I is for Isle of Wight

Isle of Wight is a county in Virginia and an island in England. I'm a bigger fan of the British version here. The Isle of Wight is like the country in microcosm. There's a Medieval castle, A National Trust home, the white cliffs of the Needles, gently crumbling seaside towns and a pretty thatched village. The Isle of Wight has Smithfield and that's about it.

 Our memories fade to sepia but I still recall the bright bands of the sand at Alum Bay back at home as we spooned them into glass vessels. I assume the chair lift down to the beach is now an overhyped and overpriced tourist attraction but the beach was empty in those days.

Even Blackgang Chine, the UK's oldest amusement park on the Isle of Wight seemed tranquil back in the day, although I'm sure it was not. Today a 'saver' ticket costs 74 GPB. I'm not quite sure what the saving is. If you are disabled and over 60 you can get in for 20 GBP. given that Blackgang Chine is perched on the edge of a cliff this seems like a risky undertaking when you can check out garden gnomes outside people's homes.

At least it's free to get into Windsor Castle Park in Smithfield and there are some pretty views across the marshes. In fact, once I Smithfield Station I found myself geographically confused and imagined myself in Suffolk, England. The slow meandering rivers and the way the gentle light plays on the reed beds reminds me of long afternoons on the estuaries of Eastern England. Suffolk, Virginia is nearby too. I'm not sure why the settlers couldn't be more original in their choice of names.