Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Author: admin

Wizz Air (Faro to London Gatwick South)

I had the choice of paying about £4 for a convenient bus service from the hotel to the airport or traipsing two miles along lanes. Anyway, here we are.

The view over to Faro on my walk. It was far too hot, but since it was about 08:00 in the morning, it wasn’t yet at its hottest.

Safely at the delights of Faro Airport.

The airport felt busy, with more non-Schengen flights than Schengen, which is unusual for a European airport. It seems though that there are more passengers to the UK and Ireland than every other destination added together, presenting a challenge when you have to have two segregated areas of the airport.

Ryanair has recently complained to the Portuguese Government about border control delays at Faro, Lisbon and Porto, with long delays now being commonplace. As mentioned, Faro has a lot of flights to the UK and this is clearly placing a burden on the airport authorities and the volume of passengers was high. It took me 38 minutes to get from the outside of the terminal to airside and through border control, which is longer than I’d normally expect but it doesn’t feel at all unreasonable although others have waited much longer recently. As I’m ever cautious, I had allowed an extra hour in case of delay, but this must be traumatic for anyone who is late for their flight. You can pay for premium security, but I’m not sure if that follows through to border control which is where the longer wait it.

I’ve been fortunate over the last year with my Priority Pass card, I’ve never been refused or had to wait more than a few minutes, but I did suspect I’d struggle today. However, I timed it well to ensure that I could charge devices and have a quick breakfast in the lounge. The pasteis de nata was delicious, the coffee was rich, there were endless crisps and they had a small bottle of awful Portuguese beer, so I was happy.

At the gate and there’s an odd glass wall here which I assume is a throwback to a previous airport set-up, but it has created something of a pinch-point now. There wasn’t much seating downstairs, but there was a fair amount tucked away upstairs.

I wasn’t surprised that we needed to get on buses to the aircraft, nearly every departure seemed to be a bus gate.

There are several airlines lined up in the background, with at least five of them being back to the UK.

The boarding process, and aircraft G-WUND is the same one that took me out to Faro a couple of days ago.

As the seating Gods had given me a window seat, I thought I’d take a photo of the views over southern Portugal.

Flying over northern Spain.

As I had taken photos of other bits of coastline, here’s the UK and it was much cloudier which pleased me. I’ve had enough of the heat to last me the rest of the year.

There’s London in the background with all of its grey glory and I accept that I’m not likely to win any photographic competitions with this effort. The flight was, yet again, comfortable and organised, with everything being clean and tidy. The crew were friendly, the pilots made clear announcements and the service was just efficient. And no-one applauded when the aircraft landed, so there’s another win.

Back at Gatwick Airport and the security process was faultless with no queue at all, although I’ve rarely had any problems at Gatwick in the past. All told, a very lovely flight and another bargain for £8.99.

July 21, 2025
Norwich – Anchor Brewery Stores [Closed] (Two Julians)

When walking down Coslany Street with my friend Adrian, he was taking photos of the former Bullards Brewery and I had never really given much attention to this, which was evidently once a pub within the brewery building. The Norfolk Public Houses web-site lists some of the former licencees, including Richard Bullard, Sir Harry Bullard and Edward Bullard. There are very few newspaper reports of misbehaviour at the pub, which is unlike most other venues at the city, but I imagine the brewery was particularly careful to avoid any trouble at their effective home.

The pub here first opened in 1868, although there was a brewery tap at the previous building, and it remained open for just shy of 100 years as it closed in 1966. The brewery advertised in the press ahead of their opening and the thought of the selection of imperial, bitter, ales and stout sounds really quite decadent, like a Brewdog of their day. But probably cheaper.

It was brought back to life as Anchor Quay Wine Bar between 1986 and 2001, but then it closed again. I can’t help thinking that this would make a really lovely micro-pub and the historic surroundings would add substantially to the excitement of such an arrangement. George Plunkett took a photo of the pub in 1984, when it was being used as an estate agents.

