Завтра — Белосток

Сделаю пока перерыв в кромерских записках, потому что пора собираться в польский Белосток, родину Дзиги Вертова: поездка получается немного неожиданной (у Л. летний симпозиум, со сроками которого все было не совсем ясно еще недели две назад), но надеюсь, что будет интересно.

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.10 “Local cuisine: pro et contra” (En)

We all remember, of course, about the sinusoid of an immigrant adaptation: first, you look at your stepmotherland through rose tinted spectacles (euphoric/honeymoon phase), then the culture shock (or whatever you fancy for the term) comes, followed by adjustment/ “blending in.” If you claim that it cannot be fully applied to your own experience, there’s a mild risk to be exposed as a hypocrite.

But of course you can toss all the stereotypes in the bin where they belong, simply saying that you can love this country without any specific “imposed” jingoism or naïveté, in all the complexity of its ups, downs and flaws. But British food, the butt of lazy jokes about its peculiar awfulness is the thing I always feel obligated to fight as a foreigner living in England: it’s lovely, and delicious, and yes, it can be versatile if you know what you’re searching for—and I mean it.

In Cromer, you have your fair share of more or less upmarket experiences with lavish modern eateries, but what reflects its spirit in the most perfect way are those slightly shabby but perfectly clean tea rooms with old fashioned tablecloth, creaky chairs and older stuff where food—savoury Crab with greens, scampi with chippies, bangers and mash (with Norfolk sausages that, surprisingly, don’t have boar taint), Sunday roast, a bunch of cakes, and, of course, fish’n’chips you must eat by the sea.

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.9 “Sea walk tutti quanti: photographs” (En)

 Misc. illustrations to the previous post:

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.9 “Sea walk tutti quanti (instead of a longread)” (En)

Of course, we should have made our walk between Cromer and Sheringham, via East and West Runton: we always do. But lo and behold, we did it yesterday exactly on the same day as two and even three (!) years ago; that’s what I call “stick to your schedule as much as you can.”

With a few improvements, however: before visiting Cromer this year, we both installed the app “My Tide Times” and boy, did it make a difference. See, every previous walk was during high tide, which meant that our route was through shingle and bigger rocks, which, once merged with chalk and sand, made every step heavier and sometimes painful if you wore sandals without a sturdy sole (I still couldn’t believe I managed to complete one of these walks in my light espadrilles: when we reached Sheringham, they were basically torn to pieces and we were forced to go back to Cromer by train: it wasn’t bad, but somewhat disappointing): the flat part of the beach behind the groynes was under water.

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.8 “Sheringham” (En)

Hello Sheringham, old friend, lovely to see you again: we missed you.

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.7 “To Sheringham!” (En)

Sheringham: let the journey begin!

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.6 “Cocktails and retro songs” (En)

Cromer is a specific resort where the average age of its demographic is around the late 60s. Perhaps that’s why everywhere you are subjected to hits from the past, a weird mixture of funk (Marvin Gaye, all things Motown), psychedelic rock (Credence Clearwater Revival: don’t mind at all), classical “top of the pops” (Scott Mckenzie, The Beatles, The Zombies with their “Time of the Season,” although you’d better not forget your pot while listening to it) etc. So, basically, if you go to San Francisco, you get a chance to end up in North Norfolk (also, put flowers in your hair if you wish).

Кромерские tutti quanti: P.5 “Old Boys Groynes”

Лучшие виды на свете:

Кромерские tutti quanti: Ч. 4 “Beauty of the sea ”(En)

I never get tired of this beauty: it was worth waiting another year to see it again.

Кромерские tutti quanti: Ч. 3 “Overstrand ”(En)

The route to Overstrand got even more overgrown with bracken (ferns, nettles, brambles, to name a few), but the scenery was as spectacular as ever, with the white walls of the lighthouse, chalky hills covered with wildflowers that set a great contrast with the stormy skies (we caught the rain at least twice while climbing the hilltops) and the pristine lawns of the golf club with the same quiet and snooty players (no unfriendly stares from their side this time, however). A tiny bunny suddenly jumped on our path but ran away and disappeared into the prickly bushes immediately.

A few new things emerged on the route, too: several info signs here and there with old photos of the place itself and quotes from retro celebrities of the era (Wilde who preferred golf over writing at the Hotel de Paris etc), but for the most part, everything remained the same, and it was blissful.

The Cliff Top Cafe offered the usual lovely lunch—scampi with chips and tartare sauce and incredible Bakewell tart with coffee as dessert: lots of well behaved good bois watched their hoomans enjoying themselves and never growled. And you simply cannot leave the place without buying several Green Pebble cards.

Кромерские tutti quanti: Ч. 2 “To the Lighthouse ”(En)

To the Lighthouse! To Overstrand!

Кромерские tutti quanti: Ч. 1 “Breakfast & music ”(En)

A lovely friend of mine mentioned in the comments to the previous post a charming RC Sherriff novel, “The Fortnight in September,” where a mundane holiday of a fairly ordinary lower middle class family turns into a saga extraordinaire through the lens of the careful and loving eye of the narrator. Of course, it’s remarkably relatable to me and L. as we’re having our breakfast at the hotel, and everything was familiar—freshly made porridge with berries, roasted nuts and honey, plenty of black coffee, toast with homemade orange marmalade and the same tunes of the 60s–70s as the background music—The Turtles, Marvin Gaye and The Beach Boys (whose songs, surprisingly, felt less ghastly than in other circumstances).

