26 - North Shore News - Sunday, October 1,

TRAVEL

churches

2000

Exploring the
East Anglian
- countryside

. Caroline M. Jackson

| Contributing Writer
. THE ancient kingdom
«of East Anglia — that
~. balloon of land north-
east of London — may
be as flat as a Dutch
‘pancake but it is far
. from icatureless.

Originally made up of '&

north - folk (Norfolk) and
south folk (Suffolk), the land-
scape immortalized by painter
. John Constabie, is punctuated
‘with picture-perfect © wind-
mills, Norman churches and
medieval villages. The coast-
‘line is fringed with swathes of
sandy. beaches, salt marshes,
and fascinating fishing . ports
including King's Lynn, birth-
place.” of Captain George
» Vancouver. . .
“: The absence of mountains
“also. . makes —this-. region
Britain’s driest. and sunniest
spot. Watch the BBC weather.
forecast and often a sunshine
icon will be hovering over the
East of England even: when
other ‘areas :are experiencing
inclement. weather. Perhaps
this is. why ‘the TV scouts

chose.the East of England as:
the ‘setting for programs such”

as Kavanagh OC, Lovejoy and
B.D. James Mysteries, ”
The closest major ai:
Stansted, «just
Cambridge, or you can drive
from: London and spend the
night in my favourite gateway
age, Lavenham. °“* -This

rt is

unspoiled example of a Tudor’
lage is one of.the prosper-.

ous Suffolk wool towns. :
If you have a purse of sov-

ercigns,” treat yourself “to ‘a’
= the 15th . century ~

2 Reh nae a

Bye eens

sou of -

RUINS of the Augustinian Abbey in Walsingham. Dubbed Englai:d’s Nazareth, the

photo Hamish Jackson

village has been compared to Lourdes in France and Fatima in Portugal.

Swan Hotel, which is a verita-
ble honey comb of fascinating,
nooks and crannies, sloping
ceilings and low timbered
doorways which one is wise to
commit to memory. Of partic-
ular note is the — hotel's
Elizabethan Wool Hall.

In the. morning, : amble
along ~ Lavenham’s narrow
streets and lanes with their
timber-framed buildings and
pastel-washed cottages. A
notice flapped in the breeze
on the door of the village hail.
It read: “Tonight Mr. Wheeler
will be giving a talk “on
Graveyards, Cemeteries and
Epitaphs.”

A town truly steeped in the
past, the High Street boasts
many quaint craft, china, gift

and teashops with perfect bow -

windows. Look’ upwards to
admire facades with unusual
raised plaster motifs. Called
pargeting, these decorations

“ioe especially the fleur-de-lys :

—. are signs associated: with
the wool trade.
To ‘get:a flavour of local

history, visit the magnificent
16th century Guildhall. Over
the vears it has served as a
place for feasts and pageants, 2
town hall, a workhouse, an
almshouse and a wool store.
Today it is managed by The
National Trust and the muse-
um is well worth a visit.
Lavenham was famous for
its blue broadcloth which was
‘dyed in the wool” rather than
after being woven into lengths

of cloth. Wander around the .

walled garden which explains
the common plants used by
dyers of yore. Near the adja.
cent mortuary and prison, an
aging sign advertises that the
church sexton will “for. a
Shilling toll the bell in memo-
ry of the deceased”.

Before _ departing from
Lavenham, drop by one of
England’s . finest — parish
churches, the 15th. century
parish Church of St. Peter and
St. Paul. If you are a church
aficionado, this will be .the
first of 2,000 churches for you

to visit in the East of England.

Just ten miles north of
Lavenham is the: beautiful
market town of Bury St.

- Edmunds with its tenth cen-

tury Benedictine Abbey ruins.
We arrived in the early after-
noon and being a Wednesday,
the market was bustling with
shoppers laden with wicker
shopping baskets.

The cheese stall was doing
a brisk business selling bargain

‘priced. Cardinal. Sin which

comes from monastery cheese
makers in Somerset. Since the
vendor had sold out of this
particular delicacy, I asked her
if she had ‘anything else. “Oh
yes,” she < said, “I’ve. got
Stinking Bishop.” She must
have seen the horrified look
on my face so she explained
that the. cheese is poured
through the rind of a Bishop
pear.

I bought some ‘and i it tasc-
ed delicious. Another popular
stall was the sausage counter
where locals were buying

See Pilgrims page 7

Mathy Yazdiha

Mathy brings with her 2 wealth of experience in
both corporate & leisure travel. Whether your.
itinerary is overseas or domestic Mathy. can
E assist you with all your travel! needs. | 7

1467 Bellevue Ave. West Vancouver 922-4131
www carlson wagonlit.ca Email: : crsonezgoal@angobal nt

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