The brewery itself was founded in 1837 as Bullards & Watts, although the Watts element left in 1847 and this substantial brewery was constructed between 1867 and 1868. The brewery was acquired by Watney Mann in 1963 and it ceased beer production in 1968. Numerous brewery buildings have survived and have since been turned into residential properties, but the distinctive chimney was demolished.

July 21, 2025
London Craft Beer Festival 2025

My friend Simon mentioned last year about going to the London Craft Beer Festival, but I wondered if it was a bit expensive and so I didn’t get a ticket to join him. By chance, he mentioned last week that he knew someone selling a ticket at a much lower cost of £30, so I was there without much hesitation. Here’s the walk to Magazine, where this year’s event was being held.

There’s Susie and Simon, with the former’s efforts somehow getting us to the front of the queue. I hadn’t let myself get too excited about the event in case the ticket didn’t come to pass, but all was well and it’s fair to say that the excitement soon started when I had the wristband safely around my wrist.

Well, that’s exciting straight away.

The first beer of the day. The concept here is that all beers are free of charge and I won’t list here what I tried, but I did ensure that my Untappd remain updated for anyone who is interested.

We grabbed a table outside, but it soon became apparent that there was large amounts of seating, so this wasn’t an issue. Inside there were also fans and air conditioning, they didn’t want their beer drinkers over-heating, and I was happy to drink to that forward-thinking philosophy.

One of the two internal halls.

This was all so much bigger than I expected. There were some issues with the delayed opening where we left in the sun and that was sub-optimal, but once the event got going, it all felt well organised. There were maps dotted around of where all of the breweries were, but I’d need more than one afternoon to really visit every one that interested me.

I was impressed that there were no real queues at any of the brewery stands, you could get served nearly immediately.

There was a separate American beer bar and the list of options here was much wider than I had expected. As I’m not planning to visit the US for a while, this was an opportunity to tick some beers off.

One of the bar staff modelling a bottle of beer for my Untappd photo.

There was free water available of the sparkling and still options.

That path was what Liam and I walked on the Capital Challenge a few weeks ago…..

There’s Simon chatting away about Brazilian beer. I was pleased that the glasses were made of plastic, rather than, er, glass. So we had branded plastics, which means I could keep it without fear of it getting broken on the aircraft. Susie picked up a heap of free merchandise, which I’m merrily carrying around Portugal now, including baseball hats, t-shirts, lanyards and stickers.

I like a bit of Vault City, I should be visiting their new tap room later in the year.

A free ice cream and a beer slushie from Vault City which made me love them even more.

Simon wanted to go to the Vault City tasting, which was a marvellous idea, and this beer was handed around at the end of the session before.

One of the beers from the Vault City tasting.

Overall, I really enjoyed this evening and the atmosphere was informal and friendly throughout. There were no issues of anyone over-indulging, despite the large amount of free beer that was available. The organisation was better than I had expected, the scale of the event was broader than I had realised and the speed of service was faster than I had anticipated. I was very much surprised and delighted, so I think that I might just be back for next year’s event….

July 20, 2025
Bar Billiards Table Treks – Venue 1 : Artichoke

I’m not normally one for video, as it reminds me that my hairline is receding faster than is entirely ideal, but a few months ago Zak and I had a really rather good idea that we’d play at every bar billiards table in Norwich. The twist is that we’re only filming the first game at each venue, because Zak famously takes a while to warm up. It’s like giving myself a tiny glimmer of hope before he inevitably demolishes me. Zak has been my official bar billiards trainer since 2023 and I will one day be able to see some of the shots that he can pull off, let alone actually play them.

Pete has heroically taken on the role of cameraman for the series, and he’s done a marvellous job filming the first instalment. The next one will be along soon, assuming I can handle more video evidence of my sub-optimal playing technique. And just to be clear, it’s not meant to be a competitive series unless, of course, I happen to win. In which case, it very much is.

July 20, 2025
Faro – Old Tavern

Unsure of where to head for an evening meal, I decided to go earlier rather than later before the crowd descended, it was a Saturday evening and I had already over-heated in the three minutes since I’d left the hotel. I’m actually not entirely sure I should have seated myself at the external tables, but some others did and it wasn’t overly busy when I arrived so all was well.

