they're all flocking........

When i'm talking about flocking, I don't mean the Seagulls, or as I'm currently calling them, Vindictive Giant Flying Rats. These evil flying vermin of the coast, can dump on your car (moving or not) with such pinpoint accuracy that the Airforce has invested millions in studying and copying these birds for their next round of friendly fire. Its not just the accuracy though its the ......quantity! I need a trowel to clear the car nowadays. If I didn't know better i'd have thought cows could fly, (they can't can they?) and that they had a personal vendetta against mankind.

Enough sidetracking. When I'm talking about flocking I mean the people. Bexhill may seem insignificant on a map of the British Isles, but it does seem to be the Mecca of the South Coast, drawing people from the North in droves. (well a few at least) Especially those from London and it’s suburbs. I already have friends and acquaintances that have moved down from Slough, Cheam, Crawley and Chertsey.

For example. I had been looking for months for somewhere to have a decent coffee in Bexhill. Those of you from 'up North' and other sophisticated places take these simple things for granted with your Costa's, Coffee Republic and Starbucks, but we don't have these in our little town. In fact I was convinced that they had never heard the words fresh, ground, gourmet or premium applied to coffee before. Then one Saturday whilst walking away from town with my daughter toward the railway station for a trip to Brighton. I'd just sipped and thrown away another bad coffee that must have been made with a half teaspoon of Mellow Birds, when I stumbled on a coffee shop i'd not seen before. It was called Oasis, and is situated on on the corner of St Leonards Road and Sea Road. I still hadn't had a drink and we had a long journey ahead. Would this Oasis live up to its bold claim as a sanctuary for the parched, or was it just going to be another serving of muddy water, that tastes like it came from the washing machines outlet pipe? My confidence wasn't high.

This pessimism changed to confusion, that eventually led to elation. I know that smell, yes I’ve smelt it before. It was the rich burnt coffee bean aroma that I’d almost forgotten existed. Looking at the menu on the wall and my excitement was complete. Listed wasn’t just your well known Cappuccino and Espresso, but they also had other coffee variations that only people in the know would talk about, including Americano my staple drink for a few years. It wasn’t just words either, they knew the difference between this and a regular coffee. I didn’t have the time to savour this discovery as we were on our way to the station, so I had to buy one to go. So it was not until I sat on the train that I could taste test the coffee, which I am pleased to say was perfect! The taste was as good as the aroma that proceeded it. I had finally found the Oasis for my taste buds. I’d need to investigate this place further.

This is where the point of this post comes in finally. On my return to Oasis I discover why this Coffee Shop stands out in our little town. The owners are from the London area and have moved down recently themselves. This has to be the reason why they understand good coffee. They have tasted the delights firsthand and could see a gap for providing it in Bexhill. It gets spookier than this, because whilst chatting about the coffee and how they do their own blend and are considering marketing and selling it freshly ground for people to purchase and take home, that I discovered that Simon the proprietor worked for a computer company in my old home town of Chertsey up until the last few years. We knew the same people too!! This is not all . While we are chatting a lady nearby tells us she is from Cheam!! So she too must have been on the search for a place to rest up and drink what is now Bexhill’s finest Coffee Shop.

So they are flocking down here, away from the smog and the noise. Thankfully these ones have not brought that side of civilization with them. What the owners of Oasis have brought with them is a sanctuary of the taste buds, enhancing what is already our little bit of paradise.