The Ham Nomads

18 Oct 2014. <GB-ENG> Ipswich, & Orford; Snape, Suff —

We heard from the Pembertons, which gave us a couple of destinations in and around Ipswich, Michael's home town. We dropped in to look at the house where he grew up, and found Christchuch Gardens directly opposite. We went in to explore them, and got caught up in the finish of a fun run. We suspect that it was the extreme tail-enders, as the runners coming in looked as if it was a social occasion, not a competitive event!

The gardens are quite spectacular, and have been there for about 800 years!

We then went past his aunt's house. This was a little more difficult, as her place was number 9, and the only number we found was number 11 — so we took pictures of the houses on either side, and hopefully we have hit the right one!

We then went out of Ipswich, and to Orford Castle. This is a castle going back to Henry II. The story is that Henry had it built here, between the holdings of Earl Bigod and the probable landing place near Walton Castle of the Flemish mercenaries he had hired. It was just in time, and Henry was able to put down the rebellion. He also confiscated seven other castles in the region, building up considerable might in the area. All that is left of Orford Castle is the keep and the earthworks surrounding it (in surprisingly good repair), but the outer curtain walls and towers have entirely disappeared, robbed for building materials by the townspeople in the 1700s. Nevertheless, it's a most impressive edifice.

View from Orford Castle

The Auditorium

From here, we went on to nearby Snape Maltings. This was once a huge malt house, but has been turned into what can onty be called a trap for the purse! There are large top end shops for anything remotely in the gifts line, but also it is the site of an auditorium set up by Benjamin Britten and Peter Pears — an auditorium renowned for its acoustic, even though it was originally designed as a malt house — but which we were unable to visit, as there was a rehearsal in progress at the time. We wandered about enjoying the place, and the River Alde, a tidal estuary. Today the tide was out, and we were presented with the sight of beached craft and broad expanses of reedbeds.

We left, and went back on the road to a parking area we had noticed near a footpath through the forest — not far off the road, but the road itself has very little traffic! Susie went out for a walk before dinner, then we watched an episode of Gotham before retiring.

Distance driven — today, 53 miles ( 85 km ); to date, 8,955 miles ( 14,412 km )