Zambia World Wide

We were walking along the beach one morning when we saw a sign advertising boat trips to Scroby Sands, it is a sand bank about 2 miles off the beach. On the sand bank there is a large seal population. We decided to take the trip as in all the years we had lived here we had never before thought of going, we were also sure that the boy’s would enjoy the trip. It was a bright sunny day, the sea was a little choppy and there was a fine spray blowing in over the bows which added to the fun for the boy’s. As we left the beach and headed out towards the sand bank, we had a great view of the beach and seafront over the stern. It looked completely different when viewed from the sea. We reached Scroby Sands and trolled around the sand bank which appeared to be completely covered with seals. There were so many it was hard to see any sand. I had no idea that seals could be so noisy, we were about 300 yards away and had difficulty in hearing one another speak. I didn’t realise that the seals were so many different shapes and sizes. Not only did we all enjoy seeing the seals but the boat trip was also quite an experience, especially for the boys who had never been out to sea before.

There were so many places along the seafront which we had known about when we lived here but until now they were of no interest to us. Now that we had the children we saw things in a different light and began to enjoy what was available. We stared at the Britannia Pier and walked along the north drive, having passed the bowling greens and tennis courts we came to the waterways which is a small park with a canal round the outside edges. There were boat rides along the canal from which could be seen a variety of plants, shrubs, flower beds and small trees all beautifully laid between rockeries and pagoda’s and in the centre was an open air café. Along the banks were Disney Characters and fairy tale figures plus a number of bridges. During the day the park was very pleasant and picturesque, at night the figures and bridges were colourfully lit and there was subdued lighting among the plants and bushes around the park. We took a trip round the waterways during the day and then returned at night when the lights were on. Both trips were worthwhile and enjoyed by the boys. Just past the waterways there was a boating lake with rowing and paddle boats for hire, this the boys had to try. We kidded ourselves that we were doing these things for the boys and although they had fun, I am sure we had just as much fun as they did. The marine parade which we had found to be Garish and Tawdry in the past was different now we had the children. They loved the atmosphere and the hotdog stalls plus the amusement arcades also the variety of souvenir shops. The candy floss stall was Jan’s favourite, she loved the stuff, and soon had the boys eating it as well. We also took the lads to Gorleston sea front, which was much the same as Great Yarmouth but on a smaller scale. The main reason for crossing to Gorleston was because there were far less people and it was nice to watch the ships coming into harbour. There was a nice beach and the cliffs which were nice to walk along and a good area for the children to play. The lifeboat shed was also on that side of the river, and open to the public. We took the lads round the lifeboats, there were two boats, one inshore boat and one deep water boat. I am not going into detail regarding the town and amenities as I have done so earlier.

We also had days out around the broads, one of the places we went to was Wroxham. It has always been a favourite of ours, the river runs through the centre of the village and then on into the broad. There are many good pubs, and restaurants along the river one of which we went to for lunch. It was nice to sit by the river and watch the children feed the ducks and swans on the river, something they couldn’t do in Zambia. Our main purpose in going to Wroxham was the large store in the centre, in the summer they sold a large variety of summer clothing for both adults and children at reasonable prices. This gave Jan the chance to buy most of the clothing we would need in Zambia for the next two years. We also took the boys on a broads cruise from there, we went down river, through Wroxham Broad and then to Salhouse Broad where we spent a little time going round the broad and then returned to Wroxham. It took about two hours for the round trip which was fun and also interesting. Salhouse Broad that we have been to many times by car, is isolated and a really pretty place. We would park at the side of the road and walk for about 15 minutes through a tree lined track to reach the broad. Once we reached the broad we would wander along the bank and look at the flora which in spring was really colourful. Usually we would take one of our parents dogs with us, they were Kim and Duke, both German Shepherds. We also took the boys to other places around the broadland area that we enjoyed including some of the villages, Horning, Loddon and South Walsham to name just a few. Where-ever we went the boys had fun particularly when we took one of the dogs with us.