Two weeks into the school Summer Holidays and it seemed a good time to pack our bags and get away for a couple of days to enjoy a bit of peace and quiet 🤣

 

 

Great Yarmouth 

With a recommendation to visit the Venetian Waterways in Great Yarmouth, we set off from one seaside town to another. And the Waterways didn’t disappoint. Sitting on the outskirts of Great Yarmouth, the canals are criss crossed by ornate bridges, allowing you to skip from one small island to another and all surrounded by pretty gardens. There is an abundance of wildlife enjoying the space and lots of places to sit and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere.

Families can take to the water on little rowing boats and pedalos, before heading to one of the cafes for a spot of lunch or a drink. You are in such a tranquil spot, but just a stones throw from the lovely beach.

A 20 minute walk through the gardens and what a contrast as you reach the Golden Mile. The noise from the beeping arcades and the inflatables lining the promenade, fill your ears. With so much going on around you, it’s difficult to know where to look. It’s certainly an attack on the senses.

The plodding donkeys taking children on a little ride down the beach, calm the air for a few minutes, before you are bombarded once again with the hustle and bustle of bouncy inflatables and stall holders selling their wares.

The entire seafront is a miriade of amusements, eateries, roller coasters and food traders. A gold mine for the many traders but sadly there are only small glimpses of the sea in between the buildings. A complete contrast from our own promenade where you can sit and watch the flow of the sea to your hearts content.

We walked the entire length of the seafront in search of Nelsons Monument, which we could see in the distance. Although it was built to commemorate Admiral Horatio Nelson, the statue on the top was in fact Britannia! A little confusing and the monument is now unfortunately surrounded by a very run down industrial estate, so we didn’t stay for too long to admire it.

Realising it was now a VERY long trek back to the car, we thought we’d hop on a bus, but the local gent at the bus stop advised us the bus wouldn’t take us as far as we needed to go 😞. With the lure of an ice cream along the way we reluctantly started walking, back passed the roller coasters and pinging amusement arcades towards the inflatables. It wasn’t actually as far as we’d thought and with ice creams in hands we were soon back in the tranquility of the Venetian Waterways and chilled.

Our first visit to Great Yarmouth had been an explosion of the senses, but great to see and just a small taster to decide if we might return for a longer visit. . . . . . . .

…………… Now to our set off towards our final destination

Norwich

Before long we were checking into our accommodation, rooms at Broadview Lodge on the University of East Anglia campus. My first experience of Uni 🤣🤣🤣. Although I didn’t intend to do much studying, I was looking forward to experiencing uni life!

The rooms were quite basic, but perfectly formed, with an en-suite shower room, tv and tea making facilities. There should have been a fridge, but for some reason ours was missing 🤷‍♀️. ( Probably now cooling some students beer 🤣 ) Good job the Besties were next door so the wine could be cooled in their room.

Being 2-3 miles outside of the City, we thought we might have to have a designated driver, but were very pleased to find a magnificent bus service, one arriving every 15 minutes to take us in and running till midnight to bring us home. Only downside, we couldn’t get away with student rates.

Its a compact city, and although buzzing, probably not quite as busy as when the uni students are in town, which was perfect for us. As we wandered through the streets, taking in the numerous bars and restaurants, we stumbled across some brightly coloured dinosaurs. It was like a home from home, where we’ve been following the ducks. Here we could follow the dinosaurs and mammoths.

We did a bit of exploring, before settling in a lovely little courtyard for a drink, which turned out to be so nice on a hot summer evening that we stayed for dinner. We deserved a feast after our mega walk along Yarmouths promenade. Perfect end to a lovely day and just a short bus ride home. 🚌 🚌

It was a long, warm night, but comfortable in our uni digs. We’d pre paid for breakfast in the sports cafe, which was a short walk across campus. As we reached the car park, we thought we were seeing double as our car appeared to have found a mate overnight.

It did make us chuckle and we never caught up with the owners.

