Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Author: admin

  • Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue – Day 111

    Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue – Day 111

    The Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue was first published at the end of the eighteenth century, and given that the current health crisis is giving too much time to read books, I thought I’d pick a daily word from it until I got bored….

    Dutch Concert

    This is another charming little phrase, defined as “where every one plays or signs a different tune”. I’m not sure if the dictionary meant signed as a conductor or meant to say ‘I, but the effect is still the same. The phrase is probably from the late seventeenth century, as worsening relations between Britain and the Netherlands led to some new derogatory language about the country. So, it likely started as an insult about the ability of Dutch musicians, but the phrase is still used today about a performance that goes a bit wrong and isn’t in harmony. There seems to be more harmony, if I can be excused for using that word again, between the British and the Dutch today though, such is progress,

  • King’s Lynn – Re-Opening the Globe

    King’s Lynn – Re-Opening the Globe

    I’m conscious that there are many smaller independent pubs that are in need of support now, but my favourite ones were still closed and I wanted to pop in to see how JD Wetherspoons were managing with the re-opening of their outlets.

    There’s a little welcome station with hand sanitiser and paper menus, along with a large sign telling customers what to do. I must admit I read the sign and forgot that I was meant to write down my name, which they didn’t make very clear and I’m easily confused at the best of times. It didn’t much matter as they took that information via the App when I ordered, but otherwise, it all looked organised.

    There are protective barriers in the pub now and the self-service coffee machine has distance markers to keep people suitably distanced. I must admit, this is probably as much as they could have done, although some of the barriers weren’t ideally placed and people snuck between them and then brushed past other customers at tables. The best-laid plans of any pub are usually circumvented by some customers though….

    I hadn’t expected the unlimited coffee to be back, but it’s all working as usual. I ordered via the app, which is the preferred method, and it was brought over soon enough. There’s a new policy where customers can’t re-use a mug and they have to get another one, and I never worked out the most efficient way of doing this and where to stand. The pub was well-staffed though, so my standing awkwardly seemed to work sufficiently well.

    The pub was relatively busy in the afternoon and I suspect they’d have been better having someone at the door to explain what was going on, but it’s good that there is some vague notion of normality returning now to the pub sector.

  • Norwich – Deliveroo and Gonzo’s Tea Room

    Norwich – Deliveroo and Gonzo’s Tea Room

    I’ve wondered about Deliveroo for a while, I was nearly knocked over by one of their bikes during the lockdown period and I put that down to the rush to get food delivered. These things happen and it was so quiet in Norwich at the time that it wasn’t unreasonable for a cyclist not to expect many pedestrians.

    But, I’ve noticed some strange things, such as a delivery driver collecting food from Five Guys and then standing outside for nearly ten minutes last year. I wondered why that was (and just assumed the customer had cancelled), but a post from Gonzo’s Tea Room today on Facebook has perhaps made that obvious, the driver might have been waiting for another order. I’m not sure that I blame the driver/cyclist for this, it’s not an easy job and in some inner cities it’s downright dangerous.

    I’ve checked Gonzo’s are happy for my quote their entire piece, and they were which is much appreciated. I’m also pleased that Deliveroo sent me an explanation within 15 minutes of my asking and so that’s enormously efficient and appreciated (as this blog is hardly the mainstream media), so at least they seem to be taking it seriously now. But, I still wonder about this model of delivery, it’s taking a lot of money from small outlets. Perhaps more importantly, I don’t like the idea that someone saves up for a meal as a special treat and then they’re treated like this, it’s hugely unfair on them and the restaurant.

    Hopefully, it was a one-off and standards in Norwich will now return to normal….

    “Today we will 100% be leaving Deliveroo. We apologize to any customers who have had to deal with their shit service.

    However this statement also comes with a story..

    Yesterday, two occurrences,

    A rider arrived to pick up an order, he was handed the food and we presumed he’d left. TEN MINUTES LATER we found him hanging around outside still, when we asked him what he was doing he said he was waiting for the next order to deliver as well!!! THIS IS WHY YOU GET YOUR FOOD LATE AND COLD NORWICH!! They’re doubling or tripling up deliveries to increase their pay per trip!

    Second occurrence…

    The rider arrived and collected his order, on the way out the door he dropped the order on the ground. He then began to pick it up and put it back in the bag when he dropped it for the SECOND time!! The boxes popped open and we think the food might have touched the ground outside so we presumed it did for health reasons.

