It occurred to me a couple of weeks ago that I moved here two and a half years ago and I still haven't written a post about where I live! So here's that post.
I live in Norwich (which is pronounced Norritch and is in the county of Norfolk, for those of you who don't know the UK). It's tucked away into the eastern bumpy part of a map of the England. It's a city, which means almost everything you'd want or need is right here, but it's also a small city, which means it never feels like I'm about to be smothered by crowds or crushed underfoot on public transport. It's old, which means plenty of lovely cobbled alleys, medieval streets, and ancient bridges, and it's only a forty-minute drive to the sea in three different directions.
Sometimes it does feel like I'm far away from a lot of things (for instance there are only a couple of theatres and it's not often I want to go see whatever is on; and it's two hours on the train any time I want to visit my UK-based agent or editor in London), and that not much happens here, but most of the time I love being here!
And the thing I love best about Norwich is that it's beautiful. Plenty of parks and rivers tiny hills and woods in the city, and gorgeous countryside just outside it.
The city is also due to become England's first UNESCO City of Literature, is home to the University of East Anglia and the reason I mention this is because the university can boast some impressive (literary!) alumni. Tracy Chevalier (Girl with a Pearl Earring), Kazuo Ishiguro (Never Let Me Go) and Ian McEwan (Atonement) have all been and studied here, which I think is pretty cool and totally justifies me hoping that I'll absorb some bookish talent from the air. (Seriously. I moved here out of convenience. And turns out the city is literary! Freaky, right?)
(Actors Matt Smith (Doctor Who), John Rhys-Davies (Indiana Jones, The Lord of the Rings) and Jack Davenport (Pirates of the Caribbean, Coupling) also went to UEA, and I love them, so WIN!)
So there you go. This is where I live. And before I leave you, here's one of the best places in the city.
That's the Forum. It has a lovely little cafe, BBC East, a Pizza Express... and my favourite library.
(Note: I was about to post this when my husband, who loves football, somewhat irately reminded me that just because I'm not into sports does not mean they don't exist. Sorry, Steve (and other football fans!). Norwich is also home to Norwich City, a Premier League football club. Which I knew. Obviously. I just... kind of forgot to mention it.)
What do you love most about where you live?
I live in Norwich (which is pronounced Norritch and is in the county of Norfolk, for those of you who don't know the UK). It's tucked away into the eastern bumpy part of a map of the England. It's a city, which means almost everything you'd want or need is right here, but it's also a small city, which means it never feels like I'm about to be smothered by crowds or crushed underfoot on public transport. It's old, which means plenty of lovely cobbled alleys, medieval streets, and ancient bridges, and it's only a forty-minute drive to the sea in three different directions.
Sometimes it does feel like I'm far away from a lot of things (for instance there are only a couple of theatres and it's not often I want to go see whatever is on; and it's two hours on the train any time I want to visit my UK-based agent or editor in London), and that not much happens here, but most of the time I love being here!
And the thing I love best about Norwich is that it's beautiful. Plenty of parks and rivers tiny hills and woods in the city, and gorgeous countryside just outside it.
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| Our house kind of overlooks this. Envy me. |
The city is also due to become England's first UNESCO City of Literature, is home to the University of East Anglia and the reason I mention this is because the university can boast some impressive (literary!) alumni. Tracy Chevalier (Girl with a Pearl Earring), Kazuo Ishiguro (Never Let Me Go) and Ian McEwan (Atonement) have all been and studied here, which I think is pretty cool and totally justifies me hoping that I'll absorb some bookish talent from the air. (Seriously. I moved here out of convenience. And turns out the city is literary! Freaky, right?)
(Actors Matt Smith (Doctor Who), John Rhys-Davies (Indiana Jones, The Lord of the Rings) and Jack Davenport (Pirates of the Caribbean, Coupling) also went to UEA, and I love them, so WIN!)
So there you go. This is where I live. And before I leave you, here's one of the best places in the city.
That's the Forum. It has a lovely little cafe, BBC East, a Pizza Express... and my favourite library.
(Note: I was about to post this when my husband, who loves football, somewhat irately reminded me that just because I'm not into sports does not mean they don't exist. Sorry, Steve (and other football fans!). Norwich is also home to Norwich City, a Premier League football club. Which I knew. Obviously. I just... kind of forgot to mention it.)
What do you love most about where you live?
What a beautiful place to live! My husband may have the opportunity to move to England someday. The more I learn and see about/of Great Britain, the more I hope he does! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteLooks like the kind of old city I like. Thanks for the pronunciation, too. Love that street shot, too. We'd like to see the UK as well, since I have Scottish heritage and hubs has English.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing those photos and all the info.
It looks gorgeous, I've never been. I had no idea about the literary geniuses who'd studied at the uni. x
ReplyDeleteIt's so pretty! I definitley want to make it to England some day, it's on my Bucket List. My cousin is actually over in London for school and I'm so jealous. I live in the grand old potato state of the US (Idaho, if you didn't guess), but I grew up in Northern Virginia, with Washington DC practically in my backyard. I really miss the historic sites.
ReplyDeleteYou live in a beautiful place! Something about the quaintness of a small English town. I live in a good-sized city which gives me access to a lot of stores and entertainment, which I like.
ReplyDeleteI love how it's both village-y and modern - so pretty!
ReplyDeleteLooks lovely. We so enjoyed England when we visited several years ago. I'd love to go back someday.
ReplyDeleteLove the pictures. It looks like such an amazing place to live. I hope to go there someday.
ReplyDeleteI'm officially jealous of that view. It's all so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteWow, what a charming place to live! I definitely envy you. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovley place.
ReplyDeleteLast year we had been to Europe. Next year it will be USA (for a wedding) The year after that it will be UK and while there I will definitely be there in Norwich :-)
Can you believe I've never been to Norwich? I must rectify that!
ReplyDeleteHm, I love Kensington Gardens. It's like my huge back garden.
That's so picturesque that it feels more like a movie set than a real place. I went to Oxford but unfortunately never explored England as much as I should have done while I was there.
ReplyDeleteyou live in Norwich?! i love norwich.how cool! got friends there, used to be my get-sane-get-away while i lived in london.
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