Amateur baker, part time traveller and full time foodie~ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tangosbaking/
Made this cake a few days ago for a best friend’s BIG 3-0 birthday! 🥳🥳 Had so much that evening at the bowling alley, and now I am enjoying the glorious sunshine ☀️ at Folkestone for Jubilee weekend. Really don’t want to go back to work on Monday… 😪😅
Going back to work this week really did make me realise I will be soon facing reality again and back to routines. So I decided to make use of the bank holiday weekend to do one last trip to Brighton before the end of summer, hoping for some nice sunshine! ☀️ The last time I visited Brighton was all the way back in October last year with my mum during the half term break (come to think of it that was before the last national lockdown- time really does fly!)
On arrival it was all bright and sunny and I headed down to the hippy area of The Lanes, stumbling this vegetarian café for food. I ordered their mushroom and courgette lasagne and it tasted really good (I do enjoy having plant-based stuff 🌿🌿 every now and then, it just feels less heavy at times lol!)
While the sun was indeed out, the beach was generally still quite windy so it felt actually colder than it looked! 🥶 However, after checking into the hotel and having rested a little, I decided to head out to the beach for a mini picnic.
Afterwards, I journeyed along the beach (passing the naturist’s beach at one point haha! 😆) and reached the Brighton Marina Square.
I also got to enjoy the beautiful sunset and the vibrant night lights of the Brighton seafront 🌅🌃 (making the most of staying in a hotel by the beach this time! 😂)
The next day, I also paid a visit to the Royal Pavilion (which was doing renovations when I was here last time.) Also pleasantly surprised to find out that the normal ticket is all year around, so I can visit again and again for free! 😁
After the visit to the Royal Pavilion, I still had time to revisit the other side of the seafront and sit down for a seafood lunch at a restaurant by the i360 tower! 🤤🤤
Summer is finally over, but I know plenty of adventures are still out there! 🙂
Despite a potential forecast of rainfall, I was very lucky that my time throughout Newquay was blessed with amazing sunshine and comforting temperatures. Even after spending my first day here visiting all these incredible beaches, I just couldn’t get enough of it! So I decided to continue to head west, passing by Porth Beach again and journey beyond to Watergate Beach. 🏖
Watergate Beach is quite far out in Newquay – about a 30-minute walk from Porth Beach along the high cliffs on the coast, so I definitely did well in my step counts for the day! 😂 On the way, I also passed by Whipsiderry Beach – a quiet, hidden little spot underneath the tall cliffs (possibly the tallest one out of them all I felt!) If you aren’t a fan of stairs, this place is definitely quite a ‘journey’ to get to going down and back up. 😤 (At least it wasn’t like when I tried to climb the Eiffel Tower on foot two years ago…)
Even though the stairs in Whipsiderry Beach completely wore me out, I finally managed to slowly made my way around the coast to Watergate Beach. It was a great spot for me to finally to sit down for some lunch! (Bought a salad meal deal from Tesco, along with my rocky road bar that I kept all this time from Penzance! 😂)
Watergate beach was very busy which I wasn’t as much of a fan of, so I decided to head back to Porth beach (personally it was my favourite one out of all the beaches) to enjoy the sunshine! 😎
After a bit of a nap and sky-gazing, it was almost dinner time! Newquay really had given me a feel of the Mediterranean, so I was feeling a crave for tapas! 😋 Unfortunately, two of the top-rated tapas bar were closed for the day, so I decided to try another recommended place called the Fish Bar. This place is a great value for money, offering a three-tapas tasting platter for only £15 in the bar area. (The main dining area of the restaurant was fully filled.) The food, especially the dessert, was absolutely delicious! So glad to have come to this place after all! 👍👍👍
The next morning, I had some time to kill before my train around lunchtime, and headed to the Blue Reef Aquarium by Towan Beach. Like many other places now, bookings need to be made in advance online due to COVID restrictions. I booked my ticket two days ago when I arrived in Newquay – still places are limited, so do make sure you book ahead of time if you can. (I initially wanted to visit the day before, but all tickets were sold out within a day. It is half term break after all! 😛)
After visit the aquarium, I took a walk down the town centre and got my belly filled before my long 5-hour train journey home. ☺️🚂
It was almost a bit difficult saying goodbye to Penzance but knowing it was the beginning of another journey made it all the more easier! 😂 After a 2-hour train journey (with a changeover in Par), I arrived in Newquay just around lunchtime when the sun continues to be hanging high up in the sky! 🌞
After dropping off my stuff in the hotel, I wasted no time heading down to the coast (starting from Towan Beach heading west to Fistral Beach) and enjoyed the beautiful views of the deep blue sea under the bright blue sky. 💙💙
Situated by Fistral Beach is The Fish House – highly recommended by the Michelin guide, and it certainly didn’t disappointed! I know I had been having a lot of seafood lately, but this one certainly topped it for me! 🔥🔥 I was very lucky too to be able to get a booking as I managed to reserve the only spot available this month last night, so if you are planning to visit make sure you look well ahead of time as the restaurant is an extremely popular choice!