There’s no printed menu, instead the menu board is on the wall or, for the larger parties, it was brought to the table as if it was some sacred text. I’m not overly picky in general, but this menu was a delight as I would have merrily had anything on here.

The beer was Sagres, which is never going to be a drink of choice, but it was cold and refreshing, so just what I needed in the extreme heat. It looked an authentic menu with fresh options, with the on-line reviews being positive. There was no price list for the drinks, but they didn’t take advantage of that opportunity to overcharge or anything similar. I would just add that I was sitting outside as I needed to be cooled down, I won’t be changing my general habits and I was pleased to note that there were no circling seagulls, herons or storks ready to pounce on my food.

Mackerel is one of my favourite fishes and I can’t say that I get to see a mackerel salad on the menu very often. This was delicious, with the tomatoes being fresh and rich in taste, along with some salad stuff to make it look pretty. The bread came with the dish for free and it was filling, seemed authentic and had a depth of flavour.

It took something of an age to pay, which seemed slightly odd to me as there had a real pressure on tables, but the beer and mackerel salad came to around £11, which I thought was really rather reasonable. There’s something of a theatrical performance from one of the staff members, but I think that’s part of the character of the venue and although I rather got the impression he was getting annoyed at a couple of tables, the service I received was always friendly. Either way, it was all really rather lovely with good food, a decent price and only a minor wait for the bill. And in the relentless Algarve heat, I’ll take any excuse to sit in the shade with a cold, if entirely uninspiring, beer.

July 20, 2025
Wizz Air (London Gatwick South to Faro)

Arriving at Gatwick Airport on the early morning bus…. Instead of the cinematic sweep up the driveway to an impressive departures hall, you’re unceremoniously dumped at the back of the building, which looks more like the loading dock of an industrial estate than the gateway to international travel, but as it was 05:00 it was too early to care much about this. There was no queue at security, so I was left pondering slightly why I had left my hotel so early, but better to be early than late.

I haven’t flown from Gatwick Airport for some time and I wasn’t sure if there would be space in one of the lounges using my Priority Card, but it’s fair to say that My Lounge was not packed.

Lounge food and drink which was typical fare for British airport lounges, some dry and uninteresting food alongside a dreadful lager. The sausage, bacon and hash brown were OK, I poured myself just a small amount of Cruzcampo since it was still early morning, took one mouthful and realised just how dreadful it is. The orange juice was out of cheap cartons, but in fairness to the whole arrangement, the coffee, food and orange juice was all filling enough.

Mine was the 08:00 Wizz Air flight to Faro and as usual for the airline, everything was efficient, clearly signed and without delay. There were more bag checks than usual which always adds to the drama, but once again, this didn’t impact me.

It was raining when I walked to the aircraft, it always feels a shame leaving the UK when there’s weather that I like. The aircraft registration was G-WUND, the same one that took me to an icy Tallinn a few months ago. The seating Gods had allocated me a window seat, so that was a rather handy arrangement.

Nearly at Faro and the aircraft toured up and down the coast a bit before landing. We had experienced a delay on departure, the reason for which was never mentioned, but as Wizz Air pad their schedules so much, we still seemed to manage to arrive on time. The pilots were generally decent on the number of announcements, the crew members were all personable and I fell asleep for most of the flight so don’t really know much of what happened.

It was very quickly evident that it was too hot.

The border control process felt a little chaotic, but these new machines for UK passports seemed interesting, but I wasn’t called to try them. The whole queueing arrangement was a little chaotic in places and it felt like a long wait, but it was 31 minutes in the end, which isn’t entirely unreasonable given this is a busy time of year for the airport. It does feel though that the airport in general is creaking in places with passenger numbers, so yet another extension to the building seems likely for future years.

Anyway, this was another very satisfactory experience given that the flight cost £8.99, the flight was comfortable, the boarding process was efficient and the crew were friendly. I am though getting the creeping sense that most airports in Europe are about five million passengers beyond what they were built for.

