retiredmartin

June 2026. Sudbury. Suffolk.

Mrs RM is, of course, correct in all matters (though she thought she saw Gareth Southgate playing for Australia v Turkey the other night), and is adamant that the only way you understand a place is with an overnight stay, whether the £227 Valley View,

or my own more economical option overlooking the meadows in Sudbury.

Gourmet sausage roll devoured at the White Horse,

I had no need to look for Chinese takeaway, or contemplate the options at an ancient Starburger,

and instead could absorb the culture.

This bit of rural Suffolk is famous for its churches,

and Gainsborough, whose legacy the National Trust have sought to interpret in this modern masterpiece of a building.

The nightlife here is modest, and middling,

and the delay in England’s warm-up match till 10pm due to American weather was about to a damper on the locals efforts to watch it in a pub.

Not that there are many pubs in a town of 23,000 (bigger than you’d think),

with the Mauldon’s tap still the stand-out.

A quick look at the map alerts me to the walk through the meadows from a station that takes you anywhere you desire, as long as you desire Marks Tey.

The walk along the Stour is as gorgeous as Constable depicted,

the disused Valley railway track a classic.

Cross into town at Bullingdon Bridge to admire the medieval Chinese takeaway,

and the Old Moot Hall.

And then go to bed by the mill pond.

Whether you’ve paid £227, or nothing.