Amongst a day filled with pumpkin soup, lighting of the jack'o'lantern on the doorstep, greeting 'trick or treaters', ghost (or in my case gross) storytelling, classic horror movie clips, Satanic TV documentaries and exchanging of Halloween gifts; the morning was spent ambling around Whitstable, former home town of horror legend Peter Cushing. And what an apt year to be visiting this quaint coastal town on the 100th anniversary of his birth.
Whitstable delighted (as Rye has in the past) with many olde worlde homes proudly displaying carved jack'o'lanterns and home-made halloween decorations no doubt made by children on their half-term holiday. Quite a number of shops had followed suit too in a high street still populated by more local businesses than big brand names.
A couple of the decorations that caught our eye in a charity shop were an interesting witch and a rustic wooden cat placard.
The obligatory visit to the Tudor Tea Rooms was made for lunch, where Peter Cushing used to take his daily lunch.
And on the way back home, at a pit stop at Canterbury's Goods Shed, we found some pumpkin spiced ale! Stingy Jack ale smelled spicier than it tasted, admittedly, but it was worth it for the design on the bottle alone. So a successful day all round!
Friday 1st November 2013