July 20, 2025
200 Years Ago in Great Yarmouth : Funding a New Church (St. Mary’s Church in Southtown)

The below article is from the Norwich Mercury 200 years ago this week and it notes those people who donated money towards the construction of a new church. This was a little rare for the time in terms of the Anglican Church, although it was to become much more common later on during the nineteenth century. The money was being collected to fund what became St. Mary’s Church in Southtown, which opened in 1831. I rather like that it’s still there, as it seems to be a little sad that so many people donated for a project which ultimately didn’t survive in the long-term. The article is also an interesting list of the generous nature of various people and institutions of the time.

“Subscriptions:

The Corporation of Great Yarmouth: £500 0s. 0d.
The Hon. G. Anson, M.P.: £100 0s. 0d.
C. E. Rumbold, Esq. M.P.: £100 0s. 0d.
Lord Viscount Siduey: £50 0s. 0d.
Aldred Mr. S. H.: £2 2s. 0d.
Atkinson Mr. J.: £2 0s. 0d.
Baker Rev. T.: £20 0s. 0d.
Baldry Miss: £1 0s. 0d.
Barchard Mr.: £1 0s. 0d.
Barmby Mr. W. H.: £5 0s. 0d.
Barber Mr.: £0 5s. 0d.
Beckett Mr. John: £1 0s. 0d.
Beckett Mr. G. W.: £1 0s. 0d.
Bell J. M. Esq.: £10 0s. 0d.
Blomfield Mr.: £1 0s. 0d.
Blomfield Mr. H.: £2 0s. 0d.
Bolton Mr. G.: £2 0s. 0d.
Bracey Mr. John: £1 0s. 0d.
Brand Mr. W.: £1 0s. 0d.
Breeze Mr. Jas.: £1 0s. 0d.
Broadbank Mrs.: £10 0s. 0d.
Brown Mr. John: £1 0s. 0d.
Bunn Mr. James: £10 0s. 0d.
Burton C. F. Esq.: £20 0s. 0d.
Burton T. Esq.: £10 0s. 0d.
Burton Mr. S.: £10 0s. 0d.
Chambers Mr. W.: £5 0s. 0d.
Child Mr. John: £0 2s. 6d.
Christmas Mr. J.: £5 0s. 0d.
Christmas Mr. S.: £2 0s. 0d.
Clark Mr. Jas.: £50 0s. 0d.
Clarke Mr. F.: £10 0s. 0d.
Clowes Mr. T.: £2 0s. 0d.
Cole Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Cory R. Jun. Esq.: £21 0s. 0d.
Costerton C. Esq.: £15 0s. 0d.
Cox Miss: £1 0s. 0d.
Cracknell Mrs.: £1 0s. 0d.
Crisp Mr. F.: £1 0s. 0d.
Crovitlier Mr. S.: £5 0s. 0d.
Cubitt Mr. R.: £5 0s. 0d.
Diver Mr. W. H.: £2 0s. 0d.
Diver Mr. R.: £2 0s. 0d.
Docking Mr. G.: £1 0s. 0d.
Douglas Mr. T.: £1 0s. 0d.
Dowson B. Esq.: £21 0s. 0d.
Drake Mr. Jas.: £1 0s. 0d.
Draper Mr. J. sen.: £10 0s. 0d.
Draper Mr. J. jun.: £0 10s. 0d.
Duncan Mr. A.: £0 10s. 0d.
Ellis Mr. C. T.: £2 2s. 0d.
English Mrs.: £2 0s. 0d.
Fear Mr. John: £10 0s. 0d.
Ferrier Mr. R.: £10 0s. 0d.
Fielding B. Esq.: £21 0s. 0d.
Fiddis Mr. T.: £10 0s. 0d.
Fisher W. Esq.: £50 0s. 0d.
Fisher Jas Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Fisher J. G. Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Fisher Mr. T.: £2 0s. 0d.
Friend, by Mr. Glasspoole: £5 5s. 0d.
Friend at the Bath House: £1 0s. 0d.
Gamble Mr. Win.: £1 0s. 0d.
Garwood Mr. T.: £5 0s. 0d.
Gill Mr. W.: £1 0s. 0d.
Giles Mr. Charles: £1 0s. 0d.
Glasspoole Mr. H.: £10 10s. 0d.
Gooding Mr. J.: £1 10s. 0d.
Gourlay Mr. D.: £1 0s. 0d.
Green Mr. J.: £1 0s. 0d.
Greenwood Mr. E.: £1 0s. 0d.
Groome Mr. E.: £1 0s. 0d.
Grout, Baylis and Co.: £20 0s. 0d.
Gunthorpe Matthew, Esq.: £50 0s. 0d.
Hallmark Mrs.: £50 0s. 0d.
