It was a Good Life...

Well here we are again, The Man and I in our cosy little flat in crystal palace. We did have a very nice week away; but it is nice to come back to our own bed. 

We have put our clocks forward this weekend and are now in British Summer Time. I do wonder why it is called that and not just daylight Saving Time. People are joking about it being ‘summer’ time, when in reality it is still only spring. And a chilly spring it is too. Even here in London the temperature has still not gone much above six or even degrees, and we even had a flurry of snow earlier in the day.

OK, the standard of food has dropped a bit; well he always says that he didn’t marry me for my cooking. To think when I was still at school I wanted to be a cooking teacher. Probably would have made a good comedy sit-com.

We’ve just been watching a TV programmed about an old sit-com called The Good Life. I think this has been on because of the recent death of one of the main actors Richard Briers.

We also caught the tail end of another of his comedic roles, that of Martin Bryce, an obsessive middle-aged man who is at the centre of his local  community. This relatively unsympathetic character was the opposite of his Good Life character, Tom Good. 

Lots of us wanted to do exactly what Tom and Barbara did, drop out of society and become self-sufficient.

Holiday almost over.

Very short blog tonight.
After a great week away in Suffolk and Norfolk we are now back in our cosy little flat at Crystal Palace. And we still have a couple of days of the Easter weekend left.
Have to remember to put the clocks forward tonight before we go to bed. Yes that's right it is the start of British Summer 'Time'
It's a bit silly to call it that 'cos it is still actually only spring.
Back home in NZ we just call it daylight saving time, much more logical.


 

Chilly churches and bangers...

Our accommodation for last night and tonight is a bit of a comedown compared to the excellent Warren in Great Yarmouth. Not only that I think the walls must be paper thin because I could clearly hear the people in the next room at two o'clock this morning!!

We'd noticed a couple of stock cars in the car park last night and The Man and I were pleased to discover that they are racing here in Mildenhall starting at about one o'clock in the afternoon.

Bangers they are called here, and beat up bangers they are.

But before that we decided that we would take a jaunt to Castle Acre Priory which is according to the blurb on the back of the guide book

'The village of castle Acre is an extraordinary survival of a Norman planned settlement.'

For almost 450 years the now ruined priory was the home and workplace of monks and thier servants. It was refuge for pilgrims and a stopping point for royalty, clergy and the nobility.

Begun about 1090 it took almost 70 years to complete.

Even though The Man and I were rugged up well we got a bit chilly, The weather was very cold today with temperatures no more that four or five degrees. There were even a couple of flurries of snow. So if we were cold the life for these Cluniac monks must have been incredibly hard. In the draughty dormitories the monks, according to their religious custom, slept fully clothed on basic straw mattresses with little or no blankets. The lodgings of the prior were much more lavish and certainly more comfortable, and as the years went by successive priors added their own touches to the building including a huge fireplace and a bay window complete with stained glass windows decorated with the priors initials. So much for living a simple monastic life.

On our the drive back to Mildenhall we found a little café to have lunch. Home made leek and potato soup followed by toasted teacakes and coffee.

I thought that toasted teacakes were nothing more that tasted scones. How wrong could I be. They are actually toasted but crossless hot cross buns. Very yummy.

The temperature had risen all the way up to six degrees by the time The Man parked the car at the stockies, sorry bangers track.

Its many years since we've been to a track meet and it was great to watch the races and hear the motors roar. We were a bit perplexed by the amount of time taken between the race ending and the next starting. Back home in New Zealand the cars for the next race would start to be rolled out as the last of the damaged cars were towed out. With at least nine more races still to go at four o'clock we decided to call it a day and come back to the Bird in Hand for a warm up and a coffee.

Bye bye Great Yarmouth...

Time to say goodbye to our hosts at The Warren. Both The Man and I agree that this is the very best accommodation we have had in all our travels. It is the positive experience here that would have us returning again and again if we lived in Britain permanently. But we don't and so regretfully it is not somewhere we will return to.

After the usual 'full English' brekky, and with Mr Nav man set we were on our way. The wind was still very cold so we decided against a quick stroll along the beach before leaving town.

Have you heard of the Norfolk Broads? Well that is the name of the flat grassland that we drove though after leaving Great Yarmouth. I though I had spotted a field of sheep, but as we drove closer we realised that the white critters were not a flock of sheep but a flock of swans, hundreds of them. I've never seen so many in one place all at the same time. And what do you call such a collection of magnificent long necked birds? Well according to Mr Google it's a 'bevy'

A little later in the morning we thought that it must be time to stop for a coffee, and with New Buckenham the next village we thought we would stop there. Despite driving all around the little town we failed to find anything that looked remotely like a coffee shop. Never mind. I did notice one of the many little thatched houses had a date on it. Take a look for yourself and see just how old it is.

