A few years ago now, when I was a bit more pert and spritely, I was asked to write a piece called ‘a letter to my home town’. Gamely, I agreed. And things went shitting mental. 800 words on Norwich that, without me realising, became not so much a reminiscence, but perhaps the most heartfelt love letter I’ll ever write (and I was the cringiest of teenagers, so that’s quite an achievement). I listed all of the things I love about this city, the place that I grew up and then returned to as an adult, the things that make it special, the treasures of it, the joy of it, the spirit of the city. It was the easiest thing I ever wrote.
A
nd things went shitting mental. Because it turned out that a lot of other people love Norwich
too. Some of them live here, some of them have had to move away, some have only ever visited (feel free to send them a ‘with sympathy on your loss’ card). But the universal reaction was that anyone who has any kind of connection to this city loves it. This secret little city on the road to nowhere, you only end up here if you’re meant to be. And if you’re reading this, then there’s a good chance you’re here too.
People sometimes ask me about living here and my automatic response is that ‘it’s just so easy.’ Because it is. Everything’s walkable, people are friendly, and because we have no real nearby competition in terms of culture, nightlife, or sport everything is concentrated in one small place. And of course, it’s all covered in the pages of this magazine.
I can’t think of anything that sums up Norwich better than Outline. Important stuff, silly stuff, what’s happening, what’s new, what people here
28 / AUG-SEPT 2018 /
OUTLINEONLINE.CO.UK
are thinking, saying, doing. There is nothing else that quite captures this little jewel of a city more accurately than these pages. I wrote once that moving back to Norwich was like falling in love with my best friend – I know it so well, yet the thrill of always discovering something new makes me do a little shoulder shimmy of joy. I still feel that, living here.
Usually, for each edition of Outline I’d write about a particular place, or event or... thing in this finest of cities, sharing some of what I know. This much I know: Narch is a wonderful place. And you know it too, else you’d not be reading about it. Small, sweet, sour, spirited. I love the bolshiness of it, the independence it has. I love that we do different, I love that tiny as it is, there’s always a new discovery in a city of secrets. With the help of everyone’s favourite free guide to Norwich, obviously. I love Norwich, did I mention that?* I could give you 200 reasons as to why I love it, but you’re reading one of them right now.
Words Jess McDonald *Kind of a clue in the column name, really.
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