After an enormous breakfast, we were set to explore the on-site sculpture park, the main reason for our visit. The Sainsbury Centre houses a wonderful art collection of Robert and Lisa Sainsbury. There are some amazing pieces in the collection. An eclectic mix of sculptures, statues and paintings from around the world, each one with its own place in history, leaving you intrigued by its story.

 

The building itself is a work of art, and as you stroll into the cafe, the vast window, beautifully frames the magnificent view beyond.

 

Heading back outside into the glorious sunshine, we picked up a  map to help us locate the Henry Moore & Anthony Gormley statues around the Sculpture Park. Unfortunately it was a children’s map and not quite as comprehensive as the adult map, but it served its purpose.

It was a bit of hide and seek as we took a nice stroll through the lovely woodland and around the lake, spotting sculptures as we went. Despite the children’s map we located most of the pieces, including two of the three Anthony Gormley’s.

The challenge was on to find the final one . . .  . . . .  and there he was at the top of the stairs, standing proud, in all his glory 😲.

A perfect way to explore the grounds and enjoy some art, but with the sun beating down, now was time for some liquid refreshment in the Student Union Bar. 🍻. The smell of the street food outside the bar was extremely inviting, but still completely stuffed from breakfast, the decision was made to sup our pints, climb back aboard the bus and head into the City.

Alighting on the corner of Rampant Horse Street, the mind boggled at how it acquired its name, but it was a stones throw from the City Centre, where we started our exploration at the Forum. Strolling on down towards the market, we came face to face with more dinosaurs, before weaving through the narrow walkways between the stalls.

We climbed the hill to the mighty castle and enjoyed the panoramic views across the City. Norwich cleverly maintains its history alongside modern life, with beautiful buildings, churches and cobbled streets. From the Junkyard market on the edge of town, we wandered along the river back into the centre, the “time for a drink” theme continuing with cocktails 🍹🍸.

We found a wonderful Caribbean Restaurant, Turtle Bay, for a very spicy dinner. The atmosphere and decor was fantastic. The food was delicious even if the scotch bonnet in my curry caught my breath 🌶🥵. We had a fabulous evening filled with laughter, before heading back to Rampant Horse Street and the bus home.

With the wine suitably chilled in the Besties fridge, we were ready for a nightcap ………. only to discover it was a bottle with a cork and we had no corkscrew 🤦‍♀️. Gin and Tonic it was then 🤣

By the time we checked out in the morning, our cars twin had already departed, and he looked a bit lonely on his own 🥲, but he was soon happy as we climbed aboard to head towards home.

Rainham Hall

Always one’s to make the most of our time away, we took a halfway stop to visit Rainham Hall. Run by the National Trust, and sitting on the roadside in Rainham Village, although it is three storeys, from the outside it looks a small property, however as we stepped inside it was like entering a tardis.

 

Built in the early 1700’s by ship’s Captain and merchant John Harle, as his family home, it retains many of its original features, but as he and his second wife died within 7 years of each other, leaving a young son, many of their possessions and Rainham Hall were  sold.

It seems the Hall changed hands many times before being left to the National Trust, who initially rented out the property. There are therefore no items of original furniture or family pieces left in the hall. However the trust regularly change exhibits and document the lives of some of the many inhabitants.

The current exhibit depicts the life of Anthony Denney, an interior designer and photographer, who lived in the property. His photographs donned the covers of several Vogue magazines. His style and the story of his career is cleverly told through the design of the rooms, showing his flare for colour and mixing of fabrics.

Video footage shows some of his iconic photo shoots and a reconstruction of his studio, complete with huge lighting allows you to step into his glamorous world for a moment or two. The Vogue magazine covers are on display, to then show you how to pose properly 🤣.

The large gardens, with lawns, flower beds, and a community vegetable garden, were sadly not at their best due to the recent spell of hot weather. I’m sure in cooler times they look magnificent. The hubby’s did however partake in the games scattered around the gardens.

Another fabulous, fully loaded few days.

Lots of sun, fun and laughter visiting new places, within our gorgeous nation.

🍀 Lucky Lady, Feeling Blessed 🍀