With the town of Thetford not far away we decided that we would forego morning coffee and stop there for lunch instead. There is still a bit of snow here and there in sheltered areas so they must have had a good depth of it earlier. We also drove through the only set of roadworks since we set off. It looks like the road will be considerably wider when they are done. With the long weekend, oops sorry, over here they are called Bank Holidays, this weekend we were passed by lots of cars towing caravans driving in the direction we have come from, towards the coast. In just a short space of time The Man counted more than twenty of them.

We were pleasantly surprised in Thetford to discover a free parking area in the middle of the town. So we took to our feet and pretty soon were seated again in a warm café ordering lunch.

Fuelled up again we had a nice walk around the town and discovered that the TV comedy Dad's Army was actually set here. Yes that right Walmington on Sea is actually Thetford. We discovered this when wce came a cross a statue of one of the programmes main characters, can you see who it is?

With the map from the information centre in hand The Man steered us towards the towns ruined priory. And what a huge building it must have been. It is huge even by today's standards.

This Priory was founded more than 900 years ago, witness to the prosperity of the area. Walking around the ruined walls it was easy to imagine monks going about their daily devotions or meeting in the chapter house.

We didn't wander too long because the wind is still quite cold so turned out feet towards the Museum of Theftford. Called the Ancient House, this typically tudor building was built around 1500, several of its rooms are as they would have been back then, other rooms housed dispays of life through the ages right up to present day. 

A drive up to Cromer

Not only are our hosts at The Warren Guest House very friendly and hospitable Neville is an amazing chef. To simply call him a cook would be doing him an injustice. We had a fantastic meal last night prepared specially for us, and followed by a chocolate desert to just die for. I cannot wait to see what he has in mind for us tonight. It is wonderful to not have to think about food preparation.

The Man and I could get well used to the cooked brekky, and very nicely done it was too.

So after a very enjoyable breakfast I set Mr Nav-Man to take us via the circuitous route to Cromer. First stop along the the way was at Horsey Pump mill.

The land is so very flat it is no wonder that the land needed draining to make it more productive. We scaled the very steep internal steps right to the top and braved the strong breeze for a few brief minutes to admire the view.

Norfolk, being a coastal county has links to smuggling, and the mill has an interesting history, It is said that if the sails were stopped at at particular position it meant that he excise men where on their way to do a search, giving the smugglers time to hide the contraband. Another position would indicate the all clear.

If there was no wind to move the sails, the poor apprentice would be sent up a ladder to add his weight to the sails to move them into the desired position. Is it true, possibly.The Mill is also said to be haunted by an unfortunate night-watchman who on a very stormy night got his coat caught in the machinery and was battered to death.

Warmed by a nice hot milky coffee and a toasted teacake each we got back in the car and Mr Nav man took us to the little seaside town of Happisburg. 

Did we walk on the beach? No we did not. Not because it was too cold, which it was, but because even in a tiny place like this you still have to pay for parking and at £1 per hour we weren't that desperate to get sand in our shoes.

In our usual fashion we ignored Mr Nav Man and took a narrow unsealed road that took us past old farm buildings and around huge muddy puddles, and then through a seaside town of rickety batches interspersed with the occasional more substantial brick bungalow. A bit further on we found a no pay beach where I let The Man go walking on the sand alone as it was a wee bit too chilly for me.

Cromer wasn't very far away and it was there that we stopped for lunch in a seaside chippy to top our tanks up with cod and chips.

As we drove along we were quite surprised to see so many quite substantial churches in very small country towns, most looking as though they were still in use.

We also saw a lot of building made of small rounded stones instead of the more familiar shaped pieces of flint.. 

A walk on the beach, anda very short one at that...

After a very nice 'ull 'English' breakfast, minus the baked beans we rugged up well and set out on foot. A brisk walk on the beach was the first order of the day. And golly gosh it was soooo cold. But we have had our walk on the Norfolk sand. The milky coffee and choccy caked we had afterwards were very welcome to warm us up.

A very short further along Marine Parade and we came to the local Sealife aquarium.

http://www.visitsealife.com/Great-yarmouth/

 Now how could we not stop and go see the sea-life. Well those of you who know us well would know that we couldn't walk past one of these without going in to ogle the fish.

The large tank had two really large green sea turtles, and did you know that they are called that, not because their shells are green, but because their fat is green. Betcha didn't know that!

The very large tank where the turtles were swimming along with sharks and other large fish was decorated as though it was an Atlantis lookalike with a huge Medusa head as its centrepiece.

