Rye Freedom

We were up again early today so I could go and collect my car in town after her service and m.o.t yesterday. We took the bus into town and for the second day running we had a 'Spoons breakfast with a large mug of coffee before we went to the garage to settle the bill.
Nigella (my car) was looking resplendent, her paintwork gleaming in the early morning sun as she'd been given a clean inside and out as part of the service. We were going to head straight home but as it was such a sparklng morning we just had to head back to the seaside and opted for Rye in East Sussex as our destination.
It was a lovely smooth drive down there and this time instead of heading straight for the town we ventured out to Rye Harbour. When we had passed through the town it had looked quiet but when we arrived at Rye Harbour the car park was almost bursting at the seams. It seemed like plenty of other people had had exactly the same idea.
Luckily we managed to find a space to park and then took the walk along the path through the nature reserve, where the wonderfully expansive skies open up, and it feels likes you have the freedom to forget any stresses or worries, even if it's only for the duration of your stroll. The only downside on this occasion was that we couldn't reach the beach itself as it was fenced off due to some shingle dredging being carried out but it still felt wonderful to be out in the gloriously fresh sea air. My main shot was taken just as we turned back - and is a view past some of the sea defences back towards the harbour and Rye's iconic little black and white tin hut with its startlingly red roof and a World War Two pillbox. My extra was taken at the harbour itself and I just like the combination of the sunken boat in the foreground, the jetty with the the two workmen standing on it in their bright orange jackets and the elevated harbourmaster's office. 
By the time we returned to the car hunger pangs were definitely beginning to make their presence felt so once we'd got back to the town itself we headed back to our favourite haunt of The Standard Inn for some sticky Korean chicken wings and chips accompanied by a pint. We then had a lovely amble around the town's winding streets and a visit to Rye Art Gallery before setting off for home.

When we got back and turned on the news it was shocking, upsetting and sickening to see the scenes at the White House where President Zelensky was being bulled and browbeaten by the utterly amoral and odious Trump and his awful sidekick JD Vance. What a disgusting and abhorrent way to treat such a brave and principled man who is fighting for the very survival of his people and his country!