A bit of catching up ...

So, since the walk in the cemetery, there has been more similar weather as described in my last post; quite a lot of snow this morning while we were out having a walk (8-9am) and for about an hour thereafter. That said, it did not get very deep, but it was fun walking and feeling it fall on us :) ... especially as we are not snow bunnies at all and have not had the skiing experience (or want it). I did pause at one point in a back street during our walk when it got a little heavier and the silence of the snow falling was quite eerie ... but really relaxing to listen to ... however, it did not seem wise to pause for too long as the cold and damp seeps in quickly!

However, that was this morning. What about the last few days?

Our very good friends from Bristol (Steve & Helena) had made their way up here last week to catch up while having a few days off to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. Their wedding was my first visit to the UK and I have fond memories of the trip and time with my dad, their wedding (the recent weather here is very reminicent of their wedding day!) and quick trip around the UK with dad and Steve the week prior to their bug day. After morning tea with Belinda, we set off to check the east coast out at Great Yarmouth ... the sun was shining as you see below:

Belinda & Daisy & their terrrace (just the black door & the
two windows behind),

And while the sun remained out while we were wandering around the main beachfront "boulevard" in Great Yarmouth, the image below of Helena, Deb & Steve is testimony that the sun does not hold a great deal of warmth. Remember, clicking on a picture should open a larger version ... so when that is done for the one below, you will see some dune growth, a wide stretch of sand to the water (North Sea) and some offshore wind turbines (a little more about them later).

Just after this there was small, warm and cosy cafe that served a very welcome mug of hot chocolate. This warmed us for the return walk along the beachfront promenade to the car. I did not take any photos of the garish architectural vandalism that is on either side of the main "boulevard". On the beach side, between the walkway you see above and the road are (nearly all) modern ugly building that serve the summer crowds and to disguise and hide the beach and water as you drive through or stay in the range of accommodation on the other side of the road. Worse vandalism is on that side where a lot of original buildings have been "fronted" by neon signage and shop fronts for side show alleys, betting houses, pubs and clubs ... a real shame because if you look at the 3 images below you will see the potential that has been foregone with commercial expediency ... I have to say I just do not "get" the attraction of covering up such grandeur with modern bright lights. Sort of place that is hard to imagine wanting to come to for a summer holiday as it stands, but easy to see the attraction in a bygone era :(.

Of course, it is also easy to imagine all the buildings and the beach full of vacationers soaking up the sun, playing all sorts of games and scoffing fish and chips and lots of drinks!

There is another structure in Great Yarmouth that draws your attention ... you see it from everywhere ... and like the beach front, when you find it you cannot believe it in the middle of an industrial estate surrounded by factories and small warehouses and businesses ... no park or open space to speak of ... just seems like a relic no one is especially interested in celebrating anymore but it is too big to ignore. Strange really. So, it is a monument to Nelson (THE favourite son of the town and county), crowned with Brittania (not Nelson!) atop the globe (an abashed celebration of the expanding British empire) ... and a memorial to Lord Nelson's many contributions to that expansion including his ultimate sacrifice in winning the battle of Trafalgar ... jeez I almost sound like an apologetic for the glorious bygone era of the empire, but rest assured I remain a loyal convict because they shut the public dunnies here at 4pm meaning they are not all public conveniences! OK ... here is the monument ... in its magnificent surroundings ...

The final things to share about Great Yarmouth is a little more about those offshore wind turbines. In an earlier post I mentioned a special harbour construction at Wells-next-the-Sea for the maintenance vessels that service the turbines on that part of the north coast. This is a port for the vessels that construct the bases from which the turbines survey their their ocean home and harness the wind for their power generation. Most unusual looking vessels ... each one has four of the steel towers which are driven into the sea floor to frame the base on which each turbine sits. Some engineering feat. The second photo offers a closer view in an attempt to contextualise their size ... certainly would not want to run into one, or have it collapse on you! So far we have not heard to "whoosh" they make, but no doubt will in time. The other thing we have noticed driving around too is a number of solar farms - very large paddocks full of solar arrays ... seems an interesting investment in this part of the world and makes you think harder about why we are not taking more advantage of our natural advantage back home?

Finally, we headed a bit further south to Kessingham and another couple of hours catching up and chatting over some drinks and a really nice dinner of bangers, mash, greens and yellow (corn!) that Helena whipped up in their English beachside resort chalet :). Most enjoyable! Then they drove us back to that terrace (photo at the beginning of this post). They headed back to Bristol next morning and we are looking forward to catching up later in our trip and checking out their renovated bungalow and celebrating Steve's 60th.