The weather gods have been extremely good to us these days, we’ve seen sun for most of last bank holiday weekend which made our day trip to Rye much more enjoyable.
A few months ago, I asked the help of my instagram friends to give me some ideas of an easy day trip destination from London. I received quite a few suggestions but one which stood out was Rye in East Sussex. Not only because of its proximity to London but also because of its very instagrammable look. I just had to go and see it for myself.
Rye is just an hour and a half drive away from South West London. We thought the drive would be horrible being a bank holiday weekend but we were actually against the traffic both ways.
A medieval town perched on a hill, Rye used to be entirely surrounded by sea. It used to be a port and then a naval base until the water retreated from the town a few centuries ago. Today, Rye depends on its tourist appeal attracting traffic not only locally but internationally as well.
I went straight to the famous Mermaid Street as soon as we arrived in Rye which used to be the town’s main road. The half-timbered houses and the cobblestone street magnetize all of its visitors to flock the area. It looks like it was stuck in the Medieval era which adds up to its charm.
Houses in this street are uniquely named based on its physical appearance – The House with Two Front Doors, The House Opposite and The House With A Seat just to name a few. I haven’t found the answers as to why the names of these houses were like that, if you do know why please tell us! 🙂
We went to have a quick drink at The Mermaid Inn, one of Rye’s many historical inns. It is possibly the most beautiful pub we’ve ever had a pleasure to drink in, established in the 14th century – the Tudor style building instantly attracts you to it.
The Mermaid Inn is also very popular for its ghostly hauntings, it was said that the Kingsmill which is Room 17 is haunted by the ghost of a woman believed to be the wife of the Hawkhurst gang founder who used this inn as their base. Guests would find the rocking chair moving in the middle of the night and the room becoming icy cold. The chair was eventually removed from the room as it caused so many disturbances with the guests.
We walked around the town some more after we finished our drink. We then drove towards Camber Sands afterwards, a popular coastal resort in the area. It was very busy when we went, sun’s out and on top of that it was also a bank holiday weekend. We didn’t stay long though as we were not very impressed. You can’t blame us, I’m from the Philippines and the husband is Greek – we’re used to better beaches in our home countries. Lol. It’s still nice to know though that there’s a place like Camber Sands within our reach if we ever miss the salty air.
It was a great day spent in East Sussex. It’s always nice to discover new and pretty places specially if it’s just a short drive away from where you live.
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It is really very nice and amazing place and trip.
Regards,
Vasudha
very nice indeed!