we continued our enjoyment of hot chocolate drinks with a few samples of the new drinks too. Quite the party!
More examples of small town life as we watched the world go by. The cleaning lady went into the cottage opposite, being handed a cup of hot chocolate as she went; the decorator turned up and let herself in and a pair of chaps came by carrying a large piece of plywood. At one point they stopped to work out which direction they were heading and we smiled, for they really could have been extras in a “Carry On” film!
Heading back into the centre of town via Merchant and Mills, which had now opened and was immediately crowded with those of us who had been waiting, we climbed the steep, cobbled hill up to the High Street.
Here we found several inviting shops to look around and some interesting architectural details. We spent a while in the Bird and Blend tea shop and popped into another dress shop, though money had already been spent! I had hoped to look in the other Design Masters shop, The Paper Place but a note on the door said “Closed Wednesday”. Hrrrmph.
The CEO of Knoops had highly recommended a trip up the tower of the church here, for fantastic views of the area and a great experience, but our knees and hips were a bit older than his and we chose to simply look, admire and imagine!
We took advantage of a bench outside another historic building in the High Street before finding the answer to “I wonder what this used to be?” there on a plaque above our heads.
And we continued to the top of Mermaid Street before staggering downhill to our hotel. It had been a great morning and we were ready to put our feet up for a while!
Of course, “A pocketful of Rye”, the line from the nursery rhyme “Sing a Song of Sixpence”, refers to the grain rye rather than the town of Rye, but I admit to having that particular phrase buzzing around my head for most of the day, regardless of that totally incorrect context!
