Because the main dining area was being set up for a wedding later in the day, our final breakfast in the Old Vicarage took place in a more cosy dining area.
We loaded the car then headed off for King’s Lynn where we were going to stay for the remainder of our holiday. We had programmed the SatNav to include way marker destinations along our route. After a while it became clear that the SatNav was not leading us to our first planned location, Horsey Thatched Church. By the time we realised the error it was not really feasible to backtrack. We had also missed out the coastal road that Mr C had been keen to drive along. This was a shame but we have it all to look forward to when we are next in the area.
We carried on towards Cromer taking in a couple of churches along the way; Trimingham with its 15th century rood screen and St Botolph’s Church in Trunch with its early 16th font canopy. We parked in Cromer and walked along the seafront before heading into town in search of a crab sandwich.
Cromer was absolutely heaving with people and a stark contrast to the tranquil setting of the Old Vicarage in Crostwick. Mr C noticed a place called Hot Rocks that advertised their seafood was brought in by their own fishing boat. The menu offered crab sandwiches so we took a seat inside and when they arrived the crab sandwiches were totally delicious.
After we had lunched, we returned to the car via the seafront before heading to Wells-Next-The-Sea which was even more crowded than Cromer so we decided not to stop and headed straight to King’s Lynn where we checked into the Bank House Hotel and unloaded the car before walking into town for refreshments and a quick visit to King’s Lynn Minster. Because of flooding earlier in the week we were unable to see some of the Minster’s treasures but we enjoyed what we could see.
Now it was time to freshen up in the hotel before dinner. We dined in the hotel restaurant where the food was delicious and the staff attentive. We had a nightcap in the bar and found it a refreshing change that the bar to stayed open for its advertised hours.
Tags: Bank House Hotel, Crab Sandwich, Cromer, Crostwick, King's Lynn, King's Lynn Minster, Norfolk, St Botolph's Church, The Old Rectory, Trimingham Church, Trunch, Vacation
We chatted and laughed with Higgy and Mrs H over breakfast, then it was time for them to head home. We went into Norwich to see some of the architectural features. When we saw a sign for St Peter’s Church we decided to head in that direction. For some reason Mr C got it into his head that we were headed for St Stephen’s Church. He followed the SatNav on his phone which took us on a rather circuitous route that gave us chance to see some of the dinosaurs on the Dinosaur Trail that was exhibited in the city.
Eventually we found ourselves outside a church, the Church of St Peter Mansfield rather than St Stephen’s. We had a look round the delightful church before heading to St Stephen’s which we knew had a café. The service there was quirky and slow but we got our food order in the end. Mr ordered a cheese scone, which both Mr C and I thought looked suspiciously like a fruit scone. He queried this and the lady that served him was adamant that it was a cheese scone. When Mr C cut the scone in half several currents were exposed so he took it back and the Minister of the church sorted out the mix up for him.
We decided to leave the city in order to visit another church that was on our list; St Peter and St Paul, Knapton with its double hammer-beam roof with over 100 carved angels. Inside the church we found it also has a spectacular Palladian font cover. I walked around the church and through the graveyard whilst Mr C waited outside the front entrance.
As I left through the gate two dogs started barking manically at me, wagging their tails at the same time. I wasn’t sure if they were pleased to see me or otherwise, but they were on chains so they couldn’t come near. The owner came running and told them off before apologising to me, saying that they don’t normally behave like that.
We took the scenic route via the North Norfolk coast back to the hotel. Later, we dined in The King’s Head at Coltishall. We shared a crab cake starter and for mains Mr C chose lobster thermidor whilst I opted for sea bass. The food and service were excellent.
We went back to the hotel for a nightcap on the terrace and found the staff setting up the main dining area for a wedding. The bride and some of her guests were seated nearby talking about what was planned for the following day. After a while they got up to leave so we bid them good night and wished them well for their wedding celebrations.
