Week 19 18th to 24th Feb

We leave Suffolk to go on to Norfolk this week, it has been startling to see just how completely different two neighbouring counties can be!

Monday 18th February – day 114

Well, a first today, having gloated only a few days earlier, that we had not been bothered by frost and frozen pipes since we set off on our trip, you guessed it we woke to frozen pipes!!! My hero was out there in his flip flops trying to smash the ice in the barrels then we could have a cup of tea, and we had to defrost the fresh water pipe in the caravan!! Mind you the view was crispy white and sparkly and looked lovely from our bed (which we got back into to drink our tea!!)
We are leaving Suffolk today, and heading for Norfolk, the easiest journey since setting off again in January, straight up the A 140! We are in another field on our own, but right next to the facilities this time which is great, although the walk to the loos at Stonham Aspal was very picturesque!
We were going to go into Norwich once settled, to do some shopping, but a real pea souper of a fog came down, so we battened down the hatches for the evening.

Tuesday 19th February - day 115

So, Norwich today - after a lazy morning. We arrived in town later than hoped as we spent too long in B&Q trying to find an attachment for the hose (take the water to the barrels, not the barrels to the water, yeh!)
But no luck in the end, after an exhaustive search, no fittings fitted so mission aborted and off to see the sights.
The first stop was the Cathedral and what a joy that was to see. It is a very elegant building, with the second tallest spire in the country!
It also has the most impressive number and quality of ceiling bosses we have ever seen. Each one was carved out of the stone that had already been placed, so all work had to be done in situ (and some of the ceilings were very high!) Then each of these intricately carved bosses were painted and gilded, so if you look up you can see little scenes like Noah’s Ark, or the Last Supper, they were too high to catch on film, but the bosses in the cloisters were also magnificent and close enough to photograph! At the end of the cloisters we saw a SIGN, it read…................................... refectory - well we could not ignore it so we followed it all the way to the serving counter. Today though, as well as the joy of a little Earl Grey, we bumped into a neighbour, Jackie Tongue, from Malmesbury who is touring with a Repertory Company performing The Bright Blue Sea, by Terence Rattigan, and they are in Norwich for the week. She very kindly organised some heavily discounted tickets for us, to go tomorrow night, so that is what we are doing!
After a happy catch up, we left for a walk round the town centre, and were impressed with all we saw. Norwich, like York, has an old and distinguished cobbled shopping area, called Elm Hill, which we lingered in to browse the antique shop windows, before walking along the river and on further into town. I think that we should try and catch some more of this lovely place.
Wednesday 20th February – day 116

Off to Cambridge today, but need to keep an eye on the time as we have are off to the theatre this evening, yippee!
We made our usual prompt start, and arrived in Cambridge by early afternoon! We did have enough time though to take a tour of all the colleges. I may be dense but it had never dawned on me that the church had been responsible for most of the early academic institutions in England, and therefore each of the colleges had its own enormous mini cathedral, especially Kings College! All the buildings and grounds were very fine, cared for and gazed at by generations of visitors but the pretentions of a superior intellectual atmosphere was almost oppressive, so we popped into a rather splendid arts and craft shop for a little hedonist comforting, but left there quickly too - feeling poor!
We made it back to Norwich in good time to park up and walk through town, along interesting old streets, through the market, and in front of the very modern Forum – all glass and style, to get to the newly renovated Theatre Royal for a splendid evening of live entertainment. The play, The Deep Blue Sea, by Terence Rattigan was stirring stuff, a real roller coaster of emotional upheaval, cleverly set on a set of skewed perspectives. The cast, as well as Jackie, included Simon Williams and Greta Scacchi (who played a very dramatic leading role) We had arranged to meet Jackie in the bar afterwards, it was a joy to spend a bit more time catching up and talking of the performance, as well as updates from Malmesbury, but there was quite a surreal moment when she introduced us to Simon Williams, who was also in the bar, I think we managed to stay cool, but it was a significant enough moment to get a mention here, obviously!