Hamment Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Harmant Mr. Jes.: £10 0s. 0d.
Harley Mr. Geo.: £0 10s. 0d.
Hart Mr. Wm.: £0 10s. 0d.
Haynes Mr. Wm.: £1 0s. 0d.
Hook Mr. Dan.: £10 0s. 0d.
Hume Mr. Wm.: £0 5s. 0d.
Hunt Mr. A.: £1 0s. 0d.
Jefferies Capt.: £5 0s. 0d.
Johnson Mr. C.: £5 0s. 0d.
Johnson Mr. J.: £1 0s. 0d.
Johnson Mr. Wm. J.: £1 0s. 0d.
Kenworthy Mr. J.: £1 0s. 0d.
Kelly Rev. S.: £5 0s. 0d.
Lacon, Youell, and Co.: £100 0s. 0d.
Lahy Mr. James: £1 0s. 0d.
Lane Mr. J.: £0 10s. 0d.
Libbis Mr. R.: £0 7s. 0d.
Lott Mr. J. H.: £1 0s. 0d.
Lubbock Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Lubbock Mr. C.: £1 0s. 0d.
Lucas Rev. G.: £15 0s. 0d.
Luson Miss: £1 0s. 0d.
Mann Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Mackland Mr. E.: £5 0s. 0d.
Mason Mr. J.: £2 0s. 0d.
Meggy Mr. Wm.: £1 0s. 0d.
Meyrick Mr. Wm.: £1 0s. 0d.
Minter Mr. John: £2 0s. 0d.
Miller Mr. Wm.: £1 0s. 0d.
Miller Mr. Step.: £2 0s. 0d.
Moore Mr. P.: £1 0s. 0d.
Moon Mr. S.: £2 0s. 0d.
Morgan Mr. E. W.: £10 0s. 0d.
Moxon Mr. John: £5 0s. 0d.
Moyse Mrs. Jane: £10 0s. 0d.
Nicholls Mr. C.: £10 0s. 0d.
Nolloth Mr. Jas.: £1 0s. 0d.
Norman Mr. Jas.: £2 0s. 0d.
Nuthall Mr. P.: £2 0s. 0d.
Offord Mr. D.: £1 0s. 0d.
Paget S. Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Palmer W. D. Esq.: £100 0s. 0d.
Palmer G. D. Esq.: £21 0s. 0d.
Palgrave W. E. Q.: £21 0s. 0d.
Pope Mr. J.: £1 0s. 0d.
Poppy Mr. J.: £0 10s. 0d.
Powell Mr. J.: £0 5s. 0d.
Preston J. Esq.: £20 0s. 0d.
Preston I. Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Preston E. Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Preston J. Esq.: £10 0s. 0d.
Preston Mr. J. K.: £3 3s. 0d.
Preston Mr. A.: £3 0s. 0d.
Preston Mr. G.: £2 0s. 0d.
Pulford Mr. G.: £2 0s. 0d.
Ranney J. Esq.: £15 15s. 0d.
Reeve Mr. W.: £1 0s. 0d.
Reynolds F. R. Esq.: £50 0s. 0d.
Robinson J. J. Esq.: £10 0s. 0d.
Roe Mr. T.: £2 2s. 0d.
Ruzby Mrs.: £1 0s. 0d.
Saunders Mr. W.: £25 0s. 0d.
Sayers and Son: £20 0s. 0d.
Seaman Mr. F.: £2 0s. 0d.
Searum Mr. R.: £1 1s. 0d.
Sharman Mr. E.: £10 0s. 0d.
Sherrington Mr. S.: £10 0s. 0d.
Short Mr. J.: £1 0s. 0d.
Shreeve Mr. H.: £2 0s. 0d.
Sloman Mr. Chas.: £1 0s. 0d.
Smith Mr. R. C.: £1 0s. 0d.
Smith Mr. J.: £2 2s. 0d.
Smith Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Springall Mr. T.: £0 10s. 0d.
Steele Miss: £0 5s. 0d.
Stevenson Mr. J.: £5 0s. 0d.
Sutton Mr. S.: £0 10s. 0d.
Swirles Mr. D.: £1 0s. 0d.
Thacker Mrs.: £0 10s. 0d.
Thompson Mrs.: £5 5s. 0d.
Thompson E. Esq.: £20 0s. 0d.
Thrower Mr. A.: £1 0s. 0d.
Toluer & Preston: £25 0s. 0d.
Townshend Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Turner Rev. R.: £50 0s. 0d.
Turner D. Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Turner Mrs. M.: £0 10s. 0d.
Veal Mr. R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Vardon Mr. John: £0 5s. 0d.
Warren Mr.: £1 0s. 0d.
Watling Mr. F.: £3 3s. 0d.
Watson J. Esq.: £20 0s. 0d.
Watson Mr. T.: £5 5s. 0d.
Watson R.: £1 0s. 0d.
Williams J. H. Esq.: £25 0s. 0d.
Wright Mr. E.: £1 0s. 0d.
Yette Win. Esq.: £20 0s. 0d.
Youngman Mr. T.: £1 0s. 0d.

