Hand In Glove With Herne Bay Happiness

We woke up today to glorious sunshine so it had to be a trip to the coast. We settled on heading to Herne Bay via Whitstable and Tankerton. We didn't stop at Whitstable but did decide to take a pit stop at Tankerton for a break in our journey - which is when we realised how incredibly cold it actually was. We literally only lasted a very quick walk along the seafront and had to get straight back in the car and put the heater on full blast to stave off what felt like the onset of possible hypothermia!
By the time we arrived in Herne Bay and parked the car we'd warmed up enough again to able to venture back out into the bone crunchingly cold wind. 
We walked along the seafront through the Palm Court and made a beeline for the town's truncated pier. We strolled to the end of the pier to try and get some images and then noticed that a tiny be-hutted establishment monikered "Beer on the Pier" was open where we took shelter from the wind and were able to garner a pint of pilsner each and even meet this minuscule hostelry's semi resident pigeons and sparrows (the proprietor kindly avails them of some crushed crisps as a supplement to their usual diet).
Our pints consumed we continued our stroll down on to the beach and past the amusement arcades before returning to the pier where were delighted to find another hut was still serving hot food. We had an alfresco hot cheese and ham bagel sheltered against that biting wind by a handily placed glass partition. By the time we left the pier the sun was now at our backs and we could feel the warmth returning to our hands and feet again.
We captured today's images on our walk back to the car as the light turned a lovely golden hue. The main shot is mine and is of a sight you don't often see at the British seaside - a penguin - with the pier stretching out in the background. I particular like the boy just behind the penguin reaching out a gloved hand. The extra is my brother's of a view along the esplanade with a local statue sporting a beach towel in a rather fetching shade of blue!
Despite the bItter cold we had a lovely time and we definitely left with the afterglow of some Herne Bay happiness!

BRIANW