After an amazing lunch, it was time to walk off the calories by exploring the beach and coastline! 😉 I walked across almost the entirety of Newquay from west to east, eventually reaching Lusty Glaze Beach and Porth Beach.
As the sun set over Newquay, I ventured out into Porth Island (as the last destination for the day) hoping to get a full view of the beautiful scenery.
A weekend like this has been a long time coming! With lockdown easing finally allowing overnight stay this week, I wasted no time a few days ago booking my city break from London. As soon as I got off work on Friday, I jumped on an Uber to the train station and away we go! 🚞🚞
For this trip, I picked the coastal town of Folkestone just to be close to the sea. The town overlooks the English Channel and is a nice little tourists’ attraction along the English coast. Taking that into account, I also picked a hotel situated by the seafront. Weather, however, was not on my side from the get-go with strong gusts of wind 🌬🌬 (and rain 🌧) throughout the Friday evening. (Mind you I did expect it as the weather in London have been absolutely miserable this past week too ☹️) In fact it was so windy, I was struggling to even walk (and snap photos 📸 – in fear of my phone getting blown away into the sea! 🌊) So, I basically retreated to my hotel room and restaurant for dinner.
Knowing lockdown easing will probably mean that restaurants may be fully booked up, I spent some time before my trip calling up restaurants to reserve tables for me. (Which is very unlike me as I usually just go on the fly! 😂) After going some researches online, I decided to head to Marleys for dinner on Friday. Absolutely loved the food there and it’s cute, cosy interior! 💓
The staff were all very warm and welcoming, and to top it it off – I think I had the best tuna I had ever eaten in my entire life! 🐟 Perfectly cooked to medium rare and well seasoned – I couldn’t get enough of it honestly! 😂
The next morning after enjoying some ‘me-time’ in the bath 🛁 (and the night before! 😂) I decided to head along the coast as the weather took a nicer turn! (Thank goodness! 🙌🙌)
The Folkestone pier was just simply breathtaking. The sea was so calming and the view truly did throw away all my worries for the week out the window (albeit temporarily! 😂) It really let me appreciate the freedom of being able to travel again.
I also headed to the creative quarter – a quirky, colourful area of the town. Marleys where I visited yesterday was also situated in this unique alley.
When you are in a coastal town by the sea, surely seafood is a must, right? 🦪🦐🦀🐟 Hence my visit to the Harbour Inn for lunch (again booked in advance.)
After the luxurious seafood lunch, I left the restaurant just as rain poured heavily over the town. ☔️☔️ Just so happened I left my phone charger in the hotel, I walked back into my room with my trousers 👖 all soaked. 💦
After taking yet another hot bath and a brief nap in the room, I decided to head to the beachfront (umbrella in hand of course!) as the rain started to fade. Walking gradually into the sun, I was taken by surprise of an amazing view from behind! 🥰🌈
And more colourful surprises down the beach! (I think folks in Folkestone really do love their colours haha!) Maybe I should think about moving here lol? 😂🤔
To cap off the day, I went back to the Folkestone harbour for some light seafood snacking by the water.
And lastly, a few more snaps of the pier as night falls. ✨✨
Oh, and also, happy Eurovision day! (Caught the last hour or so of it back in my hotel room! 😂)
Tango's Baking 