And a Site of Ground on which to erect a Building, Subscriptions are received at the Town Hall, the Banks, the Subscription-Room, and at the Bath Rooms, in this Town.

And here it is in the 1880s.

July 17, 2025
200 Years Ago in Norwich : Suicide of John Gowing

I’ve touched on this issue before, but the newspapers from 200 years ago are littered with suicides and this often seems to be underplayed throughout history. This article in the Norwich Mercury from 200 years ago this week noted:

“And the same day, at the Workhouse, in the parish of St. Andrew, on the body of John Gowing, aged 35 years, who, in a fit of insanity, threw himself from his bed-room window into the stone yard of the said Workhouse. Verdict accordingly.”

The reason that it mentions “the same day” is that there was another suicide reported in the weekly newspaper.

The workhouse in question here is in St. Andrew’s and it was located in the cloisters of St. Andrew’s Hall, best known today perhaps as the home of Norwich Beer Festival. In the above map from the 1880s, the site of the workhouse was the King Edward VI Middle School.

John Gowing was baptised on 29 December 1793, the son of Robert Gowing and Martha Tutthil, and it appears that the age in the newspaper article was wrong, he died at the age of just 31. I can’t be sure that this is the same John Gowing who committed an appalling crime in 1817, but the details provided do fit although I can’t find the transportation record.

“John Gowing and Daniel Thorpe, the latter only 13 years of age, were indicted for feloniously stealing and carrying away out of the house of Wm. Thorpe, linen-draper at Langley, a quantity of gold and silver coin, his property, on the 10th of April last. This case excited considerable interest. The youngest prisoner, who was admitted King’s evidence, was the orphan nephew of the prosecutor, and had been brought up and educated at his expense; the other prisoner was his servant; and, from the testimony of the child, corroborated by other evidence, it appeared that Gowing had for some time past been urging the boy to rob his uncle, and that he had frequently done it, giving what he had got to Gowing, and receiving, as his portion, whatever part he was pleased to give him. The prosecutor was in the habit of keeping a quantity of guineas and other gold coin by him in a small spice box, which had a lock and key to it. Gowing had procured a key which fitted it, and repeated visits had been made to the old gentleman’s magazine without his suspicion being excited, as whenever his nephew made his attacks, Gowing stood sentinel to prevent a surprise. At length the key accidentally breaking in the lock, Gowing persuaded him to take away box and all. This was done, and the whole booty was delivered to Gowing. The box was broke open, and the contents shared between them in such proportion as Gowing thought fit. These facts being fully proved, the Jury found the prisoner, Gowing—Guilty.—Mr. Justice Abbott, in pronouncing sentence, animadverted in severe terms on the prisoner’s conduct: first, in having seduced a child of the tender age of Thorpe to rob his benefactor; and next, in having himself become a party to rob his employer, who had placed a confidence in him. The humanity of the prosecutor had induced him to prefer this indictment in such a form as did away the capital part of the offence. The Court, however, felt itself bound to inflict the severest punishment in its power upon him. That punishment was, that he should be transported beyond sea for the term of seven years.”