After lunch at a beach-side café we strolled away from the beach front to an intiguingly titled museum called Time and Tide.

http://www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/Visit_Us/Time_and_Tide/index.htm

And what an interesting visit that turned out to be.

Built in an old herring smoke-house that still carries the smell of smoked fish it is very well worth a visit if you ever get to this neck of the woods.

It was like stepping back in time when we walked down a very well re-created local narrow street, brought alive by the very well done audio guide.

We spent so much time there that it was four o'clock when we left and getting chillier if that's possible so we made a quick walk back to the very comfortable Warren Guest House where we are staying.

http://www.thewarrenguesthouse.com/

The Marine parade here like almost every other beachfront we have visited is jam-packed with amusement arcades. Thank goodness we don't have them at home in NZ.

On to Great Yarmouth today

We left The Horseshoes this morning, heading south, and into the opposite direction we had originally intended.

The Horseshoes Inn

Why so I hear you ask?

Well, I had one more place to visit in relation to my genealogy and that was Barking. Not Barking London, but Barking Suffolk.

My paternal three times great grandparents James Harvey and Susannh Lucas 23 September 1823.

We only found one church there and it was another St Mary's. I was excited to see that a list of burials with a churchyard map was displayed on one wall. 

St Mary's in Barking

There we were The Man and I eagerly reading down the list of names, but disappointingly there were no Harvey or Lucas names. Oh well. It is quite a large church, which seemed surprising given the small community it seemed to serve.

Well that destination ticked off the list we turned the car around and drove north, well The Man drove, I just entered our destination in the nav man.

We were totally at the mercy of Mr Nav Man. With the setting to take the motorways as little as possible we were on a kind of mystery tour. Following each direction, and then veering off to explore an interesting looking lane or road. Allowing Mr NavMan to calculate us back on track when we were ready to get back on our way again.

Very Cutesy cottage

We stopped for a mid morning snack and coffee along the way at a service station, wondering where all the cutesy country cafés' were. We hardly passed any at all.

It surprises us somewhat when we try to drive along a coastal road only to discover that we are either nowhere near the sea, or the sea is obscured by those darn amusements parks, where you have to pay for parking.

We tried to find an eatery with a sea view and with a name like Sea-view you would think it might just have one wouldn't you?

Well it sort of did, but you had to look around and through a children's playground, so we decided to move on a bit more.

We eventually found one, and sat down to a nice baked potato lunch with melty cheese. The Man spotted a ship making its way down the river and we watched its progress as we ate.

The well fed, we wrapped ourselves up warmly and went outside to watch it nose into the waves. And the wind was so cold that we gave ourselves an ice-cream headache into the bargain.

Oooo that sea looks cold

After a fairly long days drive we were both pleased to locate The Warren Guest House in Great Yarmouth, where we will be staying for the next three nights.

Suffolk, day two..

There was quite a lot of snow falling last night when we went to bed.

The Man looked out the window before climbing in beside me and said that the road outside was totally white.

The Horseshoes is a quiet little country inn well within driving distance of those names relevant to my Harvey family tree.

There's a windmill very close by and we had a walk around it when we came back from our exploring today.

There are no 'sails' on it, just the criss-cross arms. Hmm The Man was wondering just how those sails might have been attached 'cos the arms are pretty high off the ground. Hopefully good old google might have an answer.

So what did we do today.

Well first off it was a full English brekky to fuel our day, then kitted up for the cold and after The Man knocked all the snow off he windows of the car we set off.

I love snow

With the destination entered into our trusty nav-man we set off. for Athelington. This is where the sister of my three times great grandfather lived. Its just a small cluster of houses surrounded by large rolling fields.

In fact the whole area is very obviously agricultural. Huge ploughed fields the furrows tipped with snow. It made me wonder what the average agricultural labourer did in the winter. My ancestors were 'ag-labs'.

They were here until at least the 1841 census, but by the next one in 1851 many show up in urban areas. What a shock it must have been for those strapping men and their families who left the clean country air and the ability to grow at least some of their own food, to work in the city factories.

Such is the price of progress I guess.

Just to add to the potential difficulty of genealogy I have discovered not one but at least three churches all very close together and all called Saint Mary's. Hmmm.

Apart form the pleasure in putting my feet on the same ground as some of my ancestors we both really appreciate the openness of the county and being able to let the eye wander freely for miles and miles not something we get to do very often in the city.

When we drove through some of these little country towns I said to The man that before we came over her to England that I had thought we night have lived and worked in one of these small towns.

Driving past eat another old church, The Man said to me 'Do you want to stop and look in there?'

I very nearly said no. It may well have been a good thing too because there in among the gravestones were Harvey graves. Recent graves, and the first names on them are not familiar, but you just never know, do you?

Walking about in the snow gave us quite an appetite so we stopped in a little café in Diss for lunch.

