Formerly second only to London as principal city in England, Norwich is unique for its variety. Its proximity to the coast coupled with its status as the first city in England to join the World League of Historical Cities (joining the ranks of Rome, Prague, Vienna & Barcelona) singles Norwich out as a rare gem of the East of England.
The nearby Roman town at Caistor St Edmund on the outskirts of Norwich is an example of how this fine city straddles the generations of history, uniting past times with bustling modern life. Its thriving bars and nightspots and fine restaurants draw in revellers and diners from the surrounding area.
While much of the city walls have now crumbled, Norwich boasts a plethora of unspoiled cobbled streets such as Elm Hill, which has attracted Hollywood filmmakers to Norwich to use the location as a film set. Famously too, Norwich has a pub for every day of the year, the oldest of which is The Adam and Eve which dates back to 1249 and which housed Robert Kett when he passed through leading the Kett’s Rebellion in 1549. Above street level too, it would also be impossible to ignore the magnificent cathedral that rises out of the stunning, peaceful Cathedral Close.
The esteemed University of East Anglia and a thriving arts scene draw many newcomers to the region. An aerial view of the city centre awards you the famous multi-coloured stripy mass of market stalls, while the Norman Castle dominates the centre, its turrets rising up on the handsome mound of Castle Meadow.
Norwich has an excellent half hourly train service to London (1hr 50mins) and to Cambridge (1hr) making day trips out of the city a tempting option. Now also boasting an international airport, daily flights to destinations as diverse as Iceland and Croatia also promise colourful travel possibilities for the Norwich citizen.
The River Wensum snakes through the city. A great way to spend a day or a week under the summer sunshine is to hire a boat and navigate through the reed and tree-lined Norfolk Broads, mooring at waterside local pubs for refreshments.
All this, and we haven’t even mentioned the crowning glory of the region; the Norfolk coast. Vast, peaceful sandy planes surround much of the county’s borders where Cromer crabs can be enjoyed and succulent samphire picked.