Series 01: Anne Donnell circular letters, 25 May 1915 - 8 July 1918 - Page 260
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[Page 260]
The streets in places are not more than 2 or 3 yards wide and the footpaths stretch from 2 to 3 feet where there are any at all. Then the quaint and narrow stone steps that lead up to the doors – some going straight – some sideways & some curved, while others lead down! The Sunday morning and the church bells are ringing – and cant you imagine the little children coming out of these cubby holes theirs dressed in an old fashioned Sunday but the little girls still wearing white embroidered nickers below the knees, but all is spotlessly clean. I don't think the sun could ever shine down on to these footpaths. And I began to wonder why in years gone by the fisherfolk built their houses like this – was it because they led such an open life on the sea that they wanted to be sheltered in their homes from the Sun, air and wind. The more modern town is built on the hillside where there are some lovely residences, where too you get an extensive view of the Sea and coast for miles. The whole life here seemed such a complete change from the rest of England that I had seen. The nice old fisherman as I passed them greeted me with a "Good marnin to ee". I would loved to have stayed longer amongst them.
Somehow with the War raging so I thought I might be the visitor at the Hotel, but to my surprise there were a good many, chiefly. I think people who were accustomed to spending the winters in Egypt – Italy or the South of France and not being permitted there in these Times have come here as the next best thing. I heard one lady remark to another "You know this war is very hard on us when we have to spend these cold winters in