Fed and watered we had a wander around the streets of this little town and discovered a pretty little lake where a small cluster of fishermen were braving the weather. Brrrrr

refreshed by the brisk air it was nice to get back to the shelter of the car.

I set the nav man to take us back to The Horseshoes, and that walk to the windmill

Ancestor hunting...

Oh dear, it was still snowing when we left this morning.

OK, so do we keep going with our holiday plans?

Yes of course we do.

So off we go to the station kitted up for the snow and with our fingers crossed,

So far so good, the trains are running from Crystal palace to Victoria.

Fingers still crossed that National Express buses are too.

And they were, and the snow was still falling.

I do like snow.

The last time we travelled National Express the driver said, 'The buses always get through', and the was right. I hardly had time to read a few chapters on my kindle, yup I do have one of those. Long story, and the short version is that I won it on one of those online surveys I completed.

It was a bit of a walk in the snow to the car hire place and before I knew it we were signing the agreement on a neat little peugot, brand new too.

That's one of the many joys of hiring a car. .

So here we are in Cambridge.

What next.

Well, first I set the nav-man to take us to the hotel, The Horseshoes, and off we go. An easy drive, and we are quite early so lets go exploring.

Wilby first. This is where some of my Harvey ancestors came from. I came here wanting to walk the same ground as them and now I have. St Mary's church is where some of them commemorated life's events.

Hard to know if any of the many tombstones mark ancestors graves, but I am sure that one or two of them will do.

OK what next, well it is still quite early in the afternoon so I reset the nav-man and we drive to Hoxne and then on to Dennington. Also places where ancestors would have lived.

I signed the guest book in the churches, making sure that I clearly wrote the name HARVEY, and my email address.

Fingers crossed the name might ring a bell with someone. If not, well nothing ventured, nothing gained

Four o'clock now and with the snow falling a bit heavier The Man turned the car around and took us back to the hotel

If the weather is better tomorrow we might retrace our footsteps, if not we will explore a bit further.

To be continued...

Beutiful Pew ends at St Mary in Wilby.

St Mary's, Wilby.

 

 

Ancient tombs in St Mary the Virgin at Dennington, not my ancestors unfortunalty

St Mary the Virgin, love that gate post.

Very little to say tonight...

Hang on… I’ve got a good excuse, well a least I do have an excuse.

Tomorrow The Man and I are off on holiday, and where are we going?

Well you’ll have to come back tomorrow to find out.

So why does that mean tonight’s blog is so short?

Well, I really wanted to ‘finish’ my work day off completely and leave my room all nice and tidy for the reliever who will be ‘me’ for next week.

Not to mention making sure that things will run as smoothly as possible while I am away, checking stock and ordering.

I had my day all planned out first thing this morning, and what is it that they say about the plans of mice and men and nurses? Well mice and men at least.

Fridays have traditionally been quiet days, and was today a quiet day?

No it was not.

So, all those things I had intended to do uninterrupted had to be fitted in between seeing patients. Needless to say I had more   things to do at the end of my day than day left.

I took The Man for coffee after work, then stopped at the local supermarket for a few last minute supplies and something for tea.

Now we are fed and watered and I am about to pack our bags for the off tomorrow morning.

To be continued….

A bit of a ramble..

One of the songs on my Dolly Parton CD, and yes I do have one of those, is Love’s like Butterfly. And what is screening on BBC 2 at the moment?

Give up?....Of course you do.

Well the answer is the BBC series called Butterflies that uses the Dolly Parton song as its theme. Wendy Craig is the female star, Ria.  .

The situation was the day-to-day life of the Parkinson family in a bittersweet style. There were both traditional comedy sources (Ria's cooking, family squabbles) and more unusual sources such as Ria's unconsummated  relationship with the outwardly-successful Leonard. Ria was still in love with her husband, Ben, and had raised two potentially fine sons, yet found herself dissatisfied and in need of something more. Throughout the series Ria searched for that "something more" and found some solace in her unconventional friendship with Leonard. In a 2002 interview, Carla Lane explained, "I wanted to write a comedy about a woman contemplating adultery."

Ria’s youngest son, Adam, is played by Nicholas Lyndhurst. and their older son, Russell, by Andrew Hall.

Now Nicholas Lyndhurst, you must know who he is, tall blond haired, starred in Only Fools and Horses and Goodnight sweetheart. Bit of a comedian.

I thought that Andrew Hall, the other son must have dropped out of sight, but how wrong can you be. His latest acting role is in Coronations Street, and he is a directory too.

Then there is Ria,s on screen hound Geoffrey Palmer. Now he’s been in a few including one of my all-time favourites As Time Goes By, with Judi Dench.