Tuesday, April 30, 2013

A Suffolk Whirl

Bright and early Monday morning, Jon and I set off from north London to Liverpool Street Station to meet my parents for our train to Suffolk to join my future in-laws.  Okay, it wasn't early for most people - in fact, we caught the height of the morning rush hour - but we were on holiday!  We were also on a mission, though, so off we went, chugging east towards the North Sea.

Honestly, most of our time in Suffolk was taken up with wedding things, and I don't want to spoil the next few weeks of Wedding Wednesdays by writing about all of it here.  (Sneak peek: tomorrow will be the new florist, next week I'll post about the tasting lunch we had with the caterer, on the 15th I'll give you some hints about my dress and on the 22nd you'll hear about my exploration into the fabulous world of bridal headpieces, and the last Wednesday in May will be for a discussion of wedding drinks.)  But beyond the appointments and plans, it was wonderful to simply be with Jon and to see our parents getting to know each other better.  They'd met before, in September 2010, when Mom and Dad came to visit me in London and we then spent a weekend in Suffolk, but Jon and I had only been together for two years at that point; now we're engaged, and I really felt like we all started to be a family last week.  Jon's sister Ellie even came down from London one night to join us for dinner!

I'll share my photos with you from our whirlwind few days in Suffolk - believe it or not, I took many more than I Instagrammed! - but quickly, first, let me introduce you to the county.  Suffolk, with its 45 miles of coastline on the North Sea to the east and acres of rolling countryside to the west, includes the best of all of England.  I know I'm biased, but it's true!  It has pebbled beaches, lively marshland and quiet heath, whispering forests and waving fields as far as the eye can see, plus classic English wildlife - pheasants, rabbits, deer - straight out of a country cookbook.  Some of the towns were founded by the Vikings and you seem to stumble on a medieval church or castle at every turn.  This is where the romantic painter John Constable painted many of his most famous works, inspired by the generous land.  It's the England where Jon grew up and it's the England I know best outside of London, and I can't imagine getting married anywhere else.  You can learn more about Suffolk here and here - but here's how I explore it:



















linking up with Helen in between for Travel Tuesdays 

25 comments:

  1. wow! this is just so quaint and beautiful! i would love to visit, the colors of the houses are so pretty!

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  2. So so pretty. You're getting married in a fairytale.

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  3. Suffolk looks like the most idyllic, perfect English countryside I could imagine.


    (And love that your parents are getting to know the in-laws. Funny enough, Joe's parents & my parents met the night before our wedding. While we're all Canadian, a 13 hour drive between their homes and a chance to meet in the middle never did present itself. Thankfully, all was fine.)

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  4. It must have felt so wonderful to see both sets of parents bonding in a different way this time. :) My parents have only met my husband's family once, and it was the week we got married. I wish i had a closer relationship with his family, but... they're... ummm... not close like mine, so... yeah. Anyway! Suffolk is simply beautiful! Take me with you!

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  5. So beautiful! I don't know much of England outside of London, and it's nice to see that there are parts of it that match up to how I imagine it. Your wedding is going to be gorgeous!

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  6. thank you! the landscape is totally working for us :)

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  7. Beautiful! I feel like I'm basically saying everything Sarah has already said... But I've only spent a few days in London (most of my European experiences were in France). I love seeing another part of England. Also, the last picture of you two is SO cute. :)

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  8. Oh lovely, do you think you will ever live in England?

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  9. yes, we do plan on moving back eventually!

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  10. thank you :) next time you go to England, travel around if you can! I'd love to visit more places there - there's SO much!

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  11. oh my goodness, places like this actually exist? And thanks for getting me incredibly excited for the upcoming Wednesdays!

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  12. This just gave me my first twinge of homesickness for England! Can't wait to be back in August!:) p.s. love that stripey dress of yours!:)

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  13. Beautiful! I hope one day I get the opportunity to visit England. If I could, I'd pack my bags and go right now :)

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  14. oh my gorgeous-- the path through the trees...where is that?

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  15. oh my goodness! so beautiful! you should make a photo book!

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  16. Absolutely gorgeous pictures! You make me want to add a side-trip to England to my tours this summer. Looks like you guys had an amazing time!

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  17. haha now I just have to stick to the schedule :P

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  18. thank you! it was the only thing I packed that worked for the weather - I was expecting colder temps - so I wore it the whole time!

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  19. it's near Snape Maltings, on the east coast of England :)

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  20. that's why I have this blog! thank youuuu

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  21. PUT 'EM UP, MISSY. (You'll have to take me exploring Yorkshire when we're next in England at the same time - I want to see it through your eyes!)

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  22. Ah, I recognize Southwold. :) As you might remember, I wrote late last year about going there; it was cloudy when I went, so thank you for providing some pictures of that town with sunshine! Spectacular!


    That's a nice picture of you and Jon; you look good together. :)

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  23. If I can find room in my trip! I have a Eurail pass and I'm not afraid to use it! :D

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