A VISIT TO EAST OF ENGLAND 2011

FRIDAY 2^nd

We had arranged to meet up with the family around 4pm so with the rest of the day free we drove over to Swaffham, a town recommended by Roger. Parking in the High Street almost outside the large Church of St. Peter and St. Paul we decided this was a good place to begin our tour. We were made very welcome by a Lancastrian as we entered the building. Browsing the sales table whilst Keith moved further into the Church I found a leaflet about ‘Swaffham in The Brecks’ before I too began to appreciate the workmanship that had gone into this Church.

With a wooden roof and about a 190 angels carved into the beams a mirror table had been thoughtfully placed in the centre aisle so we didn’t strain our necks looking up.

Young children from a local school had made a written display about the ‘Pedlar of Swaffham’ which was a delight to read. Not knowing anything about this legend our new friend filled us in with more details.

Apparently this pedlar had a dream that he should go to London Bridge where he would meet a man who would tell him where he could find a pot of gold. Having paced up and down the bridge for several days and being watched by a shopkeeper the same shopkeeper approached him. This man also had had a dream and so he told the pedlar to return to his home and under a tree he would find this pot of gold. Sure enough the pedlar dug under the tree in his garden and found the gold, enough to help the Church rebuild a major part of it.

Our friend took us down to the front of the church where he showed us carvings of the pedlar and his dog that had once been incorporated in box pews. When the Victorians removed these box pews to put in the familiar bench seating of that era these carvings had been transferred to the choir stalls and the Vicar’s stall where they remain today. Wandering around the churchyard with many leaning headstones we were still able to read the inscriptions, several dating back to the 1700s.

Before leaving our friend had told us where the pedlar’s Elizabethan style house was. Now having a Georgian front the back of the building remains Elizabethan and now privately owned. This house was used in the ITV comedy/drama production of ‘Kingdom’ a series about a Norfolk Solicitor’s family and work which we enjoyed watching.

Across the road from this house was the ‘Swaffham’ signpost featuring, of course, the Pedlar and his dog. As it was such a lovely warm day people took advantage of the good weather to sit outside the street cafes and bars in a town that was very colourful with its floral displays still looking goodas autumn approaches and no litter!

We paid a visit to a small Museum as recommended and found collections donated by local people very interesting. I enjoyed the display of coins and medals, found by a lady metal detecting and was surprised to see that a Chinese coin was included in the display. Everything was neatly labelled and with the help of an audio commentary we looked at the 4 drawers of treasures. We also learnt about the German Prisoner of War Camps and looked at a hand drawn map of all the camps throughout the country. I hadn’t realised we had so many, and so many German prisoners. This particular display cabinet told of one Prisoner who decided to stay after the war and married a local woman, both being keen artists. Swaffham was also the birthplace of the famous Egyptian Archaeologist Howard Carter who discovered the tomb of the boy King Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings and so naturally a room had been dedicated to this discovery. This was a lovely place for the children to learn about the Egyptians, especially Tutankhamen and to be able to dress up in clothes of that period and write their names in hieroglyphics.

Our next stop was the town of Downham Market where today the area around the ornate clock tower was filled with market stalls. The shops were attractive and looking in Estate Agents windows saw that prices were around the same as our area. Keith began to get carried away stating we could rent a lovely cottage using his state pension!

Our last stop was West Acre Gardens, part of a private stately home. The roads we have travelled today have been lovely and also very quiet. We have gone through gently rolling farmland, woodland and by the purple coloured heath to finally take a narrow wooded lane through West Acre. Entering the garden plant area, where home grown plants were for sale at a very reasonable price compared to the commercial garden centres, we were able to enjoy a stroll around the walled gardens where one elderly gardener was finding it hot work digging out the root of an ancient climbing plant. How he wished the house had a swimming pool!

Just after 4pm we arrived at North Wootton on the outskirts of Kings Lynn where Ron and Jennifer welcomed us along with Ron’s brother Brian, wife Lilly and sister Marian. We also briefly met Caroline, one of their daughters and her husband Andy along with 6 month old Cicely who was almost asleep. We would see them tomorrow. Brian, Lilly and Marian had come down with their caravan from Newark where they had been staying to join in the ‘Festival of Lanterns’ which sounded a wonderful get together for the Caravan and Camping Club with about 1000 vans taking part. We were to meet more of the family down at Snettersham, a stretch of beach close to Hunstanton and where we would have fish and chips for tea. With a static caravan park at the end of yet another winding country lane we entered a very small but busy car park. Already queues had formed at the chip shop next to a small amusement park and kite shop. Having been introduced to Jennifer’s cousin Jill and her husband Ray the very efficient Jennifer took orders and the rest of us wandered down to the kite shop where the owner overheard Keith say they were rubbish compared to the ones we have from China. He followed us into the shop and was quick to defend his stock stating that most of the kites came from Germany, some from GB and others he made himself. He did not stock China kites but that was only due to the currency rate of exchange. Back in the cars we drove down to the beach car park and climbing up the embankment onto the raised beach area Jennifer laid out a couple of rugs for us all to sit on. The tide was out, so far out we could only see the mud flats on which some people ventured to walk allegedly in search of cockles. One family walked by carrying a small inflatable dingy on the father’s back. We watched flocks of silhouetted birds fill the sky as they swooped up and down along the area in front of us creating an amazing sight for us. The rest of the family were used to such scenes. Lucky them!

We strolled along the beach in the direction of Hunstanton watching the sun beginning to set.

As we reached the paved area leading into the town I watched a white egretland in one of the pools and on taking a photo discovered due to the lighting the bird in my photo was now blue.

We left everyone around 8pm to return to ‘The Ostrich’ where tonight Karaoke was taking place. We had had a phone call from the Manager earlier in the week so we were prepared for it. It’s not our scene but we remained in the bar until after midnight joining in the fun with the locals and people staying in the village. 4 ladies from Norwich were dressed as St. Trinian Girls, the youngest one having an excellent voice that we said she should be on X Factor. I asked one of the local young mums where they went for a night out – Kings Lynn but the taxi fare is £40 each way and then there is our entertainment so they thought it was great that the Pub was bringing the entertainment into the village for them.