Advantages: Totally comprehensive guide to Kent
Disadvantages: Although navigation is easy, the volume of information is enormous and to fully explore the whole site could take days

...www.kent.gov.uk is the official Kent County Council website. Not the sort of site you’d pick to browse if you’re looking for thrill a minute fun and excitement, but if you have an interest in Kent for any reason, be it from the point of view as a current or perspective resident, business person, or visitor, it is well worth a look..... “Welcome to Kent, the Gateway between the UK and Europe, and to Kent County Council's website. This is a new site and content will be regularly added and updated. We hope it gives you lots of information about Kent, Kent County Council and its services.” The home page is visually plain and simple, displaying the short greeting message (above), in basic black arial font on a crisp white background. The main category headings of the site are displayed, in bold red font... Read review

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Advantages: Fascinating house, lovely gardens, easy to find
Disadvantages: A bit pricy for a family

...Chartwell House in Kent is most famous for being the home of Winston Churchill and as such acts as a museum and shrine to his life and works. However, it is set in an extremely beautiful location with wonderful gardens and gorgeous views that are a pleasure in their own right and a good guide as to why Churchill himself loved the place so much and why he spent the majority of his life there. The entire site has been owned and run by the National Trust for a number of years and in terms of facilities and general quality is pretty much what you'd expect. On with the details. ############################### # Getting There ############################### Chartwell House is open all year except Dec 25th and is near Westerham, Kent. The National trust website gives useful notes on getting there by road, rail, bike, bus... Read review

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Advantages: Commonplace
Disadvantages: Rare

...be that. It would also be a safer place - safer for the diversity of nature, and safer from our reliance on monoculture, on chemicals and on high energy inputs for our food production. We as a species are taking a gamble that all these things will be sustainable, even in the face of the changing climate that our numbers and activities engender, and it is a gamble that may well be lost. One of the values of places like Marden Meadow is that they remind us we should think about such things. What's more, there's no charge for entry, which makes it especially good value for money. If you feel you ought to be giving something back for your enjoyment of the place, you can always make a donation to Kent Wildlife Trust, which owns it. * Who's in charge * Kent Wildlife Trust is an independent charity dedicated to nature conservation... Read review

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Advantages: met new people, and some that I'd met before
Disadvantages: got up at 7.30am...

...On a leary Zeterday, a mort of fellowly foreigners came a limb-of-a-way to run agin a parcel of reemer men of kent and kentish men. Wus a plum pleasant day, helving with jawsies and jokesies, and nabbling while filling the parish oven with a dossett (or a cantell) of the local Spitfire. I be properly pleased that I went to the first meet to-year. Or, for those of you who do not posess a copy of "Kentish as she wus spoke" by Alan Major: On an overcast Saturday, an large number of companionable non-Kentish visitors came a considerable distance to meet up with a number of excellent inhabitants of the county of Kent. It was a very pleasant day, gossiping with chatterboxes and witty people, and holding idle conversation while filling our mouths with a small dose (or an indefinite number!) of the local Spitfires. I am thoroughly pleased... Read review

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Advantages: High tax free, interest rate. Very efficient
Disadvantages: Old passbook style account.

...I have been looking on the market for months now for a competitive, tax free mini cash ISA account. My own bank could not offer me much in the way of a competitive interest rate and so I looked further. I read the Which magazine every month and I had noticed that Kent Reliance Building Society appeared in their most recommended tax free savings every month! I always expected that the big high street names would offer the best rates and so I was weary about a little building society in kent whom I had never heard of! At the time when I applied to going interest rate was 4.4% APR (tax free) and so I accessed their website www.krbs.co.uk and I was very impressed with how professional it looked and how informative it was. It told me everything I needed to know about all their available accounts and it also enabled me to download... Read review

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Advantages: Dissolves quickly, good trace elements, no waste products left
Disadvantages: Bags are difficult to re-seal when opened

...Kent Marine is one of the leading names in marine aquaria. They make a variety of products to help marine fishkeeperes to improve and simplify their set ups. Kent’s salt is becoming one of the most popular in this country. It is aimed for fish only or reef systems, and contains extra calcium, strontium, iodine and many trace elements which are all exceptionally useful for reef tanks. These products also make it one of the best for marine keepers that use reverse osmosis water, as it replaces the important elements. This salt contains no traces of phosphate, ammonia, nitrite or nitrate. It gives a pH of 8.4 and dissolves very quickly. Calcium and Magnesium levels are very high which helps corals in an invert system to grow at their maximum . I have been using this salt throughout my marine fishkeeping experience and have... Read review

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Advantages: see review
Disadvantages: customer service

...I am a confirmed rate tart! I have no loyalty to any financial institutions and no one can count on my business. I regularly look at the interest rates I am getting on my savings. At the beginning of May a friend told me that she had just transferred her ISA to the Kent Reliance building society, as they were offering a really good rate of interest. I had never heard of this building society before so went of to google them. Their web site is really clear with lots of useful information. I found that they were offering a direct mini cash ISA paying 5.96%. I was also happy to read that they would allow me to transfer my existing mini cash ISA to them held with another provider. Many providers such as Ing pay a higher rate but don’t allow you to transfer your existing ISA so are great for new ISA savers but not good if you have been... Read review

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Advantages: Freindly
Disadvantages: For the More Mature Traveller

...10 mins drive, so a fair walk but a pleasant one at that. The staffs are very friendly though it wasn’t a busy hotel it was extremely pleasant. The room I had was very spacious, I had a trouser press, en suit, telly and tea and coffee making facilities the room I had, had a double bed and a single bed however it was set out very nicely and the room wasn’t crowded. It was like a family room however I am not 100% certain that they could cater for children, there was no Children's menu however they are flexible with meals for people. I didn't see anything for children in my visit there. Then garden looked very nice and spacious, whilst eating in the restaurant I saw a squirrel, you don’t see them very often anymore. I would recommended this hotel to couples wanting to get away and relax, they have a pool and Jacuzzi but they don... Read review

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Advantages: Well disciplined and improving side
Disadvantages: Lack depth in the bowling attack

...The recent win over Lancashire has propelled Kent up to 3rd in the County Championship behind the 2 Roses counties. The team finished just one place above relegation last season having been handicapped by the loss of England bowler Dean Headley and Julian Thompson. That Headley has now had to retire is a sad blow not just for English cricket but for him personally. It is another example though of a promising test bowler not staying fit enough to make an impact. Last season it was Rahul Dravid who was the overseas player making a bagful of runs. Dravid is busy playing for India against the West Indies so this year Darryl Cullinan was signed to flail the county attacks instead. He though is not playing and Australian Andy Symonds has taken his place. The team is captained by Matthew Fleming of the investment banking family. Fleming has... Read review

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Advantages: We should all know Kirsty
Disadvantages: I want to know so much more

...ScottHowitt here. I have happily made the jaunt to Kent in order to engage in a sit-down with the ever elusive Kirsty1. In true American fashion, for this edition of On The Couch we will break with a tradition and have dinner with Kirsty. For starters we order mussels and I lob a few softballs in Kirsty’s direction in order to loosen her up. S: You shared with us a special childhood in Melbourne, it sounds like you had a wonderful upbringing. Do you consider yourself an Australian or have you made a full fledged conversion to the UK? K: I am completely English and from my accent you would never guess otherwise. However, there are two exceptions to this, either: i) I am very VERY angry with you or: ii) I’ve had too many glasses of red wine. In the first case you will suddenly find that my inflection rises and you... Read review

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