Thursday 21st February – day 117

A dull day today, but first day of miserable weather for a while! Undaunted, we are off to explore the Broads. We took a circuitous route along the back roads to try and find the lovely rural Norfolk, but it certainly was not in the same abundance as seen in Suffolk. There was however a moment when we stepped right back into the 19th century! We have discovered that there are few places where it is possible to cross the marshes, but there was a ferry at Reedham, which took any number of pedestrian passengers and 2 cars (the cars had to pay £3.70each!!) the 30 yards across the river, pulled along by a rusty and noisy chain, stopping only on the journey for speeding river craft, but only just!! We eventually arrived at Beccles and stopped to walk the river path and marshes. It was of course late afternoon and we had the place to ourselves, high reed beds and low ditches made it feel a little remote and not a little eerie, even though we were not far from the main road, but joy of joys, along the way we found a very productive pussy willow tree, and could not resist a few branches to take back to the van, I am looking at them now as I write, these really evocative childhood memory stirrers!
Our final visit was to Lowestoft for a walk along the sea front and a cuppa, but there was so little to inspire that we drove on right through and carried on home.

Friday 22nd February – day 118

What a windy night we had - yes outside the van, and still windy when we awoke, but it is doing the good job of blowing the clouds over. We are going back for a closer look at the Broads, as we didn’t really see all they had to offer yesterday, so less meandering and straight to Wroxham, the so called capital of the Broads, it is definitely where a lot of boating holidays start. We didn’t stop to explore but went on to Hickling Broad, which looked promising on the map. Fortunately for us we missed the turning that I was looking at on the map, and ended up at Hickling Heath, and what a bonus, it was utterly unreal, with what we discovered on closer inspection was a group of thatched roofed boat houses sitting low in the reed beds. Apart from a row of dreamy little houses it was quite away from the hustle and bustle of the larger marina 200 yards down the road. I think we could have settled there awhile, but we wanted to search out some windmills, but the only one we found of note was this one - without its sails -
but which was more intact than many of its counterparts as it still had its top section in place at least! Then on to Caister-on-Sea for a walk along the coastline to California! On arrival we were indeed surprised to see 30 large wind turbines just off the shore, erected by Powergen in 2004 (yes we did read the info board!) The coastline was unpromising really, sandy and pebbly underfoot but no enticing views to draw you on. We walked to the sand cliffs that were mentioned on the map, but even those did not stir the senses!
Final stop again was a ride into Great Yarmouth with the same thoughts as last evening, but it so reminded us of Blackpool – all amusement arcades and pleasure beaches - that again we decided not to stop, but came on home.

Saturday 23rd February – day 119

Today we are off to walk a bit of the Norfolk Coastal path, but start with Cromer first for a look at the premier holiday town in Norfolk! Which, it has to be said appears a little shabby and in need of sprucing up. The beach area, although sandy has a fair sprinkling of stones which will make building sand castles and interesting project. We take a walk along to the small pier, with a theatre and café at the end, and as usual we were in need of some Earl Grey refreshment, so a short stop is definitely required. The walk along the front shows that most of the houses around are large and Edwardian, but they seem generally to have been converted into flats, either for full time occupancy or holiday lets. Well we have had a look, so now on to the coastal path, and memories of Cornwall!!!!! (not)
We park up at Welbourne, with plans to walk to Cley next the sea (or maybe Blakeney - 6 miles total – but flat for most of the route) however after half an hour we were still struggling across slippy shingle in search of a path, and it doesn’t feel much like fun! Eventually the path firms up and we begin to make progress, until it disappears again, and now we were in marshland! But Cley is in sight so we stride (?) on. Although unpleasant under foot the rewards are being to make themselves known, as we first came across a group of delightful ducks, with bronze Mohican hair do’s called Teals, and later we spy a couple of Avocets, Lapwings and a flock of Dunlin or Sandpipers, (not really sure which).
With not a little gladness for the firm path under foot, we headed through the marshes to Cley - to discover that we had only made it as far as Salthouse, (a mile short!!) but as the bus is still 50 minutes away we carry on and take another loop around the marshes listening to the birds revving up for the dusk chorus. We arrived back at the car in time to see the sky deepening to a crimson red and gold glow …….. joy!
Sunday 24th February – day 120

We are going back to Blakeney and Cley today, for more bird spotting and walking the marshes. The weather forecast is not promising, but has started well, so picnic packed and off we go. Blakeney is possibly the most charming town visited so far, and bonus, there is a collectors/ antique market. There is the usual over priced tat, but in one corner, almost hidden from view was a little stall selling wrought iron door knockers, coal shovels and pockers etc etc. Behind the stall was a rather shy couple who seemed pleased that someone should be interested in their wonderfully simple naively crafted artwork. I am not sure whether they were not just as engaging as their goods, and 10 minutes later we left the stall with a beautiful oak leaf shaped door knocker and a long handled chestnut roaster – wonderful.
We parked by the quay to walk the loop that runs through the marshes to Cley next the Sea. The scenery may not have been stunning, in fact it would have been a little eerie had it not been so full of people meandering along wearing binoculars, but the bird life was amazing. It will take some researching to find out what the names of all the ducks alone are! We do know that we also saw a Barn Owl, a Curlew, a lovely little Stonechat and a flock of Brent Geese.
We walked across the marshes toward Cley and were greeted with a fine view of the best looking windmill in East Anglia, Chris was almost undone (but still managed several photos!) It no longer mills the wind (after last nights curry, I think that is our job!!) but it is now a Bed and Breakfast –and a lovely one at that. Cley was also very charming, we were glad that we had made the effort to return, particularly when we spotted The George –where we were able partake of ……. A cup of tea!

