Friday, June 29, 2012

Dover


I didn't post any pics of Dover yesterday when I wrote about our bus tour, so here are a few. The sky was gray when we first arrived, and as we stood on the pebbly beach a mist began rolling in, obscuring the old castle and church on the clifftops. It looked like the kind of place that probably gets a lot of gray, chilly weather.

I got some photos of the cliffs themselves, but we were looking upward through a maze of hotels and streetlights and urban visual clutter, so none of them are really blog-worthy.


I think we're running out of sightseeing steam. Yesterday we met Jennifer and Jesse at the school where Dave teaches, and he gave them a quick tour. We spent what seemed like a couple of hours just having lunch and talking with Dave's coworker Gordon, who came along. It was a nice, leisurely afternoon.

Last night Dave and I watched "The Ipcress File" with Michael Caine, a surprisingly good Cold War spy movie from 1965, on Netflix. I'm not thrilled with my Netflix subscription here in the U.K. The selection seems very limited. I've tried to rent "Dances With Wolves," "A Room With A View," and the "Die Hard" movies, among others, and none are available. We're not exactly talking about obscure cinema, here!

8 comments:

Reya Mellicker said...

I wonder what films ARE available on netflix U.K.? No Die Hard movies? That's just wrong.

I loved the Ipcress File. I watched it and several others last fall when I was writing my spy novel. Very cool. I love Michael Caine.

I love the cliff pic of Dover! Very cool. And of course you're weary of being tour guides. One wonders how those who guide tourists for a living do it. They must have to drink quite a bit. Ya think?

The Bug said...

I like Michael Caine too. I wonder if the Ipcress File was a book?

I remember Dover very vaguely. Basically we just stood around waiting for the ferry or the bus. I don't even remember if I got any good pics of the cliffs. Hmm - I'll check my album when I get home.

Ms.M said...

Oh wow that wide shot is fabulous.

M

Linda Sue said...

The weather adds to the mysteriousness of the castle, love that photo. I was not terribly impress by the white cliffs of Dover, I guess. Just wanted to get back to London after a long road trip back from Maroc. The cliffs just looked grey and tired to me. I realize that was just my mood.
You certainly are a magnificent host!

Lynne said...

I like the moody shot of the castle. Did you do this in panorama mode or did you stitch it together?

Like the first shot too with its pop of green color. That does not look like a beach to go barefoot on!

What a great movie ... A Room With a View ... now I"ll have to see if it's on anytime in the near future.

Steve Reed said...

Lynne: Neither. It's just a single photo cropped into a long horizontal shape. I haven't done any photo-stitching...that's a skill I still need to learn! (And do I have pano settings on my new camera? I'm not even sure...)

Steve Reed said...

Reya: Based on the suggestions Netflix makes, I think the selection here is very small. I'm not sure why that is, unless the studios are keeping a tight rein on foreign video streaming for copyright reasons.

Bug: I don't know if Ipcress was a book. Hmmm...

M: Thanks!

Linda Sue: The cliffs are quite dramatic, I think, but I wish we'd been able to see them in a more wild, isolated area. I think they'd have an entirely different feel in that kind of environment, rather than an urban one.

Lynne: See my response above! And no, that was not a barefoot beach!

e said...

Steve,

Based on the choices Netflix has given me, I've seen about eighty percent of them...I watch more foreign films and British television than anything...Streaming lags behind their DVD offerings...

I love the shots from your grandmother's house and those dress up dogs were a laugh...