12-mile Bike Ride

Not quite 12-mile Bayou (woo hoo!), and less prone to boaters boating around a curve and finding people in various embarrassing situations, but fun nonetheless.


Yesterday, E bought a bike.


This was very positive, since I have been really wanting to go cycling on the riverpath on the weekends, but it would be most rude to just say ,'Buh-byeee!' and toddle off by one's self leaving someone who moved across a country to your city (unless they were boring and wouldn't think that was fun in the first place, in which case toddling off without them is fine).

This afternoon (after church and lunch), we rode almost to Thorpe Marriott, which is a little village on the northeast side of the city. Norwich Riverside Walk along the River Wensum joins up with Marriott's Way, which is a 21-mile trail that is an old railway line that runs from Hellesdon to Aylsham.


It goes through fields and countryside, woodsy patches, grassy hills covered with daffodils, and paddocks (or just open places) with gypsy ponies tied with chains to stakes in the ground. Some of the fields have been plowed. There are new bunny warrens and old ones with leaves in the little doorways.


Violets and cherry blossoms are out.


Swans are feeling feisty.


There were lots of people out walking, tiny kids with their little training wheels on, exhuberant doggies out on constitutionals with their people, and ASBO children playing with fire extinguishers.


Although it is getting warmer, a few of the horses are still wearing their little coats. Perhaps they are not as intriguing or as inspiring as large dogs wearing ludicrously festive bandanas, but I think they are quite charming in my simple, easily-amused spirit.

There was even a kitty on the trail waylaying unsuspecting passersby with tarty purrs and rollings in the dust (while other cyclists were having to attempt to find a pesky puncture).


It was a good day, and then E learnt how to make red beans and rice. The butcher suggested African sausage to me as what 'all the Americans always ask for' (could we use any more generalisationalistic phrase?), and it was excellent. I am pooped.

Happy riding!