Wells Next the Sea

Last weekend, I was on call, so I could only go a short distance on my day off. I went north to a small town on the shore called Wells-next-the-Sea. Although it was originally built 'on the sea', the tides have changed, and now the town sits about 1 mile from the water. As you can see in the pictures, some water comes in near the town in a small river - that then leaves when the tide is out. You can see all the stranded boats sitting on sand. The tide is quite large - when I was there, the tide was at least 1/2 mile from where it comes up to the beach. So after walking 1.5 miles, I still was not at the water! On the beach, there are very cute and colorful little beach houses that I guess people use for storage and such. There were quite a few people strolling the beach with their kids and dogs - especially the black labs. There was even a couple getting married - there is a picture of the bride. It was so windy that day that I am surprised they weren't blown away!

Norwich and Beer Festival

I have been fortunate enough to spend a few afternoons in the city centre of Norwich. It is quite different than many cities and towns in the US, as there are many streets filled with shops and many people strolling and shopping in the middle of a work day. It is a very pleasant environment to be in. Above is an old arch marking an entrance to the city centre. Below is the city market which contains many stalls selling goods, fresh seafood, produce and various clothing and housewares - this is open all days of the week.

Below is the Norwich Castle and then the Arcade which is lined with shops, including Colman's Mustard Shop, which was founded in Norwich.

Below is my pictures from Wroxham, which is a small town lying to the northeast of Norwich, and also is part of the Norfolk Broads, which is a series of waterways in the area. You can take a boat and motor it on your own to explore all the little waterways. It is quite beautiful and scenic and very peaceful to walk by. Below is a very friendly swan looking for some treats! Below is a small church and graveyard that I found just driving around.
This week was the Norwich Beer Festival. It is held in St. Andrews Hall, which resembles a church, and has big old windows and large portraits hanging around. Quite peculiar drinking ale and lager and cider in such an environment. You get your own glass and drink as many different kinds of lager and ale (warm) as you like. I went with some other registrars (residents) and consultants (attendings) so it was quite a good time.

Thames Valley

2 Weeks ago I drove to the Thames River region, northwest of London. I visited Hampton Court Palace, which is probably most famous for Henry VIII living there with his multiple wives. It is an extremely grand home with marvelous gardens that William and Mary helped design. It was quite interesting to learn about some of history of the kings and queens, especially King Henry VIII and his many wives and marriages.

I then drove throughout the Thames Valley region, where there are many small villages positioned along the Thames River. There were many boats on the water, and many people walking along the river banks. This is the country where the Wind in the Willows and Peter Rabbit were written. Above is an example of one of the quaint pubs that are everywhere here.


To finish off the day, I visited Basildon Park. The reason I decided to visit this place was because it was used as Netherfield in the most recent Pride and Prejudice movie. Both the exterior and interior areas were used in the film. The entry hall, stairwell, dining room, and octagonal room were all filmed in the the Netherfield party scenes. It is quite an interesting house to visit, because it fell into utter decay by the 1950s - everything was sold off and the house was going to be torn down. Then it was bought by a husband and wife who brought it back to the great state it is in and bought all of the furnishings one by one. It therefore feels very livable and like a home. There was a wedding taking place there while I visited, with the small reception out back in the small garden.

The next day I visited Blenheim Palace. This was initially given to John Churchill by the queen in the early 1700s after he won a significant battle in Blenheim, Germany against the French. He was made the first Duke of Marlborough. This has become one of the most magnificent palaces in the country, built to rival Versailles. Sir Winston Churchill was born here - his uncle was one of the later Dukes of Marlborough. This family is also closely related to Lady Diana's Spencer family. Above you can see some of the lavendar that was in bloom. Below is the palace.


Lastly, I visted the Stowe Landscape Gardens to get a breath of fresh air. These gardens are very naturalistic versus the many formal gardens around. There are beautiful classical structures built throughout the space, so that as you walk (it is quite large) you suddenly find some new structure that is hiding around the corner. It is quite delightful just to stroll around and enjoy the scenery.

This weekend I drove to the area of the country called the Peak District and Derbyshire. For all you Pride and Prejudice lovers out there, you will recognize some scenes from the most recent movie as well as the BBC version. I was very excited to visit this area and think about Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy there. The first place I visited was Chatsworth, the Pemberley from the recent film. You can see the house in my pictures, as well as some of the sculptures that were also seen - Mr. Darcy's bust, and the beautiful Veiled Lady. There were beautiful gardens and countryside by this home - I could have spent a couple days here exploring the countryside. I actually ran into 2 ladies from Austin, Texas while touring the house!

I then visited a stone circle, Arbor Low (not part of movie) in the early morning. This was quite a funny experience as it was in the middle of nowhere, off a small country road, through a farmyard, through a cow and sheep pasture and over a hill, where I encountered an eccentric guy who is a major stone circle buff. We had a fun time chatting and he took my picture dancing on the stones!

I then headed to Lyme Park, which is the Pemberly from the BBC version. This was also quite beautiful, though not as stunning and impressive as Chatsworth. Again, I loved to imagine Mr. Darcy climbing out of this lake, when Elizabeth spots him

Early one morning I took a 'walk', or hike as we call it, to the countryside in Derbyshire, called the Edges, specifically Curbar Edge. This is where Eliza is seen standing on a rock in the movie. It was a glorious morning, with the sun just rising over the horizon. There were several people and their dogs hiking about, with sheep grazing on the edge. It was so beautiful to stand on the rocks edge and gaze over the countryside. Here in this picture, you can see me as a speck on the rock!

Cambridge

This past weekend I visited Cambridge, which is a little over an hour away. This was move-in weekend, so there were plenty of students and families moving all their luggage in. It was interesting to see these old historic colleges surrounded by young college students. Here is a picture of me in front of the famous King's College Chapel. It was a bit chilly and windy that day!

First Week

I have been here in Norwich for about a week now. Before this I traveled to Scotland for 4 days. I rented a car (very scary) and got used to driving on the LEFT side of the road while sitting on the RIGHT side of the car and driving a stick shift with my LEFT hand. All very taxing on my small brain! But I made it without any major catastrophies, except a few swipes of some window mirrors along the way! I first drove south of Edinburgh, and visited the now famous Rosslyn Chapel which is the final church and destination in the book and movie, The Da Vinci Code. Beside its beautiful architecture, it has some strong ties to the Templar Knights and the ties to Mary.

Then I drove into an area called the Borders. It is beautiful country with rolling hills filled with lush green grass, hay fields, small quaint towns, and lots of sheep!!

There I visited abbey ruins, as well as Sir Walter Scott's home where he wrote many works; it also possesses some beautiful grounds!

I also visited Floors Castle, owned and lived in by the Duke of Roxburghe and family.

While I was there a horse thought I looked quite tasty!

I then traveled up to St. Andrews, the famous university and golf town.

The last couple days I spent in Edinburgh where I saw the historic Edinburgh Castle as well as Holyroodhouse Palace, which is the place that the royal family stays when in Scotland and where Mary Queen of Scots once lived.