Rides on Clacton Pier, 2016

I had no intention of going on any rides on Clacton Pier. Not that I don’t like going on rides, but I was meant to be ‘working’. It was enjoyable just listening to the mechanics of the contraptions that people are strapped in to, hearing the cheers, whoops and screams and seeing (most) people enjoy themselves. Yes there is cheesy music. Yes there is the tacky seaside paraphernalia that still exists decades, perhaps centuries, after it was introduced. But that just adds to the atmosphere and the occasion. Yes, I was on assignment, but it also felt like I was on holiday, and holidays are good and just what I needed.