Tags: Angels, Coltishall, Dinosaur, GoGoDiscover22, Kings Head, Knapton, Norwich, St Peter & St Paul, St Peter Mancroft, St Stephen's Church
We set the alarm early so that we could get the car to Autoglass in time for its 9am appointment. Car checked in, we made our way to the nearby retail park, purchasing a few items from The Range and checking out bedside lamps in a lighting shop. We found the perfect one but unfortunately there was only one left and we need two. We settled down for a cuppa in the M&S café, planning things we might do for the remainder of the holiday.
When Autoglass rang to say the car was ready, we made our way back to pick it up. As we were leaving, the engineer who had fitted the new windscreen said ‘Don’t do it again!’
We drove to the Blickling Estate where we had arranged to meet Higgy and Mrs H. We had lunch then enjoyed a walk around the estate before visiting the house. We were then ready for another cuppa which we enjoyed outside in the sunshine. Once again wasps took a fancy to me and circled around my head causing me to have to stand up again. There must be something vaguely botanical in the hair products that I use.
The four of us finished our visit by exploring the estate further and walking around the walled garden. When we arrived back at the car park I realised that I had forgotten to pick up the guide book and it was a long walk back to the shop. I enquired at the car park entrance kiosk, only to find out that they had run out but that I could briefly park in another car park situated close to the house and shop and get one there.
It was too early to return to the hotel so we visited the quaint village of Horning for a short walk. Back at the hotel we freshened up after the sticky heat before joining Higgy and Mrs H on the hotel patio for a pre dinner drink. The room had been serviced and we noticed a second chair had mysteriously appeared in the room.
We dined in the hotel where we found the service to be good but we had to wait ages for our food to arrive. We sat up late, chatting outside on the hotel terrace. We were astounded to realise that it had been 15 years since we last met but the conversation carried on as if we had only seen each other a few days ago.
Tags: Autoglass, Blickling Hall, Friends, Friendship, Horning, National Trust, New Costessey, Norfolk, The Old Vicarage, Vacation, Walled Garden
Breakfast took a lot longer to arrive that it had done the previous morning and we were treated to those two young girls who were sleeping in my previous post babbling on about socks and the ability to put them on. Thankfully, we were ready and waiting to meet Wiggia and Mrs W when they arrived to pick us up at our hotel. It was lovely to meet them for the first time, two years later than planned. Covid-19 and the seemingly endless lockdowns scuppered our original plan to visit Norfolk in 2020.
There was much amiable chatting and laughter in the car as we travelled to and from Castle Acre. Castle Acre has both priory and castle ruins, but before visiting either we stopped off in the village for refreshments. It was a little too soon after breakfast for me to be tempted by the delicious cakes that were on offer so I settled for a cup of tea. Next, we visited the priory which has a large footprint with some unique features I have not seen before. The English Heritage staff were excited about the recently opened rooms in the Prior’s lodging. Only Mr C ventured up the extremely narrow winding staircase. On his return he said that we hadn’t missed much. Wiggia told us that the priory had changed quite a bit since he last visited the site.
Next we visited the castle where the earthwork remains are impressive but not much remains of the castle buildings. Mr C explored the higher reaches whilst Wiggia and I chatted on the lower levels. After the castle it was time to return to the hotel and say our goodbyes. Thank you Wiggia and Mrs W we enjoyed our time with you and we are already looking forward to the next time, hopefully soon.
We headed into Norwich and the Cathedral stopping for a drink on the way (we still weren’t hungry, it must have been the heat and humidity). We didn’t get the best Cathedral experience because the organ was being restored. The sheeting and scaffolding around the organ and pipes sort of cut the Cathedral in half.
We had time to chill out before our meal in The Fox. The restaurant had looked promising but somehow fell short on delivery. My first choice of meal had run out (unfortunate, it happens) but when Mr C’s meal arrived the steak wasn’t cooked to his requirement. He sent it back and his plate was returned almost immediately with the correct steak on his plate. The chef had served the wrong steak on the plate. It wasn’t the only order that arrived incorrectly, people on the table next to us also returned items to the kitchen.
Back at the hotel terrace we planned what we might do with the friends that we were due to meet the next day.
