You cannot visit a cathedral without looking aloft to enjoy its impressive height and ornate ceilings. That’s where I end at Norwich Cathedral in eastern England, capturing the building’s beautiful roof space. It’s tempting to lie down in this pursuit, but that seems inappropriate – and mirrors are provided to easily glimpse the upward divinity. Unmissable.
An ancient place of worship embracing both the traditional and modern. The stunning architecture of Norwich Cathedral is studded with intricate, heavenly stained glass. But there are a set of windows bedecked in something more contemporary and plain, throwing a lemon and cyan light across the old stones. It’s difficult to be unimpressed with both. Any preferences?…
It took just a two-hour train journey from London to be whisked back years. I lived in Norwich, an ancient and important city in eastern England, from 1992-9. It was both family home and the place where I studied at the University of East Anglia.
This time I was armed with my camera to see its crowning glory, the cathedral. My feet remembered where to go, from the pretty lanes including Elm Hill, and to lunch at an unchanged old haunt, The Waffle House. The banana milkshakes were still deliciously rich, and the same guy still works there.
The UEA’s campus, a bold cluster of concrete set beside a lake, couldn’t be more different from the ancient city centre. It felt nostalgically familiar, but the current students weren’t even born when I was one of them. Sometimes going back can be a bad idea, but this was a happy retread.
I lived in Norfolk for several years, and it was a pleasure to return there for a few days over Christmas. It’s a broad county in eastern England, sparsely populated in places and possesses some beautiful coastline and countryside.
We witnessed the madness of the Christmas Day dip in the seaside resort of Hunstanton, which involved people taking to the freezing waters dressed in costume.
The following day saw some brilliant weather and a visit to the broad beach of Brancaster. It was also very chilly, as the photo of Dermot shows. We also visited the charming little town of Burnham Market. A change of scenery and some fresh air was a great Christmas present.
You can also read this related post: Christmas afternoon
Portraits rarely feature in my photography – I positively shy away from taking people’s photographs. But this Christmas was very much a tale of three people – myself, my mother and Dermot.
In the richly decorated surroundings of Old Hunstanton’s The Lodge in Norfolk, where we spent the festive season, I caught my mother off guard while joking with Dermot. It’s a natural capture of energy, engagement and a youthfulness defying that Mum is in her ninth decade.
Dermot happily posed for his shot, with a wry smile and looking particularly relaxed. This is perhaps the key to good portraits – not that I would really know!
The only part of the jigsaw missing from this set is my own photograph. Maybe that’s for the best…