Кромерские tutti quanti (прибытие: фотографии)

 И немного иллюстраций к посту-предисловию (погода была идеальной):

Кромерские tutti quanti (прибытие)

Так, начинаю потихоньку публиковать кромерские tutti quanti. Поехали.

***

Постоянство глубокой любви к Кромеру и надежда на скорое возвращение сюда — вещи, которые поддерживали на плаву весь предыдущий ужасный год, да и в этом тоже, особенно начиная с марта, когда ушел отец и я как будто застряла в дурной бесконечности: все давалось с трудом, и главной задачей было — не дай Бог не забыть чего-то важного из прошлого, где был папа и наши с ним разговоры, часто неловкие, но без которых невозможно было обойтись. Мысли о Кромере давали волю полузабытым и почти уже стершимся воспоминаниям, делая их отчетливее, а значит, живее.

***

Еще с утра мне не верилось, что уже сегодня днем мы будем в Кромере: так бывает, когда чего-то ждешь так сильно и даже отчаянно, что острота переживаний постепенно притупляется, и ты оказываешься в no man’s land, на ничейной земле, где горизонт воображения истончается и маячит где-то совсем вдалеке. В первом по времени поезде до Нориджа я лениво читала взятую с собой книгу, поминутно отвлекаясь на соцсети, но уже на вокзале, ожидая вторую электричку и увидев табло с конечной станцией «Шерингем», я внезапно поняла, что до-кромерское бессмысленное лето кончилось, и дальше все должно измениться.

...and rare finds from “Bookworms” (En)

Also, grabbed two relatively rare editions at Bookworms this time, both from the Folio Society (I know that some folks smirk at their books, judging them by their cover and dust jackets only, but I am not that picky):

• “Cold Comfort Farm,” marvellously illustrated by Sir Quentin Blake, a national treasure—if you want to read the best ever parody on purple prose and love PG Woodhouse, then this masterpiece is for you;

• “Uncle Silas” by Sheridan Le Fanu—a perfectly ornate Gothic story for a slow summer read.

...Thoroughly satisfied with my finds this time: Bookworms never disappoints.

New books: Oxfam discoveries (En)

Love it or hate it, but Oxfam’s collection of treasures is as enormous as it is mind-boggling. My latest find is the 1873 Bernhard Tauchnitz edition of Rossetti’s poems for a modest (sure it is) price of £7.99. Once I fetched it, Oxfam immediately showed me “Breviarium Romanum Ex decreto Sacrosancti,” the liturgical volume published by Plantin Press (!) in 1726, for £62.

Savage!

More prints on the walls: celebrating Norfolk Day (En)

To celebrate Norfolk Day, I put more Cromer prints on the walls:

• “Cromer Pier” by Susanne Lakin, a local artist from North Walsham—an outstanding work using collage technique, which I absolutely adore;

• “Cromer front,” a b/w graphic print by another Norfolk artist, Robert Downie (Hotel de Paris, the Bath House and the slope down to the Promenade): it’s found its place next to Robert Gay’s work, “The Gangway, Cromer” (another beloved spot in the town, located very close to our hotel), which I bought last year together with two Edwardian photos of the East Cliff and the Pier (circa 1910).

L. chuckled that I had converted the wall into a Cromer shrine, which is kinda true, I guess.

Oh, and also a puffin: although they aren’t local to North Norfolk (at least, not to my knowledge: if I remember correctly, you can find them around North Berwick, for example), I fetched this figurine on the day of our departure, completing our 2023 stay in Cromer.

Попалось прекрасное в фейсбучных комментах — грех упустить: всегда теперь буду так говорить. ©

Вернулись. Летний сезон «Кромер-2023» можно считать закрытым. Теперь ждать до следующего года.

Кромер завтра

Гости наши уехали, сразу стало пусто, как обычно бывает, когда внезапно заканчивается разная веселая суета. Из запланированного на сегодня управилась хорошо если с третью, и молю Бога, чтобы мои авторы немного погодили с текстами: завтра Кромер, и я так долго и горячо ждала поездки туда, что не могу думать ни о чем другом.

Свозили наших гостей в Или, и в поезде по дороге туда Марк внезапно выдал: «Император Кубы Филадель Кастро очень любил молочные продукты». Теперь мне хочется посетить его альтернативную Вселенную.

Марк, наш чудесный израильский гость (9 лет):

«Картина Малевича «Черный квадрат» — очень серьезное произведение. На то, чтобы такой другой нарисовать, уйдет два года».

«Наш кот — Рыцарь в Хрустящих Доспехах. И еще в Сверкающей Шаурме. И в Блестящей Чурчхеле».

«Мы с мамой поедем к нашим друзьям в Нью-Йорк, они все обрадуются, конечно. А потом поедем еще, и может даже в Огайо».

И немного нашего путешествия с друзьями на лодке по Кему (сто лет не были на воде, и получилось прекрасно):

К нам приехали израильские гости, и давно уже я так не наслаждалась веселой суматохой: надеюсь, им у нас нравится, несмотря на отвратительную погоду, из-за которой мы не смогли сегодня погулять по центру.

While our mad damson trees are having a year off (well deserved: they worked very hard the last few years), the redcurrant plant gave us her crop, and it’s lovely (also with lots of ladybirds who were released soon after the photoshoot):