Tags: Castle Acre, Castle Acre Priory, Friends, Friendship, Norfolk, Norwich, Norwich Cathedral, The Fox, Wiggia
Breakfast was excellent quality with standard ‘Full English’ and other cooked options on offer. There were cereals and toast but no continental options. After breakfast Mr C readdressed sorting out the windscreen repair. This involved a lengthy 30 minute online chat procedure where a five minute phone call would have achieved the same result with a lot less stress. Sadly a phone conversation is not an option. The reason that Autoglass had not phoned back on the previous day was due to the booking showing up for Monday 22nd August rather than Monday 15th August. Autoglass offer a 3-hour callout window which didn’t fit with our itinerary meant we had to book the car into the Norwich repair centre in a couple of days time.
With that loose end out of the way we were able to set off for our destination of the day, Sandringham. We enjoyed a walk around the gardens and visited the Fire Engine house before having lunch in the stable tearooms. I was plagued by wasps buzzing around my head causing me to stand up to eat my lunch so it was not an entirely relaxing experience. Afterwards, we visited the formal garden before entering the house ahead of our timed slot. The house is lovely and homely. Paddington was sitting at the tea table waiting for the Queen to arrive, although her handbag was rather neatly placed on the table with her emergency marmalade sandwich ‘for later’.
Before leaving Sandringham Estate we took time to visit Sandringham church before enjoying a refreshing drink and visiting the shop even though the skies were darkening and threatening rain. As we neared the car park the heavens opened and there was a torrential downpour. Mr C left me in a sheltered place whilst he dashed to fetch the car and bring it closer. My inner child caused me to laugh as I got soaked dashing the short distance to the car in torrential rain. The rain was so heavy that it ran off the fields onto the roads causing them to flood. Luckily we were following a bus that displaced the standing water off the road leaving the road relatively water free for us. Eventually we emerged from under the rain cloud to see the water evaporating off the warm fields.
Back at the hotel, Mr C struggled to find a restaurant for what would be his birthday meal, eventually settling on The Ivy in Norwich. The food was delicious, although mine went cold quite quickly due to the fierce air-conditioning blowing in my direction. The waitress was excellent and kept our wine in a cooler rather risk it warming up on the table. Mr C was treated to a mini birthday cake profiterole which was a nice surprise for him; he had wanted to order profiteroles for dessert but they were only served in a pyramid for four people.
To round off the day, we had a nightcap on the hotel terrace which was quieter than it had been the previous evening. We were accompanied by another couple who had taken chairs and placed them next to the window to their room to keep an eye (or ear) on their young girls who were sleeping inside.
Tags: Autoglass, Crostwick, Norfolk, Sandringham, Sandringham Church, The Old Rectory, Vacation, Windscreen
We were able to set off early because our bags we had packed the day before and dined with family, leaving us with very few last minute jobs to do. As we were leaving Telford we heard a loud noise on the car windscreen, a lorry had kicked up a stone.
We stopped at Corley services for a break and a refreshing drink, then continued on our journey stopping again at Cambridge services where we purchased sandwiches and a drink from M&S. Mr C chose to eat his outside in the humid, hot sunshine whilst I retreated to the relative coolness of the car. Whilst travelling between the two service stations Mr C noticed a crack in the windscreen leading from the point where that stone had impacted.
We arrived at our hotel, The Old Rectory, Crostwick before the check in time. We sat deliberating whether to go into Norwich and what to do about the windscreen. As we did so I could see the crack slowly growing. We decided to check in early, then Mr C started the painful process of trying to book an appointment slot with Autoglass. The site doesn’t give an option to phone up, a painful online process has to be endured. The room was rather hot so I went outside to explore the hotel garden, taking advantage of one of the benches. This allowed Mr C to relax after the annoying process, although he didn’t get a phone call he expected from Autoglass confirming the appointment.
After all the excitement, we chose to have a relaxing drink on the hotel terrace before freshening up for dinner in the hotel. The food was good and honest rather than ‘fine dining’. Comfortably replete we returned to the terrace to enjoy the cool night air. There was a large party already there, which we learned was a birthday gathering for a 96 year old lady. We got chatting to her and one of her sons as they passed by our table. She is quite a character and enjoys the fact that she is the same age as The Queen.
Tags: Autoglass, Crostwick, Norfolk, The Old Rectory, Vacation
