After a great evening with Buddhasiha, I slept well in his guest room.
This morning there was just time for meditation, breakfast together and then I needed to get going. Buddhasiha waved me off from outside his flat.
I wended my way out of a city I used to know well 25 years ago, when I lived here. Now I needed to keep looking at the SatNav. I had forgotten the old roads out of the city.
The first 10 miles towards Needham Market were pretty awful. Though it was a B road, there were lots of industrial estates along there with juggernauts coming in and out of depots there. This part of Suffolk used to be nice in my day, but is now a huge long industrial depot. The roads were a motorway of vans and lorries roaring past me.
Thankfully, after 10 miles all this changed and I found rural Suffolk again with quiet roads and nice countryside. It's good to know it still exists!
I passed through Needham Market, a fine old town but again badly spoiled by juggernauts thundering through the town centre and High Street. "I don't know how we put up with it..." a woman said to me in a food store where I stopped for provisions. They obviously need a bypass.
However, most of my ride to Bury St Edmunds was nice, and the sun was out. I saw beautiful villages and scenery. The open air was refreshing.
After I got to Bury St Edmunds around midday, I realised I'd had enough of a good thing. My East Anglian cycle ride should end here.
I'd cycled 37 miles through the countryside this morning, and that was enough. I now wanted some food and the luxury of a train ride back home.
I rode the long, steep hill into Bury centre, and then downhill to the train station. The bike and me took the 40 minutes journey back to Cambridge. I loved sitting there, looking out of the window feeling tired with the countryside flashing by and coffee in my hand.
It feels good to be home.
It's been a great 6 days of beautiful countryside, great stops over with good friends and good exercise which helps my arthritic condition.
There have been challenges, of course: some horrible, mad, congested roads that I couldn't avoid. The wind was against me for most of the tour, and some of the hills were steep and tough. Sensibly, I decided to walk.
But mostly, this was a great way to celebrate a significant birthday (i.e. when I get my pension), and particular stage of my life.
The two stops at pubs were actually really good with landlords going out of their way to accommodate my bike etc.
It was also an important trip down Memory Lane for me, revisiting Ipswich, where so much of significance took place in my life.
Also, great weather, no punctures, no accidents and no breakdowns! I've also enjoyed some cultural stuff, too: reflecting on Horatio Nelson, seeing old Norwich architecture, riding through historical villages, visiting Snape Maltings, Woodbridge Tide Mill and Christchurch Park.
Happy days.
Harleston Hall
The long road approaching Bury St Edmunds
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