John was buried at St. George Colegate on 23 July 1825, which is a church that I walk by frequently. I can’t find him listed in any family trees or referred to online, which made me wonder how many people have thought about him over the last 200 years. Either which way, it’s all really rather sad.

July 16, 2025
Vienna – Kunsthistorisches Museum (The Island in the Tiber by Gaspar Adriaensz van Wittel)

This is the Island in the Tiber by Gaspar Adriaensz van Wittel (1647-1736) and there’s a romanticised serenity that might make someone forget the Tiber was, in reality, a rather murky and unpredictable river. Adriaensz has gone full atmospheric here with soft golden light, a gentle sky, calm waters and not a whiff of disease, sewage, or the occasional Roman mischief that the island would have actually witnessed. It’s a cityscape where everything behaves itself, the domes stand proud in the distance, the bridges look sturdy, and the locals potter about at the water’s edge like they’ve got all the time in the world. But there’s meant to be, and indeed is, some element of realism here as this is a veduta, or cityscape, and the artist was one of the first to paint in this style, no doubt inspiring later painters such as Canaletto. One of the biggest collectors of van Wittel’s works was Thomas Coke or Holkham Hall in Norfolk and there are still five of the paintings at the hall.

Assuming that my friend would come and organise this, would I have it on my wall? Definitely and not just because it’s likely worth quite a lot. It’s the perfect illusion as it’s Rome without the traffic, the chaos or the occasional whiff of the Tiber on a hot day. It’s really rather lovely, and a nice reminder that even in the seventeenth century, artists were basically curating the Instagram version of life.

July 16, 2025
Lowestoft – Slounge (Two Julians)

I’m going to be honest, this bar isn’t likely to win many awards for being the best advertised and signed, although that gives it something of a speakeasy feel which adds to the excitement of proceedings. Although this was the eleventh and final venue of the day, it was the one that we were most looking forwards to, it’s a cellar bar with micro-pub vibes. I decided that Julian was the most social (and ultimately the most expendable if it was the wrong door) and he tried the door of what we really weren’t entirely sure was the right place, but it’s that door marked with “cash only” which is down the steps.

The indoor signage is really rather good though even if it’s rather more anonymous from the outside.

The inside which was a little dark, but that added to the atmosphere and the welcome was immediate and friendly from the team member. It was also good to see James in the pub, it was his check-ins on Untappd which had caught my eye about this place. This is evidence indeed that social media can lead to right decisions.

The beer list is on Untappd and there’s a particularly strong list of cans that are available. There are three cask beers and seven keg beers and I was slightly disappointed we didn’t have enough time before our train to fully investigate these. It’s a well-curated beer list and there are some really tempting options on there.

I went for the Aeronaut from Abbeydale Brewery and it had a rather pleasant flavour of stone fruit and it was smooth, rich and really quite decadent. A very decent little number and Julian went for the same, noting on Untappd that it was “very tasty”, which is great praise indeed.

Also, Julian produced, like a proud Victorian inventor, his latest acquisition from John Lewis, as he’s really rather middle class, a foldable fan which can be charged via USB. I was a little tempted by it, I’ll wait until there’s a cheap one though as I get muddled up in decadent department stores, but it was very useful given the extreme heat of Lowestoft.

Anyway, I’ve digressed into shopping related items and away from just how good this bar is. The beer selection here was the best of the day, the atmosphere was certainly up there and the engagement from the team member was the best of the day. It’s fair to say that I very much liked it here and I’m also going to see if Julian can be tempted to go there again when we visit again for part two of our Lowestoft study tour. It was really all rather lovely.

July 16, 2025