The Three Bears of Whitstable

A few months ago I took three days off to go near the sea. Normally I would go to the North East of England or Scotland where I still have some friends, but this time I decided to go to Whitstable. A good friend and old colleague of mine used to always talk about it and how she would love to live there one day. So my curiosity got the better of me and when I found a cheap deal on a room because of a last minute cancellation I decided to visit it.

I arrived on a late afternoon and after checking in and leaving my bag I went out hoping to catch a glimpse of the sea before it got too dark. It was extremely windy and the clouds were running with an amazing speed, rather like when you are on a boat. I could smell the sea even from the high street. The high street was basically one long road, with shops either side that in the end forked into two; one road led to the beach and the other one towards the port. I saw all this in a folded map from the hotel.
But I did not make it very far down the high street on that afternoon. The high street is full of really interesting shops. Every second shop is a charity shop and in between those there are lots of antique shops and second hand shops. So I stopped at at least four shops to look at different things and by the time I came out from the last one the wind was blowing like mad and it had started to rain in an almost horizontal fashion.
Just before I turned around to go back to the hotel, I looked into a charity shop window and saw what looked like three stuffed bears displayed on the floor. I could see they were really flat, rather like cushions, and quite old-fashioned. There was so much rain on the shop window it looked like the place would flood at any minute. When I got back to the hotel I realised those must have been The Three Bears from the story with Goldilocks. That was really funny because at the time I was sketching the three bears and Goldilocks and the red riding hood characters for a book for Aretousa.

The next day I decided to head straight for the sea and not stop that much. I only stopped to look at those Three Bears. They were still on the floor like the day before. I liked them but immediately. There were only two reasons I did not buy them . They had a weird, musty smell about them (a little bit like old urine I am afraid to say) and also they were The Three Bears from the story, which meant if I bought them I would never be able to finish my ones. These would definitely take over in my mind and any design I would do afterwards would look a bit like them. So I stopped looking at them too much before I memorised them.
When I reached the sea I decided to buy them only if they were still there the day I left and only if I had managed to finish my own drawings by then.

Whitstable Beach

Whitstable Port

The following day I managed not to stop and look in the shop, but on purpose I walked on the opposite side of the road. That lunch time I decided to try the famous Whitstable native oysters and local beer in an Oyster Bar. It was so busy as if I was in Paris! They found me a table in the end and I got out my little black sketchbook to try and finish my drawings of the three bears for Aretousa. This always works one way or another with me. They either see you are busy in the restaurant and leave you well alone to work or they think you are some kind of food critic and start being over attentive. The second thing happened to me there, so that is my excuse for not finishing the three bears sketch. Also I was thinking by then only of the actual Three Bears in the shop and starting to fear they were sold.

The three unfinished bears

As an act of self discipline rather than anything else (and stubbornness) I still did not look in the shop on the way back. That night I did not sleep well and the next day I was leaving. So I went to look for The Three Bears in the shop, still unsure of whether I should be buying them or not. They were not on the floor and at the same time that I was relieved, my heart felt heavy. The Three Bears had changed position, I saw them on the way out. They still smelled very bad, I think worse than the first time I saw them and their design was by now imprinted in my head. So I bought them for £1 per head.
I had to seal them in a bag, unstitch them, remove the stuffing and wash everything twice, then refill them and re-stitch them before they were presentable. They are still a bit floppy, but have become Aretousa's favourite thing, so I felt that at least I did not return empty handed from Whitstable.

The Three Bears of Whitstable