Next up on our visit to Norfolk was the beautiful village of Cley next the Sea - no that is not a typo and I have no idea why they call these places what they do. We wanted to stop past Cley Windmill and it was definitely worth the visit.

When you arrive in Cley you are greeted by a picturesque, post card village with tiny cafes, a delicatessen, and the odd pub to water the walkers. It's every bit the charming, english getaway and we were fortunate enough to be welcomed with good weather. A coats-off kind of afternoon in fact!

The marshes and roads were lined with the most glorious feather reed grass. A warming sight as the sun shone down, highlighting something other than grey - it has been a long winter. Or so it feels.

Roads twisting to the unknown.

We walked the marshes on the beautifully designated paths with the promise of something great in the distance.

Norfolk is abundant with windmills and marshland. Its unlike quite a lot of the UK I've visited so far actually. It impressed me more than I expected (most of it anyway, but that might visit in a future post).

It was so nice to feel the sun and smell the plants and actually see greenery flourishing. I'd imagine it is pretty in the winter too but a little Vitamin D helped for a more enjoyable experience.

Streams carved through the reeds and the sun shone spectacularly through the grass to line their edges.

 

Ok so that is a lot of windmill pics but it really was stunning. The light was so intense, the photos look like the image is burned into place. My poor lens isn't used to so much light.

I love this grass. I find it 'dreamy' for want of a better word. You'll struggle to find a place it didn't make look pretty.

Wherever we strolled, the windmill crept into view.

I love passing strangers and capturing them with their backs turned. There was something sweet about this couple. Just having a casual chat, staring out into the marshland. They were probably only discussing the grocery shop but I'd like to think he's telling her 'Doreen my darling wife....*fill in blanks with old skool romance*' - we'll never know.

I find the quiet, practically middle of nowhere sort of places really romantic and incredibly relaxing. It does wonders after a stressful week.

It is worth taking a wonder by this windmill if you're visiting Norfolk. The surrounding area is special.

We finished up the walk with obligatory 'I'm at a Windmill' photographs and headed back to our chariot (I often refer to our uncared for car as chariot or Jeeves. In fact Mr B is also Jeeves - part of a longstanding joke we have - should these names crop up at any point).

I learned the hard way that I should always pack my shades and also, what suits Mr B does not suit me. But what a gent nonetheless, sacrificed his own vision so i don't get wrinkles squinting.

With one last look back we wandered away.

There are many things to do in the area. You can take a coastal walk to Blakeney Point keeping a lookout for seals, or a short drive away is The Three Swallows - an award winning foody pub. There's bird watching, a local delicatessen to die for and even a couple of art galleries and souvenir shops to keep you entertained.

The Three Swallows is a drive away, not much to look at on the outside, lovely inside. It's situated on a pretty green across from a church and you could quite easily dwindle away an afternoon here,

They serve pick n mix as bar snacks which is great but a huge sidenote.... THEY STOP SERVING LUNCH AT 2:30! (until dinner). So annoying when you want a quick bite at 2:37! So we didn't eat here in the end. Turns out a lot of bars in Norfolk follow this.

So onwards from here we ended up in The George. If you can have homemade bread and houmus to start, where can it go wrong?

For the ultimate lunch, both Mr B and I went for the bacon bloomer and matchstick fries. Both heavenly but the fries were insane! So naughty but soooooo good. I even dipped them in my houmous for carb overload.

Full to the brim and ready to relax, we headed off to snuggle by the open fire. Join us beside it in the next post.

- MTWP xxx

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