Then we had fish and chips walking around Dover. We ate the best onion rings ever. We made a quick stop at the outlets so Lynn could repurchase the "Start/Finish" plate, so I could write my start/finish time on it. Karen found a few copies of Gavin Mortimer's The Great Swim. Aunt Lynn found a neat book with their sailboat on the cover.
Next: Dover Castle. I was exhausted. We parked in the grassy lot facing the Castle. A little shuttle bus took us to the top. We went in to show our English Heritage Passes and get a receipt. I saw brochures at the register for the Castle so I picked one up. I opened the brochure and read tiredly while managing to insult the museum clerk, "2000 years ago, yadda yadda yadda." I need to work on my inner voice. He heard me and replied, "Mam, there is more to this Castle than '2000 years ago.'" I apologized and said I was tired after just swimming to France. I don't think he believed me. So that was the joke of the day and remains our quote of the trip when we walk around reading signs.... "yadda yadda yadda." The Castle was magnificant: church, lighthouse and tunnels. We waited in a 30 min line for a tour of the WWII tunnels. Very impressive. It was a great presentation. We had to follow the rules and proceed when we saw the green light. During the War, Operation Dynamo was able to rescue over 338,000 British and allied troops that were trapped at Dunkirk. They predicted they could save 28,000. Dover was bombed for over four years by the Germans. On our way home, we stopped at the market for chicken and soup broth and crunchy bread. Lynn made chicken soup and warmed up that lobster.