Tuesday – a Castle, D-Day, a Lighthouse & Sand Sculptures

Forecast not great today – mostly cloudy but no rain was expected – accurate forecast, it turns out.  We drove an hour west to Weymouth, famous for golden sandy beaches which we did not visit.  Rather we crossed the short bridge onto the Isle of Portland.  The Port of Portland is one of the largest man made harbors in the world.  Stops for the day:

Portland Castle

Portland Castle is not really a castle, but rather an armed fort that was converted to a residence later in its history.  Lots of history here with lots of cannons to fight off the invaders from the south.  Portland is the southernmost point of the eastern UK.  Nice gardens.  Bought some ginger butter at the gift shop.  Elaine loves it (they had samples).  It should be great on toast or crackers.

 

Castletown D-Day Centre

The Castletown D-Day Centre is an immersive visitor attraction telling the story of the embarkation of the US Army 5th Corps and 1st Division for D-Day from a busy wartime dockyard in 1944.  It’s a small venue but very well done, all run by volunteers in costume.  This apparently just opened in 2017.  It was great!

Chesil Beach

We didn’t really stop at Chesil Beach except for a quick view through the fog.  Have you read  On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan?  I haven’t but Elaine loved the book.  Apparently there is a movie version to be released this year.

Portland Bill Lighthouse

Portland Bill is a working lighthouse (run by Trinity House that also administers our Anvil Point Light) that is also a major visitor attraction.  Lots of bunkers around the area as this the southernmost point of Portland Island.  We did a quick look around.

 

Billy Winter’s Bar & Diner

Billy Winters Bar & Diner is just a shack really, overlooking the beach and harbor.  Scrumptious food!  I had squid and chorizo meatballs in a sweet chili sauce on flatbread.  Beer and wine, of course.  They are normally closed on Tuesday, but they were open today to celebrate the one-day presence of the Disney cruise ship.  It arrived this morning and departs tonight.  It’s the largest cruise ship to ever visit Portland Harbor.

Sand Sculpture Exhibit

Back in Weymouth, we stopped at an amusement center (aquarium, train ride, etc) to visit the Sandworld Sculpture exhibit.  Weymouth annually holds a sand sculpture festival.  The sand here is apparently perfect for creating sculptures.  The ones we viewed were amazing.  Some are painted, some are not.  There is an area where you can create your own sculpture.  We did not.  I expected this to be a waste of an hour but it actually was quite enjoyable.

Then it was home again, stopping on the way to buy some more fresh strawberries from the same girl we bought from on Saturday.  Drinks on the chilly patio; dinner at home (leftover Chicken Rogan Josh – I couldn’t find any Josh Groban music to accompany the Rogan Josh.)