Week 18 11th to 17th Feb

Well what a glorious time we have had in Suffolk, we are quite sad to have to leave really, hope the photos give a glimpse of it's charms!

Monday 11th February – day 107

What a perfect day, the sky is a brilliant clear blue, and we are of to sample some of the truly delightful delights that Suffolk has to offer, starting with Lavenham. This is a picture perfect town even without the sunshine, but in the golden February light the colours of these old Tudor houses just glowed, I think we could have stayed there all day; there were certainly enough teashops to choose from!! Before we left the town, we stopped off to take a closer look at the church, as the architecture and the flintwork, were stunning, Chris took many photos of the outside, but there is only room for one to be shown here!
The drive between villages was through soft sleepy rolling countryside, and each town or village announced itself with an individually styled town sign which characterised some of its significant history. With each mile Chris seemed to grow fonder of his surroundings, he and his camera are having a very busy day!
Leaving Lavenham we drove on to Long Melford, which had a long broad high street, not unlike Broadway or Marlborough. After a brief look around we drove on to Cavendish, another picture perfect village which looked even more charming in the mid afternoon sun.
The clarity of the light and the stillness in the air, made this quiet dreamy little place another joy to discover, but onward to Clare.
By now dusk was approaching and time for tea! We found a lovely little deli/café that served a good fruit cake according to Chris. After refreshment we wandered round the streets, another charming town but I am running out of superlatives now!! The last port of call was Castle Hedingham, but unfortunately the light was gone, by the time we arrived there (and the castle was closed!) so we continued on home to upload the 30 plus photos taken to remind us of this glorious area that time does not seem to have spoilt.



Tuesday 12th February - day 108

Another glorious day, Suffolk is determined to show itself at its early spring best! We are off to do the walk round Flatford Mill, but stop first to take in Kersey as we had no time yesterday. Again we were not disappointed with our visit. For a sleepy rural county Suffolk houses are painted some REALLY strong colours, Ox blood, Fuchsia, Ochre, Teal and Sienna, oh yes! But somehow it does work beautifully, especially under higgledy thatched roofs, and with gardens full of snowdrops, early crocuses and little yellow aconites. We lingered a while here, and had a coffee in another ye olde Inn, but then it was off to East Bergholt to start our round tour of Constables country. The book of 50 walks in Suffolk, which we had bought on arrival, showed us a very promising 5½ mile route that took in the best of the views that can be seen in most of Constables paintings apparently. We have to confess that we didn’t quite recognise any, until we got to Flatford Mill and there we were shown the picture of the Hay Wain … recognise it?
The house, called Willy Lotts House, once lived in by the man of the same name surprisingly, is little altered since the painting was done.
To get to Flatford Mill we had to walk along the River Stour for a way, and whilst I don’t think that I would agree with the book in saying that it was magnificent, it was certainly very photogenic, even at this time of year, and his nibs had a happy time snapping away, as you can see!

Light was fading as we reached the car, so the final bit of the planned day, to visit Dedham was as ever done in the gathering gloom, it was still very pretty but we did not stop, eager to be home for our pasta bake!!!

Wednesday 13th February – day 109

A promising start but the sunshine left us while we were at Sutton Hoo, which was our first stop to see this distinguished Anglo Saxon Burial Ground, we were gratified to be told this was distinguished as when viewed it did look like a series of small grassed hillocks - that were not that impressive. However the visitor centre, run by National Trust, offered its usual high standard with a good display and short film!
We left Sutton now in a much cooler temperature with grey skies overhead, and went on to Shingle Street, which was as you might expect indeed shingle - all the way to the sea shore - with only a row of rather desolate looking houses and a Martello Tower at the end . We took a walk along the shingle shoreline and watched a rather sluggish brown/grey sea break onto the beach. By this time we also had a mist dropping on to us making the whole experience a just a little eerie. By now the days light was starting to fade but we ploughed on to Orford to have a look at the quay and the castle. The quay was very open and had a feeling of yester year, but it was a little too cold now to linger, so we drove back into the town and walked to the castle (closed of course) but as we walked round close to the base of the keep we had fun trying to work out where the outer walls and entrances would have stood! We took a final stroll round town then home for supper.

