A friend of mine got in touch a little while ago and mentioned that she creates travel vlogs – which sounded very interesting. I don’t mind at all sharing my own stories and little adventures here, writing about what I do and what I get up to and where I go, but I’m not at all sure I’d be able to do a vlog! I get nervous about strange things, and self-conscious. I’ve been interviewed on the radio a few times, and that was fine – I can witter on quite happily. I’ve been on writers’ panels at live events and enjoy that a great deal. In fact I can rabbit on at the drop of a hat in any situation – but if there was a camera on me I don’t think I would be quite as at ease.
My friend mentioned that she was hoping to come to Weston-super-Mare and do a feature on it and as I’m very proud of our little town, despite its many detractors, I was very excited. There are understandable reasons why some people are negative about Weston – but I guess most places provoke divided opinions, some people love them, and others with the opposite point of view. Weston is a seaside town with influxes of visitors at different times of the year – in warmer weather people enjoy beach holidays, there are events such as the Dairy Festival in the summer and the Carnival in the autumn, and more regular happenings such as bike nights when bikers and their motorbikes come from far and wide to enjoy each others company.
Weston was a small seaside town but post World War 1, there was an influx of workers and their families to various factories which were established in the town. Housing was built on what became the Oldmixon and the Bournville estates with families moving from afar (many from the west Midlands and Birmingham area)and the town no longer depended on tourism for employment. Weston is a very varied place now in terms of diversity on different levels, although there are fewer minority groups than in other areas of the country.
I’m drifting away from what I began to tell you about, my friend who visited our little town (although it’s not so little anymore, in 2024 there were approximately 86,820 of us living here!) Unfortunately the slogan – ‘Come to sunny Weston!’ didn’t apply during her day here, it was wet, windy, and probably a bit chilly. However, from the moment she stepped off the train at our historic station, built 1884 to replace the earlier one of 1841 (June 14th) the rain came down in floods, and the wind was roaring in off the sea.
The conditions did not deter my doughty friend, and she left the station and headed to the sea front. She produced a grand little video, battling against the on-shore wind and the precipitation. Here is the result – enjoy!
jhttps://www.youtube.com/@k-travel-diaries/search?query=Weston
Lois Elsden 