Getting My Feet Wet

Even in the winter, it's refreshing to walk along the seafront. And on a sunny spring day, who can resist a stroll on the beach and maybe getting your toes wet?

I can resist! It's the North Sea! I know the water is cold! I was fairly surprised to see people on the beach and in the water. (In fairness, the people who were brave (?) enough to get in the water seemed to be teenagers. But there's another reason I didn't need to dip my toes into the sea. I'd already got them wet when I washed my face. The sink in our room was so small that when I splashed water on my face to rinse it, all the water fell onto my feet. Which was unfortunate because I was wearing socks at the time. (I forgot to pack my ballet slippers.) Who knew they made sinks this size? It's barely the length of my hand. 

But as you can see, although it is small, it is clean. And white. The whole room was essentially small, clean, and white. But white does make things appear larger and more spacious. "White" essentially describes our room at The Beeches.

Background information: There's a fairly big difference between a B&B in the US and a B&B in the UK. In the US, they are typically large, older houses furnished with antiques. Each room in a house will have a distinct character and decor. The rooms have names and guests reserve a specific room. Guests are welcome to use the common areas of the house, such as the sitting room or parlor. Breakfast usually includes hot and cold foods, but rarely is anything cooked to order.  Guests are encouraged, (if not forced) to sit with other guests at breakfast. They tend to be somewhat upscale - typically not a low-cost option. They do have those types of B&B in the UK (we stayed in one in Wales this past February - Fabulous!) but frequently the term B&B is applied to a guest house, which is typically minimally furnished, sometimes with older furniture but rarely with antiques. Like a hotel, most of the rooms are furnished as identically as practical and guests do not reserve a specific room. There typically aren't any common areas other than the dining room, which typically has a table for each room so that guests do not need to share a table with strangers. Breakfast usually consists of an assortment of cereals and fruit, maybe some yogurt and then a cooked-to-order hot breakfast. These guest houses are often low-cost options. Often, particularly in small towns, this type of accommodation is the only option.

We found The Beeches to be basic, but adequate. It was exceptionally clean and the host was exceptionally friendly. While the room was small, it was large enough for us to store our bags without tripping over them. (We have been in rooms where that wasn't possible. - See post from last year about the Clarence Hotel in Windsor.) The bed wasn't especially comfortable but perhaps I'm just more sensitive to that type of thing in my old age. Of course, there was no air conditioning and it was warm. We opened the window and found that while the sea gulls were noisy, the noise was not unpleasant and we slept just fine. The parking was inadequate for the number of rooms, but those who couldn't get into the parking at the front of the house were able to park across the street.

The Beeches may not be my first choice of places to stay in and around Clacton, but I won't be hesitant to stay here again if my first choice isn't available. But next time, I'll bring makeup remover pads.