Thursday 14th February – day 110

Well we have lost the glorious bright days, for now at least! But never put off, picnic packed route clarified and we are off for a walk from Aldeburgh to Thorpeness and back (not so impressive as it may sound – they are only about 3 miles apart!!) But we detour first to Snape Maltings famous for its concert hall started by Benjamin Britten, but now a charmingly arranged group of shops and galleries set amidst old grain store houses; some of which are being renovated to provide further bespoke workshops and living spaces. The setting for these emporia was also a delight as they were nestled between the reed beds and marshes, where Chris spied a very photogenic fishing yawl.
After a good look around we drove on to Aldeburgh, spotted the fish and chip shop that had been recommended to us and where we would be purchasing our supper later (yippee!), and parked up along the sea front by the Reaches. All layers on for this bracing walk!! There does not appear to be any sand in Suffolk, but lots of little flint pebbles, not the easiest surface to walk on, and we were soon seeking out the path! We never really felt alone on what appears to be a very popular walk, and there were a few of us arriving a little later at Thorpeness. We were the last of course because we had to stop to examine this rather beautiful steel sculpture of a group of scallop shells. It had been commissioned by Maggi Hambling to celebrate Benjamin Britten who wrote the opera Peter Grimes, about another local hero clergyman George Crabbe. The huge scallop is punched through with the words ‘I hear those voices that will not be drowned’, which was sung by fisherman Grimes who is forever haunted by the voice of the apprentice boy who died on his boat…... (sounds worth a listen to)
On then to Thorpeness, this is indeed a strange little place; in part it looks like a screen set for an old Ealing film. The smaller roads are unmade, the village shop is closed until March, and the shop/café where we found a refreshing cuppa was the stuff of childhood seaside holiday memories. Just when we were beginning to acclimatise we spotted a house in the clouds, well not quite, but that is what it is called, as there are 6 floors set in a black painted stack on top of which sits a red painted wooden house complete with bay windows…. And it is available for rent!! To top it off (if that were possible) it sits adjacent to a fully functioning rotating wooden windmill. When we had taken in all we could of this eccentric place, we set off back along the waters edge back to Aldeburgh for our first pint of Adnams since arriving in Suffolk, then those much anticipated fish and chips, delicious!!




















Friday 15th February – day 111

We had a cloudy start, but it soon cleared up as we journeyed to Southwold, for a day of walking around the marshes. We were delayed by a stop at yet another surreal Suffolk experience. We were on the search for lovely bread (for lunch and beyond!) so stopped at Emmetts a very smart deli in Peasenhall. It had once been famous for selling black ham to the queen Mother, but since her demise the royal stamp had lapsed. We did not find bread, but the cornucopia of fine provender mostly from Spain, from unwaxed lemons to every conceivable olive delicacy; from truckles of cheddar from Mull, to blocks of chocolate; from cured meats to organic veg, we were in dribbling heaven. We left lighter in pocket (again) and probably soon to be – tighter in the jean!!!
But still we needed bread, and found it in another delicious deli in Southwold called the Black Olive. It has not gone unnoticed that Suffolk has a plethora of very stylish, high quality (and expensive) food retailers, and we cannot find a Tescos ANYWHERE (hurray) and we are finding it quite impossible to live on the shoe string as temptation is everywhere, and no less than where we lunched. We had booked in for a fish fest at a little place called the Sole Bay Fish Company. We were supposed to have allowed some time for a bracing walk along the river, towards Dunwich, but instead stopped for a small Adnams at the Harbour Inn so we walked the length of the river bank enjoying the bustle and business of the boat yards, and the buffeting of the sharp wind in our faces. We walked for an hour or more then returned with great anticipation to the Fish Company. And what a joy it was, it had everything appealing, by the door a well stocked wet fish counter (with queues waiting to be served!) and behind an enormous fish tank was a café serving the fish that they had caught earlier. There were absolutely no pretentions about this busy café. The decorations were simple, the menu was simple and the whole ethos oozed simple enjoyment of fabulous fish! The shop/café was full, with husband and team filleting and serving behind the counter, and the lady of the house working magic as she made everyone feel welcome whilst clearing up, serving and taking orders(though for a while there we saw the husband working front of house too!)!!!
There were two themes on the menu, hot fish or cold fish. Anything else that you might want with the fish you could bring yourself, salad, wine, or bread, (have you made the connection!)
The hot fish included Sea Bass, Dover Sole, Skate, and Cod from their own nets, cooked in their own kitchen, and the cold fish were a selection of choices of fruits of the sea from Crevettes to Whelks, Crab to smoked Salmon. We ordered Smoked Mackerel soup to warm us up, it was also homemade and delicious, followed by a fabulous Crab platter or two, with Malted Rye bread from the Black Olive, and vine tomatoes from Emmetts. What joy, we sat at length enjoying our superb meal - and the whole experience - whilst we watched one of the fish mongers spend most of our time there, filleting cod after cod after cod, apparently just trying to get ahead of the restaurant and the wet fish counter! (And we think he had been there since early morning!!) Well good luck to them we say, and if you find yourself in Southwold …. It’s an experience not to be missed!!
The sun was a golden glow in the late afternoon sky by the time we left. Just time to walk the length of the beach to check out the multi coloured beach huts, the turbulent breakers and the old fashioned pier, which I have to say had much more appeal than the piers at either Brighton or Eastbourne with some stylish shops, a fantastic water clock……. and no funfair at the end!

