The inspiration for my blog this week is the Haiku Heights prompt word “Sugar”. My readers know that my mind moves in mysterious ways so please bear with me on these haiku ~ they truly are connected to sugar!
Memories caught in
spun sugar clouds, on sticks
At the Spanish City
When I was a little girl I lived in the North of England. Holidays were unheard of, but days out were de rigeur. As we had no car we used to catch the train from Newcastle to the coast, usually South Shields or Whitley Bay. They were equally wonderful. South Shields had sand dunes and miles of white beaches while Whitley Bay had the “Spanish City”. It was actually named the “Whitley Bay Pleasure Gardens”, but to us and everyone else who went there, it was the “Spanish City”. It was the most exotic and exciting place in the world with carousels, coconut shies, waltzers, ghost trains, magic mirrors, and any number of other ways to lose what little money we had.
Spanish City with Dome restored
I was obviously not the only person bewitched by the Spanish City as Mark Knopfler and Dire Straits had a hit record called “Tunnel of Love” in 1980 which is all about the place. They too had their origins in Newcastle. If you listen carefully you will hear it mentioned many times. This is the chorus
And now I’m searching through these Carousels and the carnival arcades
Searching everywhere from steeplechase to palisades
In any shooting gallery where promises are made
To rockaway, rockaway…. Rockaway, rockaway
From Cullercoats and Whitley Bay out to rockaway
And girl it looks so pretty to me just like it always did
Like the Spanish City to me when we were kids
And girl it looks so pretty to me just like it always did
Like the Spanish City to me when we were kids
Mark Knopfler with Dire Straits
The link with sugar comes from the Candy Floss which is forever in my memory. Made of spun sugar, it was huge and soft and fluffy, like a cloud on a stick. So here are my Haiku
Capturing childhood
In pink and white sugar, spun
Into candy floss
Memories meld, of
Days by the coast, sea-mist and
Fairground fantasies
Sadly the Spanish City is no more. The last I heard the dome had been restored and there were plans for a four star boutique hotel, a care home, new public spaces and an outdoor performance areas on the 7 acre seafront site.
Heavenhappens 