Do you live in Kent?

I live very very close to Leeds castle too.

sunshine hi I am a Medway citizen, yes born and bred also most of ancestors too; but in 1600/1700s families came from Ireland
grand age of seventy;
do any of you do tracing of ancestors ? it would be fun to make contact in new year --perhaps share an interest?
meet up in some half-way café, garden centre or such ?

I am sure lots of us enjoy looking around new areas. specially now with our bus passes wink brew grin.

though my big problem regards socializing is my deafness ; no phone calls -but text on mobile, and email.

looking forward to sharing more blogs/message with you all

Hello,
I lived near Canterbury for nearly 40 years mainly in Chartham
I worked at Chartham paper mill for about 35 years

I would do it if I still lived in Kent. I only left 14 years ago (only!) and I really miss it, especially since my daughter and GCs and very best and oldest friends are there.

I hate the traffic there, though. We have about a tenth as much in Suffolk.

hi nanapug and sandra, I too live in Gillingham kent, born Rochester ;
rotten weather here this past year !
I am a gt nan with 1 gt grandson and 9 g/children; eldest D/D lives usa.
me - quite healthy and mobile, but deaf; retired, like travel, and historic progs; midwife on call, Selfridges ; old films from pre 60,s including those Disney ones lol. lets hear more from your lives ?

I grew up in Yalding and went to school in East Malling and Wateringbury.....lived in the NW for over 40 years now

Hi all I was born and bred in London then moved to Sidcup when we bought our first house, then to Green St Green near Farnborough Village where I raised my kids and which I loved. However, after my divorce had to move again and ended up in St Pauls Cray near Orpington. Then met my partner over 6 years ago and sold my house, retired and moved in with him in his house in Tunbridge Wells. Love living here and love being retired. Also think we have the best weather in the UK such as it is. Just joined this site

Lovely to see all these village/town names again. I am an Essex girl who moved to Kent on marriage - we lived in East Malling just for a few weeks, then Borough Green and lastly East Peckham. My dd was born at Pembury Hospital in 1973 and then we had two weeks in the lovely Tunbridge Wells Maternity Home. I feel so sorry for today's mums who go home the day after birth with no advice. We had lessons in bathing baby, changing nappies and lots of bed rest too. Sorry - gone off topic too much but I loved my early years in Kent. The village greens, apple orchards and strawberry picking in fields. We moved to the Isle of Wight in 1975 and still love it here.

Hi, I'm from Deal, nice little seaside town.

I may be the newest member joined about ten minutes ago.

Originally from London have moved about a lot during my sixty odd years
looking forward to more chats.

Hi jcdoh. Yes have done a bit of ancestry, have gone back to 1745 I think. It's been sometime since I looked. winter is coming and will be back on the case no doubt.

Don't have any grandchildren yet but have one on the way. Exciting but
they live in Worcestershire, so won't be hands on sadly.

Also love to travel and watch historical progs. Were off to Alaska next May.Can't wait.

Hi Susan2014, and welcome. You`re right, Deal is a nice little seaside town. We`ve only been once, on a trip out when we stayed at St. Margaret`s Bay, but we really liked it, and there`s a great fish and chip shop not far off the sea front! Liked the shops as well. Wouldn`t mind going back there.
Hello to Pennyh47 as well!

I am in Sittingbourne. Went to school here. Born in Lynsted, not far away, moved with parents to Teynham. Family roots are here and around, so doing Ancestry is interesting

I'm in Tunbridge Wells - just joined. It all looks very complicated to the newcomer....

Welcome Bertie I'm in Sheppey.

If you need help just ask we're all very friendly. If you want to send a private message just go to the pink bar with the person's name on and click 'private message.
Or just join in as you have here.

Thank you Nina. Have only just found your message. Having joined up I'm not sure what to do next.....Not on Facebook or Twitter etc [Confused]

If you click on Active at the top of the page you will get a list of current threads/topics pick one and add your comment or chose a forum and start your own thread.

Hello! I'm in Westgate on Sea - anyone else around here?

Hi, I live in Paddock Wood, Kent---a lot of familar names from round here, I have seen. Tunbridge Wells--strangely no tonbridge--Coxheath, Pembury, Yalding. I used to live in West London, then moved to Welling in Kent. But I have been in Paddock Wood for 40 years, apart from 1 year when we moved back to Welling, realised we had made a mistake, so moved back as fast as we could ! I love it here. It is relatively small, but has everything, including trains-50 minutes to London. Easy access to Tunbridge Wells, Maidstone.
But growing all the time. !

Sorry , Forgot East Peckham, just down the road. I know it well.

Paddock Wood! I lived in Knockholt, Borough Green and Tunbridge Wells while growing up. Ex in-laws lived in East Peckham for many years, while we lived in Chainhurst and Linton. DD lives in Maidstone, my best friends are in Kent so we often rent an old barn near Lamberhurst and go down for a week to visit everyone.

Sadly I am in Suffolk now. I really miss Kent, even though I love it here. I miss oast houses.

I know all those places. In fact I am going to Lamberhurst tomorrow for lunch, as it is my WI annual meal there--at the Chequers inn, if you know it. they do us a lovely meal at a really good price.

I have a friend who moved into half a converted church in the middle of Lamberhurst.

Yes, I know it, but we usually go to The Vineyard. I haven't had a meal at The Chequers but my friend's DD says it is very good, we thought we would try it next time.

I remember Paddock Wood when it had a decent toy shop, and a rather nice little department store. I heard the store had gone, or changed hands.

Do you mean the Swan, just at the back of the Vineyard. yes we have been there too, Plus the Brown Trout. Plus had a meal at Bewl Bridge Resevoir--that was lovely, beautiful view of all the boats on the water, but the foodc was just average. !

Yes PW did have a nice toyshop, on the corner--long gone now. But the department store is still there and thriving. Called Barsleys, it has been taken over by younger members of the family, and recently had a huge revamp--but I preferred it as it was. They moved everything around, so if you wanted knitting needles or cotton, you had to go upstirs, whereas downdtait=rs they installed a huge brands new toy area.

Barsleys! That's it, I knew one of the daughters of the family many years go, married to Alan something or other. Cornford? She got me to pick my wedding presents from the store! I lived in Chainhurst, but parking was so much easier there back then than in Maidstone that if I wanted something I would often pop to Paddock Wood for preference, and have a coffee there too. Downstairs they had luggage - I remember buying a set of suitcases there.

Memories - I used to take the children for rides on the boat that went around Bewl Bridge. I remember when it was a beautiful valley, people up in arms because it was going to be flooded. As young newly marrieds, a friend of ours had his first proper job there as a fully qualified engineer, so he would take us round every month or so to see the progress. I had to keep quiet about not seeing it as progress, but there's no denying that it provides much-needed water (despite leaks!) and we used to go to many open-air concerts there. George Melly being the last I saw there, I think.