Saturday 16th February – day 112

Lazy start today, with most of the afternoon spent hunting birthday presents at Bury St Edmunds, but we did have time to wander a little way round this interesting old market town. The low point of the visit was trying to navigate our way round the plethora of new build that was going on, to find a car park, and the high point was the walk past the Abbey ruins to view the Cathedral. In the grounds was a row of distinguished houses that looked remarkably like they had been built into the old ruin! The other high point was of course cup of tea time!! We were spoilt for choice for watering holes today, but sat getting warm in a rather trendy French bistro, though very pleasant was perhaps the wrong choice as there was not a china cup in sight!

Sunday 17th February – day 113

Every now and again, even amidst our glorious tour, there is a golden day, and today was such a day! The weather remains with us, crisp, clear and bright, frost making the earth hard, sun making the bear trees shine, the mood is light, and all around is easy. We had little planned other than a trip to Snape Maltings to walk the reed beds, and purchase a souvenir of our time in East Anglia. We start the day well, with a brunch of black bacon sarnies. The bacon had been bought from our trip to Peasenhall, and the streaky bacon, (favoured by the Queen Mother!!) is blackened through the smoking process and holds a very rich texture and flavour, and a little goes a long way! We set off for Snape but stopped for a while in Framlingham, to visit the old castle and lovely church.
We spent an indulgent half hour choosing our souvenir in the Maltings Gallery then spent another indulgent half hour in the café (bet you didn’t expect that!!) before walking out into the golden afternoon light to explore the reed beds and marshes. We were there just at the right time, the light was perfect, the reeds glowed and the shadows long. The camera worked a lot harder than we did, and it was only the drawing in of the evening that persuaded us back to the car. The delights were not over however, as we were driving to Sterfield to return some books, kindly lent; we were compelled to stop the car to take in the red skyline, which is always expansive in Suffolk as there is nothing to hinder the view. Final stop to return the books, and a lovely mug of tea with even lovelier Max and Claire!

Week 17 4th to 10th feb

What a week, it started in Kent and finished in Suffolk, via London, but what a time we have had!

Monday 4th February – day *100*

Fabulous day today in every way! Although the weather was dull to start, the sun soon came out and followed us all the way! Again this is a last day, so we are off on a whistle stop tour to take in as much of Kent as we can manage, needless to say that by this evening our bottoms are square and flat!
We started with Folkestone and drove up the coast, stopping for a short walk along the white cliffs (well we had to didn’t we!) before the surprise of the day; all nestled into the
hillside and feeling remote but prosperous was little St Margaret at Cliffe. We stopped here to eat our lunch in a very serene setting. Then on to Ramsgate, a really cheeky and cheery little place which had the feel of the typical seaside cartoon postcard about it, we could have lingered longer but wanted to press on to see the rest of the Isle of Thanet (shouldn’t have bothered) Broad Stairs and Margate failed to impress at all so we drove straight on turning inland to take the slow back roads back to the caravan. We found the gardens of England in abundance here, and also spied the odd Windmill and renovated Oast house, amidst the pretty little villages all dozing in the late afternoon light. We finished our tour at Elham, where we stopped at a beautiful ancient inn called the Abbot’s Fireside, and sank into a big settee for a very welcome pot of tea and catch up with the complimentary newspapers!
It was heartening to find this side of Kent before we left, as it significantly adds to our memories of an otherwise flat, dull and charmless coastal county.

