A Short Peek at Bethersden

On the way home I called in at Bethersden and had a pint in The George. I expect that on a Saturday you will find the place a boon on a hot day. The beer is good and the restaurant cool and inviting with an affordable menu. I didn't eat there becuase lunch service was over and I had eaten a light lunch at Bodiam.

The George is a local pub as opposed to The Bull on the main road. I thnk I would settle initially for the George.

Anyway, I took a short walk around the village and visited the church where a volunteer was working on the garden that bordered the path to the church door and for a few moments we chatted. It appears that there are a number of volunteers each with a 'plot' to look after. The system is instead of employing a contractor to do the work. This way they get a good job done and have the satisfaction of knowing that it will be done properly.


As this was a casual walk I took the path around the church and met another resident sitting on a bench with her two dogs in attendence. I asked permission to take her picture and we chatted about the place, put the world to rights and spent a pleasant twenty minutes nattering. She told me about the local stone which is known as Bethersden Marble - the path in front of the bench is made of it - and we parted feeling much better about life, the universe and everything.

Afterwards I took some pictures of the village and saw this little gem of a porch with the vivid red rose and of course I had to include it.

Bethersden is typical of our small villages; it suffers from recession as most places do and has to concede to commercial pressures and allow businesses and light industry to take root. It is a matter of survival but a pity because the natural beauty of the place is diminished. But we need a mixture of people living in the villages or they become the domain of the rich and that must be boring for everybody.