There'll be bluebirds over the White Cliffs of Dover

Well, over the past two weekends I've been a bit busy with travelling. Braving British Rail and the hordes of sun-seeking Londoners, I've undertaken some train journeys down to the Channel Coast, to see a few things outside of London. Specifically, the White Cliffs of Dover; various old and new ships of Her Majesty's Navy in Portsmouth Harbour; and finally Bovington Tank Museum.

All in all, a good mix of militarism and sightseeing.

Actually, travelling by train in England is a pretty decent way to get around. During rush hour it's hell on rails, but on the weekend it's actually not too bad. Trains don't run as often, so the tracks aren't as crowded, and as a result you tend to get a pretty clear run. It's cheap too - a trip to Portsmouth for example, a good 200 mile return journey, only cost 18 quid.

The best part about it though is the fact you're out of London. Every mile of green fields and trees reminds you that you're not actually surrounded by hordes of crappy little terraced houses and traffic. And now that the English summer has actually started, it's sublime out in the countryside. Weather has been perfect these past few weeks. It's almost enough to make up for the two months of rain and crap that preceded it throughout "summer".

Well, let's start with Dover in this blog, and I'll cover the rest over the next few days.


And here it is. Dover City that is. Situated pretty much right at the narrowest point of the English Channel, when standing on Dover Castle you can easily make out the grey strip of land that marks France. The city itself is a nice enough place, although I didn't spent a great deal of time down there.


This is Dover Castle, situated well above the city. To use a phrase said many times before, you can see why they built it where they did. The vantage point is stunning, as is the view. I took the previous photo of Dover standing on the top of the Keep. The Keep is the oldest part of the castle and was built by Henry II in 1188 AD. The rest of the castle, such as the walls and outlying fortifications were constructed over the next hundred years or so.

That being said, Henry wasn't the first person to hit upon the idea of constructing a castle here. There were conquerors of England that preceded him by a good 1000 years that thought of it first...


The crumbling tower that sits just to the right of the Monastery is the oldest surviving Roman building in all of England. They built it shortly after the Roman conquest early in AD, to act as a beacon/lighthouse for ships crossing from the French (or Gallish) coast.


This is slightly newer. Kings in the 1700's tended to like visiting Dover, but they naturally turned their noses up at the grotty little Keep. Hence, they opted for something slightly more luxurious and opulent.


Some of the traditional armament of Dover Castle.


This is a little more modern. During the German blitz of 1940 and 1941, Dover was heavily bombed throughout. The harbour was a major British staging post for channel convoys, and was always full of targets for the Germans. Owing to Dover Castle's outstanding vantage point right above the Harbour, the British positioned several Anti-Aircraft guns on the heights above Dover, to try and make life as difficult for the Stukas as possible.

After leaving the castle itself, I did a tour of the underground wartime tunnels. The chalk cliffs of Dover are very soft, and consequently the British excavated them extensively, digging out a massive underground bunker underneath Dover castle, deep underground. The first tunnels were dug during Napoleonic times, and then were extended during WW2. No photos though - while the tunnels have come off the Official Secrets Act, they still don't want you taking photos of them.

Fortunately, my next exhibit is free to be photographed. It's pretty close to being the most recognisable feature in all of the United Kingdom.


And here they are. It's hard to describe how epic it is to be standing on the famous White Cliffs what with the Channel breeze blowing at you, 70 metre drop to the ocean below - German tourists nattering away in your ear (I'm telling you, WW2 was a ruse. The bastards have invaded, I counted at least 50 in Dover alone!)


This shot was taken from Dover Castle, and shows the rather pleasant landscape adorning the ground above the Cliffs, before one reaches the end of England.


Another view.


This shot was taken below the cliffs on the way - this is a slightly smaller part down near the town itself, but it rapidly rises away up to the dizzying heights in the previous photos.

All in all, it was an excellent day.