Essex

Friday after shopping we cought the train down to my daughter's young man in Chelmsford where they have a charming little cathedral. They shouted me dinner at one of their favourite pubs and it was delicious.

The next morning we headed to Colchester where, in the garden in front of the police station is the remains of a Roman Christian church.

The museum housed in the old castle houses some very fine pieces from Roman Britain. The Abbey Gate is pretty much all that remains of St John's Abbey built just after the Normans arrived and destroyed by Henry VIII.

A lot of Colchester is quite modern, but the Dutch Quarter sees some very well maintained old houses dating back to when QE1 allowed European weavers fleeing religious persecution to settle there in the late 16th century.

The last picture, of one of these houses, is now a quilt shop!Read more