Now, the question as to why we were heading towards the county town of Suffolk is quite funny. It may have not escaped your attention that I am a fan of Norwich City, and our local rivals is Ipswich. And although the rivalry is nowhere near as bitter as it once was, I do make disparaging remarks about Ipswich. Now, despite living in the county for 30 years, apart from going to Portman Road for matches or stopping on a train at the railway station and a concert by Echo and the Bunnymen, I had only visited the town once before.
So, how well did I know Ipswich? Not very well as it turns out.
We headed to Simon’s house, with his address programmed into the sat nav, and once there we had a coffee before Jools headed back south to Colchester in search of bead shops. And Simon and I headed out onto the mean streets of Ipswich.
I won’t bore you with the details; but we saw a few church, some fine civic buildings, inside of a couple of puns, a fine stately home, the inside of a record shop, a Jewish cemetery and much more. First off was down to the old harbour and docks which have now been transformed into condos and restaurants from their old roles as warehouses, etc. Although it looks mighty purdy with the yachts and launches moored, I can’t help thinking how much better it would be for the town if this was still a working harbour employing people in related shipping jobs rather than just barwork as is the case now.
Some people have grown rich on the changes, but many haven’t. There are shopping centres, pedestrian streets and markets, but there is the feeling that all is not well. There are plenty of empty shops, and many other businesses have just closed and their former premises are just rotting, just like the old County Hall, a faux castle like structure, now a den for druggies and dropouts. So sad to see.
We stop off in one former church for a brew and a cheese scone before continuing our walk. We find a real ale pub at eleven, and end up at a fine church, St Margaret’s which has the most glorious painted roof, it took my breath away. When I mentioned that my friend Simon was showing me around, they asked if he was Simon Knott, of Suffolk Churches website. And he was. They spoke glowingly of their admiration for his website and the information it has.
Anyway, Jools called at one, and so we walked down to Portman Road to meet here; it’s where the cheapest parking can be found. We head to a local pub for lunch, and I realise I am bushed. I say that I would like to go on, buyt can’t. Simon understands, and so we part after lunch and we head back to the car and head south into Essex and home.
No queues on the Dartford bridge, and so we were home within two hours, home for five and time to feed the cats and put the kettle on for a well-deserved brew for us.
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