    We immediately confronted him and told him to come inside, we couldn’t dare let that food get to a customer if it was spilled on the ground. However the driver ignored us and literally took off.

    Deliveroo does not give us customer details, we literally have no idea where the food went or how to contact the customer.

    We next called their head office to complain, luckily we immediately got through to a service agent who contacted the customer and confirmed the food had arrived “cold”.

    Us “What about the fact that it was dropped on the ground? “

    Deliveroo “Well the customer didn’t complain about that.”

    Us “Wait…You didn’t tell them, they’re going to eat meals that were dropped on the ground!”

    Deliveroo ” Well, no, not if they haven’t complained”

    Us “How would they possibly know it’s been dropped? That’s literally insane!”

    Deliveroo ” Well they said it was cold and they were happy.”

    Us ” Who’s happy with cold food!? You NEED to tell them it was dropped. They shouldn’t be eating it.”

    Deliveroo ” We won’t do anything else, unless they complain”

    THAT POLICY IS STRAIGHT UP EVIL

    Every time you order from a restaurant Deliveroo takes more than 1/3rd of the money to deliver it. Almost the entire profit margin is gone into their pocket and this is how much they care about your business and health standards.

    During the last few months the world has changed and they have profiteered massively. We know some of you may not be ready to go back out, but please stop ordering from these takeaway giants and if you do feel the need to use their platform, please only use those that use their own drivers.

    In saying that, we know companies aren’t all terrible, we know some of their drivers are great people who’ve worked incredibly hard during the pandemic and that controlling every facet of a company like Deliveroo is nearly impossible.

    We’d like to invite Deliveroo to make contact we us and we can help them regulate their riders. We want to make sure restaurants can communicate hazards and complaints quickly and effectively. Our goal is to make sure bad food, cold food, tossed food (especially pizzas) NEVER reach a customers doorstep and that the clients that work with Deliveroo are never left with social media outrage as their only avenue to resolving a situation for diners.

    Demand better.

    ( If you think this was your order, please contact Deliveroo and demand answers, we have no way of knowing where it went as Deliveroo refuses to let us contact customers)”

    Deliveroo said to me:

    “As soon as we became aware of this situation, we took immediate action to rectify it. We are also speaking to Gonzo and have apologised for their experience. We will do everything possible to ensure it does not happen again. Deliveroo takes any complaints we receive extremely seriously. We have taken immediate action to rectify this situation.”

    They also sent some explanatory material which is reassuring and so I am impressed that they’ve dealt with the issue now.

  • Norwich – Pret Chapelfield

    Norwich – Pret Chapelfield

    And another closure, Pret at Chapelfield in Norwich is closing permanently. The Haymarket one is staying open, but I imagine the rents here were just too high at the moment. I can’t help thinking that they never really rewarded their customers, they ignored the loyalty schemes that most of their rivals offered and I did think that was quite brave of them. There was always the danger that they desperately needed customers and that eventuality came to pass, although perhaps that wouldn’t have made much difference in the scale of things. But, a sad loss for Norwich (although maybe some independent operators might disagree), the staff here were always friendly and helpful, with the food being of a decent quality as well.

  • Stalham – St. Mary’s Church

    Stalham – St. Mary’s Church

    St. Mary’s Church in Stalham dates to the fourteenth century.

    The chancel in the south side is rather devoid of windows, but there are at least some on the north side. The chancel was entirely reconstructed in 1827 (and the rood screen was removed), with the nave and aisles also restored in the 1850s. The west porch was reconstructed in 1872 and the chancel was once again amended in 1886 when the roof was raised.

    The 70-foot high west tower once had a belfry on top, but that fell down. Which isn’t ideal.

    The tower, impressive in height as it already is, was never finished to its originally intended height thanks to the Reformation and the upheaval in the church. The window was amended and patched up, with the remains of that handiwork still being clearly visible, and perhaps there were once dreams that it would one day be completed.

    This is probably one of the few churches which had a fire engine unit in its churchyard, but more on this in another post. Also rather interesting, or to me anyway, is that the Maid’s Head pub was built in the town in 1380 so that the builders of the church had someone to go for a drink. I look forwards to going back to see the church when the interior is open, for numerous reasons, but partly to see the font which was hidden in the floor to prevent it being destroyed during the Reformation and was only rediscovered in 1964.

