Day #25 Leiston to Reydon/Southwold, Suffolk

Pic shows Southwold Abbey.        

JINXED! Only yesterday was I was celebrating(boasting) this DRY-- (11 days), island when out of the blue and totally unexpectedly, we had guess what—a rainy day! Wrapped up and rolling forth northwards at 8.30am for my day. Had only proceeded half an hour, when local garden landscaper Ian invited me into his shed for a coffee and biscuits. Thanks Ian. It is this rain I think, that must make people sorry for me. Ian’s first question was a very direct “Are you homeless?” I explained in the negative (but I could well have been, stranded between B & Bs) and Ian talked about the influx into Eastern England of large numbers of Latvians, Poles, Estonians etc. Often these people, now in the EU, arrive in poor economic circumstances……. I must have looked bit like a rain soaked Pole down on his luck!

      Another couple of miles along my minor B road outing, and I happened on a magnificent and very humourous collection of steel sculptures/statues designed by enormously talented Paul Richardson. Amazingly lifelike, they would form a  a custom made and real show-stopper in a garden, outside a hospital etc. Thanks Paul for your time talking about your work:             www.steelsculptures.co.uk

      Moving gradually eastwards as well as northwards, I approached the coast at Southwold, through an area of rather desolate marshes this grey and rainy cold March day. Southwold is one of those villages that look likes it has been picked up directly from the pages of an Agatha Christie murder novel. Looks like nothing has happened here for a hundred years and that’s the way the locals want to keep it. Be gone tourists! If you don’t like it, we will increase our prices until you scream in pain. This tourist, beat a tactical retreat for the night to find B & B shelter in the much less fashionable ajoining town of Reydon. Weather projections are for a much more weather friendly weekend. Here’s hoping!                                  

24.4 Kms. walked today per pedometer. Cumulative Kms. covered: 619.5
Hours of walking today including rest stops:  5.5
Type of accommodation: small B & B.
Cost of bed & breakfast: pounds. 40.00

Please go to Flickr.com (traveller6666) to view pics of the walk.

Trillium Health Centre has always been there for me and I am giving 110% to Trillium as they prepare to meet the tsunami of aging boomers with weak hearts and broken bones. Donate Now:  www.trilliumhealthcentrefoundation.org