April 26, 2103
TODAY, as David put it, the Riddles saved Southwold from a triple dip
recession.
It was time to stock up the fridge and move on. But a quick trip to the
shops turned into a bit of a spending spree.
Amazed by the ease of parking the Hymer for free on the seafront, we
lingered in the butcher-cum-deli, the farmer’s market, and the Adnams Wine Shop
– a great place to find gifts for foodie friends.
We bought fantastic apricot and white chocolate bread-and-butter pudding
at the Two Magpies bakery, pies at the Black Olive deli and cheese, teas and
pheasant pate from Nutters.
Walberswick was our next destination. This pretty, upmarket village has
equally pretty gift shops and plenty of space to park the van alongside the
creek by the dunes, where we started to make inroads into all that food.
Sunny but with a chilly wind again, it was a perfect day for a walk on
the beach, with the light glittering off the waves, and the golf ball of
Sizewell B on the horizon.
Wheatears hopped about on the shingle as the dog chased a Frisbee we’d
found among the flotsam.
Back on board, we made a quick detour so David could point out Westwood
Lodge, a big house that was deserted back in the late Seventies when he and a
couple of mates had dossed down in sleeping bags on the floorboards during a
birding trip.
“There was a pentagram someone had chalked on the floor,” he remembered.
“Weren’t you scared?” I asked him.
“No, we thought it was a bit strange but we just ignored it,” he replied.
Looking down over the marshes from alongside the ‘No Caravans’ sign that’s
there now, we saw two marsh harriers.
Saxmundham was our last quick stop of the day, a little town with two
mega supermarkets that must have just about killed off everything else.
Tonight we’re staying on a Caravan Club certificated site nearby, at
Iken. The proprietor is very friendly, and there are chickens, and ducks in a
pond.
It’s turned very chilly and was hailing as we drove out here past Snape
Maltings – a destination for another day.
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