Go Fly A Kite

I love living near the ocean. One of the advantages of being here is that there is a terrific variety of scenery to pick from. And a lot of it is significantly more dramatic than we might have found in Britain, so it gives an opportunity to really get to grips with what your preferences for dramatic scenary are. Even the seaside is more dramatic - it's the Pacific Ocean, not some namby-pamby puddle you can wade across to The Continent. When you look out across the water, the knowledge that it doesn't stop until you hit Asia evokes something grander than the English Channel across to France (I had the same reaction on the West coast of Ireland, for the same reason). And the beaches are quite empty in early April, too.

The other thing about beaches in early April is that they can be a little breezy. I was recently given a kite. Early teenage memories of family holidays at St. Agnes in Cornwall, flying a kite in the significant "breeze" coming onto the north Cornish coast have left me with an enduring fondness for flying kites... plus it's simply a whole lot of fun. Lucy had a go, too.

...and it turns out that she's quite skillful with the stunts