Southwold, Norwich and Beccles

I am no stranger to Beccles, Suffolk and Norwich, Norfolk as my friend, Wanphen lived in Norfolk before moving to Suffolk. 

 There was n'er a dull day as both of us had a plan for the days we were together. This time round, I got to know the town better soaking in the sights. Wanphen hosted lunch  and dinner for friends and we visited a couple of them in the outskirts of Beccles too. Her hospitality extends right into  tummies  and I was really pampered by her versatile cooking of Asian and Western meals. 

I was thrilled to see Southwold. It has the charm of a lovely seaside town. We topped the visit with a tour of Adnams Brewery, founded in 1872 by two brothers, George and Ernest Adnams. Adnams is a Plc British regional brewery. Commemorative ales are produced for special events; one of which was the Royal Wedding Ale  in 2011 of HRH Prince William and Catherine Middleton. Do not miss The Amber Museum which is the only museum in the UK dedicated entirely to amber.   

Our day trip to Norwich was extra exciting as we took in the sights of the cathedral, market, shops and rewarded ourselves heartily at lunch and tea time. Of course before dusk, our the main mission was to go on the trail of  GoGoDragons Norwich 2015.There were 84 to hunt and we managed 13 in between other distractions. Like the families  that engaged in the hunt, we too oohed and ahhed  and hugged the dragons . The playful art lifted our spirits. 

 Adnam's ale in Southwold -  Wanphen and I booked a brewery tour and it ended with tastings.  I even lugged home 2 bottles of ale - Gunhill - 4% dark mild and  Broadside- 6.3%) ,dark  ruby red beer for  dear hubby who gave the thumbs up:)

Sunbathers on a hot, sunny day on Southwold beach. 

Colourfu beach huts  - like pretty maidens in a row! 

Local radio station on  the cliff top hill

Cannons  facing the sea on the cliff top.

View from the Pier. 

An interesting and fun water clock  which attracted many people.

A huge painting/graffiti at the Pier commemorates George Orwell's visit to Southwold. 

Wanphen waiting patiently for the hour  hand to strike to set the water clock in motion.

Ale and a scrumptious platter of haddock, chips and peas for lunch. 

We paid a special visit to Pam who lives in a residential home in Norwich. Then it was GoGoDragon Hunt for us!

A breezy, homely feel in one of the living  rooms in the residential Home

At Norwich Station 

Norvica Serafina, located in Cathedral Close  by the statue of Admiral Horatio Nelson.

Many admirers for this dragon.

Hail Biggles at Cathedral Close.

Inside Norwich Cathedral -  bathed in lovely colours.

Edith Cavell,a  British nurse, WW1 heroine who saved the lives of soldiers from both sides without discrimination, helped some 200 Allied soldiers to escape from German occupied Belgium.  I bought a couple of books from Tombland Bookshop  next to PRIME. Have a visit when you're in the vicinity.

Looks like I was too comfortable in the meadow of daffodils!

Sorry  ye beautiful dragon, I've forgotten your name!

BLING - the  blingest! - we spotted it in the market. It got many children and adults excited . Never knew a fire-spewing dragon  can be so dazzling and shine like a million stars!

Superwoman dragon is just content smiling on people with her  thick red luscious lips!

Waveney Enterprises -  a non- profit making arts, crafts and social skills teaching day service for adults with mild to moderate learning disability.  

Lunch at The Waveney House Hotel by the River Waveney with Catherine, an old friend of Wanphen's

Bobbi's lovely country house which she manages by herself.

So  glad to see Bobbi again after a lapse of 5 years.

There's always a first time ! Had my unwieldy hair shorn  - first ever on a holiday. Well, since 5 weeks is quite a time away from my regular in KL, Olivia in  Beccles did a fine job too!

For Wanphen, it was a first to visit Beccles museum  - more exploring when a friend comes visiting!

One sees these figurines in 5 entrances to Beccles. A significant event - Queen Elizabeth1 handing the Charter of the Corporation of Beccles to John Bass in 1584.

A brief info of Beccles of yesteryears. Beck = stream; Leas = meadows

Bust of Admiral Horatio Nelson, who was the son of Catherine Sucklin  ( a citizen) and Edmund Nelson. Both were married in  Beccles church.

A snack as we did our rounds of the many charity shops in Beccles. I think we did all - 10 or more! I picked up a few small items - a brilliant looking butterfly bookmark and two cross stitch pictures of cats , nicely framed ; a labour of love by the embroideress. 
Kudos to the excellent work in all the charity shops.

Thanks to Wanphen's culinary skills , there's always something specially cooked to tempt palates at dinner time.

Plants in the conservatory are a healthy lot.

Choosing which dvd movie to watch was a big decision! Once done, it's easy as we sat back on the recliners  to watch the classic Jane Eyre and sipped our  wine .

A game of cards in Norwich airport while we waited for our flight to Jersey. 

It is always sunny in Beccles!

The other evening I got a call from my friend, Wanphen in the UK. Beccles, calling! Where ? It's a small market town on the Suffolk/Norfolk border and is within the area of The Broads. And Wanphen, of Thai origin , lives there now after having trotted Mexico, Malaysia , Istanbul and then back to the UK with her late husband, Tony.

Wanphen called to say 'hello' As usual, she takes her time to talk, never hurrying as if to beat the seconds that tick away for a long distance call. When she heard of my son's trip to Tanzania to do some voluntary work, she was glad. 'Let me round up my friends to help donate towards the fund raising for his trip,' she said.

Wanphen left Kuala Lumpur more than 19 years ago. I bumped into her at our daughters' ballet classes. And from there , our relationship blossomed.

If she could wrap her hands round as many people as she could to bring them into her 'fold', she would. That's how I got 'caught' by her easy , friendly demeanour . She needed some help to get some activities going at Selangor Cheshire Home, a home for the disabled. After all, it was just about giving a little time to care and share. So, I joined her company. Others did too and soon there was a big group of ladies who liked her warmth.

Working with her, I found there was always room in her heart to fill it with more love and care for the disabled residents. There was one resident who wanted to hold her hand and walk with her whenever she was around. Somehow, he could not utter any word and saliva dribbled at the corners of his mouth. She always let him and talked to him with kindness as she guided him to his place of activity

It was just natural chemistry to interact with her disabled friends. How did she do it? It was her genuine desire to touch hearts and spread sunshine to others. That's just her.

She cooked and shared her wonderful dishes with as many as her giant wok could feed! That was her birthday party treat for them. Not forgetting her yummy cakes and delicious snacks.

In Beccles, she still radiates warmth. Walking round her her garden, I sense the tender care she exudes for her plants too. What I gave her , a ' keng hwa', as a cutting years ago , she took to Beccles . Mine is doing sweet nothing! Hers is a huge wicker basket of flourishing flowers.

When I was there in November, I was smack in her party planning for her 56th birthday. Her friends , all 10 came for the party. It was Thai cuisine at its best. Her food drew appreciative oohhs and aahhs. After the guests left, we both put our feet up and talked about the great time had by all.

Far from the maddening crowd of Mexico, Kuala Lumpur and Istanbul, she still retains her personal touch. A friend or two always needs popping by and checking to see if everything's alright. I remember we drove by a house to check if her neighbour's lights were on. That was enough to let her know she's ok. There were the times when her kitchen was in full swing to cook and bake for some charity raisers. A friend asked to babysit her dog for the owner to be away. So many little ways she finds to be a friend.

So, be it snow or sleet , girlfriend you shine, as always. Yes, it's always sunny in Beccles.

Birthday Smile

Hanging garden

What A feast!