Our Magical History Tour 2014: A short break near the sea - At Wells Next the Sea in Norfolk Saturday 28th June

I am sitting at the desk looking out the window at the tide coming in rather quickly and raising all the boats off the sand, in the harbour. We are staying the Old Customs House, built in the 1500, much the same sort of house that I envisage my ancestor would have lived.

There is a well in the front yard, in fact several wells along the road, and that is how the town got its name. Seems strange to have wells next to salt water, but they run into a river. The town was badly hit with a storm surge in December, with many shops and buildings, including this one being flooded.

But I have a question, with so many Church spires around the country, how were they built 1000 years ago?
A lot are being repaired and the intricate scaffolding for today's practices would be much different than way back then.

Today we traveled to the sea in Norfolk, (without any pine trees), we called into King's Lynn and the visited the Queen's house in Sandringham. Unfortunately it is not the best weather, and the wind is quite strong, with heavy rain as well.

Buck's day out they all have tags, I guess in case they forget who they are

Customs House

The town of King's Lynn is a port, with access to the North Sea. It took over from Wells Next to the Sea, some years ago, as the entry port for Norfolk. There would be some fine tales to be told of the activities in both these places, as smuggling was common!

There is a central square called Tuesday Market Place, and another known as Saturday Market Place. I love the names given to some places and streets, I remember we drove through Short Lane, which was exactly that, a short lane!

The Corn Market and the Customs House are now used for totally different purposes, including a delicious white chocolate drink!

After King's Lynn we continued through lovely rural areas, as we had done all morning, and then we arrived at Sandringham. Lots of people, and today was Carriage Racing, but none were out during our time there.
On Monday it is the Sandringham Garden Show, so I guess we also missed seeing one of the Royals. Lucky for us though, cause the Queen must visit during July, and some days it will be closed.

It is quite a walk from the carpark to the gate, and then to the Palace itself. It wasn't that busy, in terms of how most attractions are, and the grounds were full of walkers, and dogs.

An old tree

The palace was bought by King Edward VII in 1862. The house was built in the mid 1800's and the deal included 7000 acres of land! Lucky man, or good foresight for a real estate investment. The woods and trees are very old, given what we learnt in the Sherwood Forest.

Photographs are not allowed, so I bought a Guide Book which has photos of the inside rooms. Queen Mary and the late Queen Mother decided to lighten the house up and the walls were painted in a pale green. It is much better than the solid wood paneling in Hampstead Court, I thought. The lightness highlights the tapestries on the walls.

The Queen and the family visit at Christmas time, and the guide mentioned there were 80 bedrooms, for all the staff and guests. The family eat in the dining room, which is quite lavish, filled with beautiful and probably priceless ornaments and table wear. But thinking ahead, so as to ensure no breakages from the likes of those great grandchildren, all these items are put away after the house is closed to visitors!

There is an enormous collection of weaponry, ancient and modern guns. Lots of armour and statues. I guess it would be a delight for any little boy who delights in those sorts of games as a child!

There is also a huge home theatre room, because the Queen cannot go out to the movies like the rest of us, so they come to her. It is easy to see why she loves the home.

The museum was the garages, and photographs were allowed. A fine collection of cars and artifacts are on display, including strange gifts that she has been given from people all over the world.

Gift from Australia in 1954

And back to the entry this is the opposite side of the house, but probably the main driveway

We ate in the cafe, and then drove past some very stately homes, manor houses, and walled estates until we arrived at the beach. Not quite the same as our beach, but despite the cold wind, people were out enjoying themselves.

Shell walled houses

There is a fantastic children's play area, and people were jiggling for crabs. The seagulls were well in abundance with a different variety than we have seen before.