Tuesday 5th February - day 101

Today we leave Folkestone to move on to London. Apart from the last few miles where we had to drive through London’s suburbs it was an easy journey. We settled in quickly and found the Abbey Wood station was just a five minute walk away, which would mean that we could leave the car at base which is great. The train took us as far as Charing Cross, just by Trafalgar Square, where we got out to go and explore. After the relative peace of rural Kent it took a while to get used to the number of people around us, most of who were running home from work with their work clothes in a rucksack. We were enchanted by the view from Waterloo Bridge and had to walk along the embankment between Millennium and the Hungerford Bridges to take a closer look at the twinkly blue lights on the trees outside the National Theatre, amongst many other colourful sights to finish the evening

Wednesday 6th February – day 102

Day in London and went to visit St Pauls, unfortunately it was Ash Wednesday and therefore the start of Lent, so access to the cathedral was severely restricted due to the services and periods of quiet contemplation underway all day. We decided to stay and sit for a while and soak up the atmosphere (and billowing incense) and to view the rich ceiling decorations of the building. After lingering a while we left and walked to the National Gallery to view as many as possible of the fantastic paintings on view, first stopping in Trafalgar Square for a sit down and a sandwich. We watched the antics of other visitors climbing on the lions and the active pigeons.
On view in the galleries were, Renoir – Umbrellas, Monet – Water Lillies, Van Gogh – Sunflowers and many, many more fabulous paintings, too many to remember. We had to leave earlier than wished as we had booked two seats at the Fortune Theatre to see Woman on Black. A superb production with two actors (and a woman in black), very little in the way of scenery or props but the imagination and the actors skill, made the production a fantastic success.

Thursday 7th February – day 103

Today is our second full day in London, it didn’t start well though. One of us was looking to spend our Christmas money in one of the promised exciting craft shops, but apart from the new experience of using the Docklands Light Railway we saw nothing that excited so moved on to the check out the smart development that is now the docks, but after 10 minutes in a pretentious concrete power jungle we could feel our spirits being we moved the quickly on to St Katherine‘s Dock which was much more interesting, with a row of London Barges that drew Chris’s interest for a while. We had another lovely walk then down the Thames path, past Tower Bridge back to try and visit St Paul’s, but still no joy as the cathedral was only open to people attending for quiet reflection. We went in and sat awhile again, it really is a most beautiful building. We did learn though that had it been open to sightseeing we would have had to have paid £10 each which would have hurt as we are struggling to live within our means anyway at the moment!!!
We continued to walk up to Piccadilly, via the lovely view from Waterloo Bridge, to see if we can spend more of our theatre vouchers, and “purchased” more tickets to see “The 39 Steps” a spoof version which was truly ridiculous and very funny.

Friday 8th February – day 104

Moving day to rural Suffolk, a relative easy move along the M25 and A12. Arrived at 3.00pm and set up in the late afternoon sun, spring is really on the way and the lighter evenings are growing. Our final fling of the day was to view the glorious setting of the sun in reds, golds and purples and a darkening blue sky. Our site is fabulously set in a small field surrounded by farmland showing lots of signs of growth all around. The owners live in a thatched cottage and a small pond adjacent; this is just the Suffolk dream!!

Saturday 9th February – day 105

It is restocking day today, so we are off to Ipswich for purchases - and a look round. The town has kept some of its old charm but there was a lot of development in the quay.
Returned to the caravan briefly for a wash and brush up then off to Sternfield, near Saxmundam to have supper with Claire and Max. We had such a FAB evening, a sumptuous feast and brill company, the time flew by and it was gone midnight before we made our return to Stoneham Aspel. Thank you guys!


Sunday 10th February – day 106

We awoke to another clear day of wonderful bright sunshine, blue skies and not a cloud to spoil the view. After all the rushing around of the last few week, we decided to have a day of jobbings - small repairs, cleaning the internals of both caravan and car, catching up with washing clothes, etc, all very domestic.
We had finished by mid afternoon, and one of us was itching to get out in the glorious afternoon light, so we took a walk across the fields to the nearest town and home again. We were only out about an hour but we had such lovely time with the sun on our faces and the stretch of the legs, it also helped get the appetite ready for supper! We got back as the sky was turning pink and we watched the sun slowly sinking into the horizon in another fantastically coloured sunset.