Southwold |

 

After all the beautiful weather we have been having, myself and a friend decided a trip to the seaside was definitely in order. Of course mother nature was against us and when I woke up on the morning we had arranged to go, the sun was barely visible amongst the dull, gloomy clouds. We stuck to our plan though, wrapped up in numerous layers of clothes and piled into the car heading for Southwold, just over an hours car journey from where I live. 

The route there is beautiful. A majority of it consists of rolling countryside along the quiet backroads of (not so sunny) Suffolk. We passed clusters of colourful villages filled with dainty little cottages and old fashioned windmills, as well as eyeing up a few country pubs with good'ol hearty menus. 

Once we arrived at Southwold beachfront and parked up the car, we took a stroll across the pebbly beach heading towards the main town. After a lot of wondering around we decided to opt for an underground tea room for lunch, which was set in the cellar of an art gallery. It sounds a lot more exciting than it was. In reality it was a little overpriced cafe, serving basic sandwiches and crisps, but it done the job and the hot chocolate was pretty tasty. 

After a bite to eat we headed back along the streets of the little town for another mooch around the quirky shops and stalls, only to be disappointed by the weather which had taken a turn for the worst. The wind really began to pick up and it had started to drizzle. Even my multitude of tops and knitwear weren't going to be enough to keep me warm in a storm on the coast so we began a brisk walk back towards the car. 

Southwold is a really beautiful unique little coastal town and is definitely worth a visit if you live not too far away (just maybe in the summer months to avoid gale force winds). 

Unlike a lot of seaside towns, Southwold has managed to hang onto it's quirky charm and hasn't been taken over by too much tourism. There isn't lots of purpose built entertainment facilities in the town but I think this just makes the town even more special. It's a wonderful place to visit for sailing, cycling, walking, crabbing and relaxing in the summer sunshine and if you put your mind to it you can really have fantastic time here.