Rye

Oh, Rye. I don't think I have ever been to a town that was so beautiful as a whole; there's little I love more than a good medieval street, and the town center is packed full of them. We navigated the tiny streets in our rental car and went straight to the Mermaid Inn, where we were staying. The inn itself is a historian's treasure trove, so I've reserved a separate post just to talk about it, but needless to say I was in heaven. 

Once we squeezed our car into a parking space and dropped off our luggage, we stepped out onto Mermaid Street and set off to explore the town. Rye is one of the historic Cinque Ports, towns that were given much legal and financial leeway from the Crown in exchange for supplying ships in times of need. This resulted in a somewhat close relationship, with Elizabeth I declaring the town "Rye Royal" following a visit in 1573, and Charles II sourcing much of the fish for his household from Rye. Many other monarchs spent time in Rye as well, whether for pleasure or out of necessity.

The leeway granted by status as a Cinque port, however, also resulted, to some degree, in the towns becoming havens for smuggling and other general misbehavior, and Rye was no exception--the infamous Hawkhurst Gang was based in the town and operated largely unhindered until their crimes began to devolve into murder and the townspeople turned against them. Today, though, the only danger that exists is being dumbstruck by the beauty and quiet of this picturesque little town.