Southwold

Southwold, otherwise known as London on Sea.  No empty shops here, but a tendency towards "Vintage".  It was a cold, blustery day and we were glad to find a tea-shop for lunch.

The beach huts looked anything but inviting on such a day.

The absolutely fabulous church at first appeared to be closed,but in fact was just having masonry repairs to its porch.

Inside, it is very light and airy, much larger than you would expect for this small community.

A decorated pulpit.

And a really lovely painted screen, defaced at the time of the Reformation.

 

The panels at the ends are in a different mounting.  the suggestion is that they may have been relocated here from one of the drowned churches of this coast.

Theberton

 

Just North of Saxmundham, this very attractive country church at Theberton.  Note the thatched roof and the round tower.

The tower is clad in flint and it is estimated to have taken four years to construct.

Very impressive - and functional - gargoyles.

Curiously, inside the vestry is this superb Norman archway, dating to the early 12th century. Presumably the vestry was added later and has protected it from the elements.

In the porch, this fragment of a German airship brought down in 1917.

We were on our way to Southwold and, as so rarely happens, just when we needed it a refreshment stop  came into view.  This was Tosiers, an artisan chocolate makers where we were able to have a coffee and stock up on chocolate.  Just hit the spot nicely.

Our now annual visit to Aldeburgh, arriving to calm autumnal weather.

 All these visits to this part of Suffolk and we had never seen inside Aldeburgh church, always busy with some event or service.  Here a Piper window in memory of Benjamin Britten

 

And here a very moving war memorial.  This coastline must have been a prime recruiting ground for the Navy in both wars.

The town itself full of quirky survivors, such as this watchtower.  There are still fishing-boats here and fish for sale on stalls, but the main industry is tourism - well-heeled families with dogs in tow, grazing on fish and chips on the shingle beach.

Later in the week, a wonderfully peaceful walk around the Alde estuary.   Everything looks posed as for a stylish watercolour, the reed-beds glowing in the low sun.