Arriving with cousin Anna in Cringleford, just on the Western edges of Norwich, started a hectic but enjoyable ‘Day In The Life’ experience, during which I tagged along and tried to slot in as best as possible with the daily routines of Anna and her two kids, Oliver (8) and Sophie (5).
Anna is 29, and the second-eldest daughter of my Mum’s sister, Teresa. I’d be visiting Teresa and her two youngest kids (the twins Robert and Rebecca) the next day, so these two days were really all about Teresa’s family. Teresa’s eldest, my cousin Nicola, was my first stop, down in Plymouth, so the trip had been neatly book-ended by this branch of the family.
Arriving in Cringleford I was greeted by the wonderful smell of what I thought must be lunch, but turned out to be a big spaghetti bolognaise that Anna had thoughtfully put together for our dinner that night.
“You’re not vegetarian are you?!” she quipped, to which I gave the reply she really didn’t want to hear. I’d assumed that my family all knew I was vege, as its been 21 years now (with the excepton of 99-07 – ‘the fish-eating years’), but this kind of highlighted how little I’ve really seen of Anna during our lives.
I unpacked my stuff in Oliver’s room, kindly vacated by him for the night, and plastered wall-to-wall with Star Wars posters and life-size representations of Darth Vader and Boba Fett.
Time for a quick drink, a brief catch-up with Anna and an introduction to their 8-month old, fully energised Cocker Spaniel, Molly, then it was off into the fray as we headed into Norwich to pick up Sophie and then Oliver from school.
The primary school which Sophie attends was a scene of partly controlled chaos as kids spilled out and Mums arrived, and Mum’s said hellos whilst kids said goodbyes. We headed into Sophie’s classroom, and she was easy to spot in her amazing little buggy that she uses to get around in.
Sophie, in case you hadn’t realised, is the same Sophie that has inspired me to raise some cash for charity on this ride. She got diagnosed with a brain tumour when she was 2, and while she has now been given the all-clear for the cancer, she has been left, 3 years later, with various disabilities that leave her needing 24-hour care.
As her balance isn’t too good for now, she has this souped up little buggy that she powers around on, terrorising fellow pavement-goers. Its fantastic to see her manoeuvering her way around, somewhat haphazardly, and you have to watch your ankles a bit, but basically in control, independent, and able to decide for herself where she wants to go.
She’s a popular lass and all her friends were coming up to her at the gates to say hello and goodbye. As we went past one little lad who was a bit older, he turned to his mate and said very earnestly “Yeah, I really like that little car. Mmm, I want one of those.” I can understand why, as it really shifts, but that may have been a tricky wish-list for Santa to handle.
We had a lovely lunch at an organic cafe. Sophie can’t take food or liquid by mouth but seems to have a fascination with playing with it, and is also something of a cook, it seems. So after playing with some of Anna’s chocolate cake, it got wrapped up and placed in her hood for safe-keeping. We forgot about this until later when we were trying to figure out why Molly the dog kept attacking the back of Sophie’s head. No harm done!
Then it was off to get Oliver from school. As Anna took Sophie in to the loo at the school, Oliver hijacked the buggy and did a few nifty laps of the playground, then we headed back to the car, Sophie driving the buggy with Oliver getting a ride on the back.
Oliver is a great kid, tons of energy and very sweet. A bit obssessed with guns, in the way that computer-game playing boys can be at that age, and with the currently stated career aim to be an actor that plays murderers, if I remember that conversation rightly. I was also proudly shown his BMX, with the recently added front and rear footpegs.
After dinner, the first glass of wine of the night, and a visit from Anna’s South African friend (Karen?) we were off to our next engagement – Oliver’s school carol concert.
I was over the moon that my trip coincided with this, and it didn’t disappoint. The only thing that disappointed in fact was mine and Anna’s ability to hit the right notes and take the singing seriously. I’ll be damned if Good King Wenceslas, along with half the other carols, didn’t fall either below or above my limited vocal range. Anna did a little better, but I can’t say more than that really, sorry Anna!
