The lockdown has made me so comfortable at home that I almost don't want to go out now. That's good as it helps to contain the virus, but also a bit unhealthy to stay in all the time. With summer coming, I can hear the kids playing outside every day, parents breaking social distance holding barbeques over the weekend. Rightly or wrongly, thank goodness we don't live in a white terror society and feel the need to report your neighbour every time they break a rule.
Today, I decided to put my laziness aside and went out for a walk. Where better than our lovely seaside, after all, where would the town be without out the muddy beach? On the way, I saw some local art which I want to share. We're not known to be an arty town, though our claim to fame is that we did host the Banksy Dismaland a few years ago. No other place can make the same claim, so I guess that does make us somewhat special.
High Street
Many UK retails stores started to close down even before Covid-19. Even one of UK's largest retailer Marks & Spencer was not exempt. They had one of the largest stores in town and their closure was pretty much the nail in the coffin for the high street. Their shop front was boarded up, a familiar scene in many places around the world. Then a month or so ago, I saw an artist started painting on it, I think it must be some sort of local art project.
Every time I walk past, I always stop to admire its progress. This photo was from last week. It's a tribute to the key workers who support the public during this pandemic, standing in front of our most famous structure in town - the Grand Pier.
The drawing is life-size and the punk head lady in black is the artist - you can see how big this drawing is. The other notable item on the drawing is the red planes flying overhead. They are the Red Arrows, and aerobatics display team, another of UK's finest. We have an air show in June every year and they are always the highlight of the show. It's unlikely there will be an airshow this year, so it's nice that the Red Arrows aren't forgotten.
My rating: 8/10
Orchard Street
This bought a little smile to my face when I saw it last week. I love how people are so creative, turning boring objects on the road to something so cute and instantly recognisable. All the shops on this street are closed, and even if they weren't this is one of the quieter streets in normal times. The shops aren't that interesting, a few not very appealing cafes, lots of barbers, and second-hand trade in shops, not the type that would pull in a lot of shoppers. It's only busy because there are quite a lot of parking spaces and is one minute walk to the high street, which itself is only a little bit busier!
My rating: 7/10
Richmond Street
I don't walk over here that much as I normally walk opposite by the seafront which is much nicer. I'm glad I tool a little detour today and saw this really nice art work on the bear wall. I just love this!
My rating: 8/10
Seafront Promenade
With the summer coming, we've been telling visitors not to come here, something that the town never does as we rely on visitors to make it through the summer. I heard last week it was quite busy, then our local hospital had to close its door due to an increase in new cases. It even made the national news, though I don't know if the two are related. Anyway, the seafront is getting busier. The shops on the beach are opened, people were queuing up for fish and chips, and there were some people out sunbathing.
Many of them had bought along a tent which is handy for social distancing. It was nice to see the kids play on the beach, and people relaxing, almost as if we were back to normal. I guess we deserve to forget about it for a while.
By the way, do you see our famous Grand Pier on the beach? That's the same one in the painting on the high street. Do you think the artist did an ok job of it?
My rating: 8/10
I hope you like this little art tour today.
Join me on Haveyoubeenhere! 😄
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