The sunshine on Saturday was a welcome break after long weeks of endless rain and stormy weather. It turned out to be a
special day as a core group of Tooting Transitioners ventured out on their
first outing to the historic market town of Lewes in East Sussex in hope of a "Fun Day Out".
Juliet from Transition Town Lewes met us at the station and
showed us around, our first stop being to buy some Lewes Pounds, which have an
established presence in many of Lewes’s shops and businesses. After a breeze
through a vibrant farmers' market, we headed to Seedy Saturday, a busy well
attended event with a plethora of stands selling and swapping seeds, exchanging
ideas on everything from growing fruit and vegetables to wild basketry and
pottery.
Whilst the sun was still out, the group decided to take in
the local sites. Lewes is a cute market town with a castle on top of a hill and
lots of narrow alleyways and twittens.
Few high street chains clutter up the high street here, but instead
numerous individual shops, cafes and restaurants attract the eye. Lewes really
is an idyllic place to spend exploring on a Saturday afternoon.
After a hearty lunch at the Lewes Arms washed down with a
pint or two of Harveys, we got the opportunity to enjoy a good chat and exchange
ideas with Lewes transitioners, and compare the joys of living in our
respective boroughs.
After a further meander around town and down to the Ooze
flood plain we were ready to finish our afternoon with another pint in the
Snowdrop, the site of a tragic avalanche of snow (hence the name) which killed
a number of Lewes cottage dwellers in that area.
By now the TTTers and TTLers were on very friendly
terms and before we kissed and departed we promised to keep in touch with each
other in the hope that one day they too could be tempted to venture out to
sample the delights of Tooting. Malsara