  • JD Wetherspoon – 50p off CAMRA Vouchers

    JD Wetherspoon – 50p off CAMRA Vouchers

    I’m glad I didn’t throw my 50p off CAMRA vouchers away now. Very lovely.

  • Potter Heigham – St. Nicholas’s Church (Walter Robert Linkhorn)

    Potter Heigham – St. Nicholas’s Church (Walter Robert Linkhorn)

    Walter Robert Linkhorn is buried in the churchyard of St. Nicholas’s Church in Potter Heigham. He was born on 29 March 1887, the son of farm labourer William and Sarah Ann Linkhorn, and the official records say he was baptised on the same day (very efficient if true, but probably not). At the 1891 census, Walter was living in Potter Heigham with his parents, along with his older brothers James, Edward, Charles and Francis, as well as with his older sisters Sarah and Priscilla.

    By the 1901 census, the Linkhorn family had moved to Hickling Road in Catfield and along with his parents, he was living with James, Sarah, Charles and Francis as well with his nephew Norice (that name doesn’t sound right, but I can’t see what else it says) and niece Victoria. All of the males of the Linkhorn family were by this time working as farm labourers, although I can’t imagine what other jobs there would be in the Potter Heigham area.

    Walter joined the Royal Naval Reserve with service number 5073/DA and served on HMS Attentive III. I don’t have much knowledge in this area (well, none really), but I think HMS Attentive III was shore-based, so something of an administrative unit. Walter died of illness on 14 March 1919, having reached the rank of deck-hand, with his next of kin being his father, William Linkhorn, who by this stage lived at Howe Hill in Ludham. As an aside, some of his medals were sold recently in an auction, which seems a slightly sad end to the story.

  • Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue – Day 110

    Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue – Day 110

    The Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue was first published at the end of the eighteenth century, and given that the current health crisis is giving too much time to read books, I thought I’d pick a daily word from it until I got bored….

    Dumplin

    Ah, at least, a Norfolk themed word in the dictionary, defined as “a short thick man or woman. Norfolk dumpling; a jeering appellation of a Norfolk man, dumplins being a favourite kind of food in that county”. This also ties in with an image I posted last week entitled ‘Norfolk Dumplin’. The word origin here is from ‘dump’, which means the consistency of dough. The word is still used in a negative manner, someone seen as a stupid country person, although it has evolved into almost an affectionate meaning today. Incidentally, apparently the recipe for dumplings in Norfolk don’t call for fat, but instead flour and a raising agent, but I have no idea….

  • Potter Heigham – St. Nicholas’s Church (Fence in Tree)

    Potter Heigham – St. Nicholas’s Church (Fence in Tree)

    This caught my eye at St. Nicholas’s Church in Potter Heigham as I like the idea that the tree and fence have been here for decades, getting ever closer.

  • Potter Heigham – St. Nicholas’s Church

    Potter Heigham – St. Nicholas’s Church

    I still struggle to think of Potter Heigham without linking it to Latham’s and their memorable radio ads, but this church is a little way from there and in a relatively peaceful countryside spot. It dates from the twelfth century, although the nave was substantially remodelled in the early sixteenth century. The round tower has some heritage, probably twelfth century but perhaps as early as the eleventh century, with some Norman elements visible in the main structure of the tower and church.

    The chancel is from the thirteenth century and remains thatched, making a curious difference to the leaded nave. And, this is recent, the nave was changed from thatch to lead in the last decade and although I’m sure it was necessary for some technical reason, I can’t say it looks aesthetically particularly pleasing.

    The sizeable porch, which has gates from the Queen’s coronation in 1953.

    The church’s round tower had an octagonal top added in the fourteenth century, a relatively common regional addition that has been better executed here than in some local churches.

    The sizeable and peaceful churchyard, which seems a little bereft of older graves and I do wonder where they’ve gone. It hasn’t always looked in such good repair, when some antiquarians visited it in 1870, they noted “the churchyard looked as if the inhabitants were using it as a place for the cultivation of the rankest weeds”. They also added that the church needed “judicious restoration”, which was a typical Victorian strategy that often caused more damage than good to the buildings.

    Getting inside the church isn’t yet possible, although it apparently holds some treasures in the form of medieval wall paintings and a hammer-beam roof of note.