All that was left was for the kids to go to bed, Sophie’s carer to arrive (Sophie has to be monitored all the way through the night), then for Anna and I to while away the evening with a few glasses of wine, trading amusing stories of internet dating, catching up on family news, and resolving for Anna to come down to Oxford in the New Year for a deserved weekend of frivolity.
Day 24 (Tues 15th December)
Norwich (NORFOLK) to Walberswick (SUFFOLK)
Distance: 57.8km (Total distance 1770.0km)
Time in the saddle: 2:45
Climbing: 399m
Bed came a lot later than it should have done for an elite athlete such as myself, but it had been another enjoyable evening, and I didn’t mind only getting 5 hours sleep as I crawled out of bed at 7.30 to do the school run.
Anna was already up and in 5th gear, and before I knew it we’d dropped the kids off, had an icy but enjoyable walk in the forest with Molly for an hour, and it was almost time for me to bid farewell, and head South-East on the short ride to Suffolk.
It had been really nice to get to know Anna better, during what felt like a lot longer than the 22 hours it was. She’s brilliant fun. Very bright, a wonderfully dry sense of humour, and with a down-to-earth quality that must come partly at least from having to deal daily with the realities of having two kids, one of whom needs more care than most, a dog, and a demanding job as a nurse.
I rolled out with my head still fuzzy and enjoyed a beautiful ride through rolling and interesting countryside between Norwich and Walberswick. It wasn’t a long ride, and I also wasn’t in too much of a hurry, so I just enjoyed having my head cleared by the cold air, and kept my eyes peeled for ice on the road.
Before I even knew it the 3 hours had passed and I was rolling towards the coast, and the little village of Walberswick.
Here resides cousin Rebecca (Anna’s sister), and her boyfriend Ben. Rebecca for many years has looked after the stables at the holiday home of the screenwriter Richard Curtis (BlackAdder, Four Weddings, Bridget Jones etc.) and his wife Emma Freud. Rebecca and Ben live in a flat by the stables, and very kindly I’d been allowed to stay in the adjacent flat for the night.
It was still freezing cold outside when I arrived, and that made lunch in the warm flat even more enjoyable, helped by the home made chutney that Rebecca was cracking open for the first time. Robert arrived soon after, followed by Auntie Teresa, then soon Ben arrived back from his work as a carpenter, and Ian, Teresa’s partner, soon after him.
Robert and Rebecca are twins, aged 26 I think, and the youngest of Teresa’s four kids. Robert works in a local bar, and is a self-confessed shop-a-holic. He’s got the most infectious laugh, which he employs regularly, and was looking very cool on our night out in a pair of slinky, pointed shoes.
Rebecca’s life right now is dominated by her final exams in her 5th year studying osteopathy. She’s been juggling doing the course with working, and has almost got there. She’s got plans to start practising in Southwold, and I’m sure she’ll be a big success. She’s got a really lovely manner and is always smiling! Her boyfriend Ben is also a top bloke, and talking with him about his Suzuki GSX-R 750 motorbike made me reminiscent of my brief spell as a biker, and set off my dreams of having a holiday on the Isle of Man during the TT races sometime soon.
Auntie Teresa and Ian met a few years back, and have just bought a place in Spain, so their dream of a life in the sun is becoming reality. They’ve got a transit van which Ian is converting into one that you can sleep and live in, so that they can go backwards and forwards between the UK and Spain in it.
We had quite a gathering assembled for the night, and after I’d helped Rebecca to bring in a couple of horses from the fields we headed out to a great pub/restaurant doing Italian food.
What ensued was a cracking night of getting up-to-date, once again, with family who I hadn’t really spent much time with in recent years, and not a lot in the years preceding that either really.
They’re a great bunch, and we had a lot of laughter and chat around that restaurant table. ‘El vino did flow’, and by the time we got back to Walberswick it was time to get the sambuca out and play a bit of Wii bowling and tennis.
Once again I crawled into bed far later and far more worse for wear than I should have done, given that tomorrow was going to be a much longer day in the saddle than today. Still, a price worth paying for a memorable evening.
