[ May 2016 ] There is a tramway along the coast of Blackpool in north England. It has been there since 1885, which makes it one of the oldest electric tramways in the world. The length is 18 km. The new stylish trams are used by citizens everyday, but in the weekend when we were there, they were running the old style trams for tourists. So we took one and it seemed the one called ‘Open Boat No.600’.
The destination was Pleasure Beach, the most popular amusement park in the UK. It is a historical park founded in 1896. There are as many as 10 roller coasters and my purpose was to ride the one called ‘Big One’. When they opened this in 1994, this coaster was the tallest, fastest and steepest in the world. And it was one of the longest, too, with 1675m. I always wanted to have a ride on this. Because there was a warning at the entrance for people with high blood pressure, my husband decided not to have a go, so I went on my own. I have loved roller coasters since I was little, but I did not ride any for many many years. The first climb, the high speed and the tilt were all thrilling, but what I was most afraid was the constant tremble. When I was young, I used to want to ride again and again, but this time, I did not feel like that, but still, I had a great sense of achievement.
By the way, we bought a ticket which included entrance to the Pleasure Beach and just one ride, which was perfect for me. It cost 10 pounds. On the way back from the park, we took a carriage like the one Cinderella had.
