Slapton Sands

James had yesterday off so we took the children out for a long walk along Slapton Sands, we hadn't been there since the oldest children were little so it was great to visit again.  There is quite a history to the beach, it was used by the American forces to practice for the 1944 D-day landings in France.

Unfortunately over 900 American servicemen died during one rehearsal named 'Exercise Tiger'.  It was good to be able to talk to the children about the history of the area and the sacrifices that were made for us.  They loved seeing the Sherman Tank that was recovered from the bottom of the sea where it had rested for 40 years.  It now stands as a memorial to those that died.  We continued our walk along the beach and found some treasures:

At one end of the beach is the small village of Torcross.  It has beautiful thatched and slate roof cottages lining the seafront and the children decided that when we are rich we will buy one and live here:

I couldn't agree more, it was so beautiful, even on a dull day.  We climbed some steps up to the cliffs:

And back down:

We had our lunch in this gorgeous B&B cafe that overlooks the sea:

The interior was just as lovely, it was bright and decorated in a Cath Kidston style mixed with a little sea memorabilia:

The food was organic home cooked fare and I had the most tasty pasty accompanied by a salad that was like no salad I have ever eaten before.  It consisted of lettuce, red onion, sweetcorn, green pepper, pineapple, red grapes, oranges and tomatoes.  Delicious!  I want to go back to Slapton already.