A Happy Christmas/Seasons Greetings to all our
readers (well, we know that there are at least two of you). Want to know what
we’ve been up to? – well read on, or bin it if you don’t!
Holidays
Cornwall
First
to North Cornwall
Bude in North Cornwall beckoned us to take a
holiday there at the end of April. We were snug in our timeshare apartment
whilst for most of the week there was a cold wind and our fair share of rain.
Walking the long, sandy beaches hand in hand never did happen but we did find
some nice places to visit in the shape of an Otter sanctuary, an Alpaca farm, a
stately home and the breathtaking Hartland Quay. We particularly remember the
quality of catering in those places, especially the homemade cakes and scones.
We were not pleased to learn that an early heat wave had hit most parts of the
UK, except North Cornwall!
Widemouth Bay to the south of Bude.
Our holiday week was topped and tailed by
diversions to Loughborough on the outward journey and to Exmoor to visit
friends on the way home. The Loughborough visit was so that Anne could go on a
steam trip with an engine re-named King Richard III. This was a medieval wine
and dine special to celebrate the finding of the King’s remains in nearby
Leicester and the tone for the evening was set by music and dancing by a couple
of wenches on the platform while the guests drank wine and mead. We stayed in a
nearby hotel and had plenty of time to visit the engine shed beforehand, so
Anne was excited to be photographed with the locomotive and climbed up into the
driving cab, where she discovered the joys of getting really dirty!
The handsome blue King moves forward to pick up his train.
For one night only, the locomotive Edward II was re-named.
Then
to the west
At the end of September we ventured back and
stayed at the timeshare apartment near Penzance, with the intention of spending
a day in the Isles of Scilly, just 30 miles off the Cornish coast. On this
visit, the weather was mild but wet for most of the week, the wet accompanied
by fog or low cloud, which cancelled most of the flights to the islands so we
never did make it. Never mind, Cadgwith Cove still looked superb even in the
misty grey, Truro cathedral was great (it poured down outside!) and we found
other new places to explore. As we prepared to return home the sun came out and
St Ives looked fabulous. Just one good day!
St Ives looking splendid in the Sunshine. This resort is on the north coast of Cornwall and, apart from the strip of town centre, is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean.
Dubai
Alan went to Dubai in November. Dubai is probably
the best known of Middle East destinations and is popular with tourists who
like sun and shopping. Alan likes neither but wanted to experience the culture
and generally to see what it’s all about. Here is a brief report:
I’ve had a super time in Dubai. It’s been warm
(25-30 degrees - cool by Dubai standards) and, in a country that gets little
rainfall, it saved it up for me!!!
A mixture of old and new plus Arabian townships
that look old but have only recently been built, this is a place of contrasts
and great to see. It’s surprisingly inexpensive, well organised, very clean and
graffiti-free and with an superb bus and metro train system, which has taken me
to all the places of interest. The Metro, apart from an underground section
beneath the old town, is elevated above street level and is an excellent way of
seeing Dubai, as if from the top of a double deck bus. It’s cheap, a day pass
costing just £3, but you can splash out and travel in Gold class, whilst some
seating is provided for women and children only. The Metro, like many other
public areas, is squeaky clean.
Dubai is the one of seven Emirates (akin to
Principalities), collectively known as the United Arab Emirates and the city is
spread along the Persian Gulf coastline. It seems that, wherever there is still
a patch of desert, building is underway or being planned and, every couple of
miles or so, another forest of skyscrapers appears. Signs and announcements are
made in both Arabic and English and, surprisingly, the Dubai Arab population is
outnumbered by people from India and south east Asia who come to work or live
there.
I visited the Khalifa Tower, the world’s tallest
(828 metres, 2,716 feet and 160 stories) and surveyed the scene from the 124th
floor. Enjoyed the musical fountains, explored the souks (markets) and the old
city and then visited some of the shopping malls – the largest having 1,000
shops plus an aquarium with sharks and large stingrays among a huge collection
of fish. Naturally, nearly everything is air-conditioned; even the bus shelters
as, for most of the year temperatures are between 40 and 50 degrees centigrade.
The Khalifa Tower
View from the 124th floor. There are 160 floors in all.
The most striking building is still the Burj Al
Arab seven star hotel, which is built a couple of hundred yards out in the sea.
Next-door is a stunning development in the style of an old walled town, large
enough to contain a network of waterways. The ‘old’ city in fact was home to
luxury hotels, restaurants, conference centres and traditional markets. It was
brilliant! A few miles away is another development in the sea, known as The
Palm. This extensive collection of man-made islands has been created in the
shape of a palm tree and extends a good four miles out into The Gulf. Hotels
and apartments fill most of the trunk and branches, which are connected by a
four-lane road and a monorail. The Palm is enclosed by a huge breakwater circle
on which sit more hotels, notably ‘The Atlantis’ which is constructed in the
style of an old city that has risen from the deep sea.
The Burj Al Arab hotel
Sadly, there was not enough time to venture into
the desert – something to save for another time but I did risk a crossing on an
Abra water taxi across The Creek, the river that separates the older parts of
Dubai city. This looked a hair-raising experience - the deck is only 12 inches above
the turbulent river, you sit on a low, raised platform with nothing to hang on
to other than the passengers on either side of you. There is just one lifebelt
for the 20 passengers aboard and there are lots of other Abras darting around!
This was a 20 pence worth of white knuckle ride as we swerved to avoid other
Abras, hit one hard (which resulted in a bout of swearing between the drivers)
then hit the landing stage with a resounding bang – twice!!! Luckily, no one
was standing up. Clearly, life is considered to be cheap on The Creek but I did
survive.
An Abra on The Creek
Emirates is the most impressive airline I’ve
travelled with and the flight from London Heathrow to Dubai took seven hours,
plus another half an hour circling over The Gulf waiting for our turn to land
in what is Dubai airport’s busiest time (9.00pm to 5.00am). Economy class is
very spacious and the service is wonderful. And, travelling on the A380
double-deck aircraft is fabulous – so much space that it’s hard to believe you
are on a plane, and your own personal TV with countless programmes to choose
from. The flight is very smooth and it is the quietest of cabins with hardly
any air rush noise. A moving map keeps you informed of the countries and places
you are passing over, although a lot of the trip is in darkness, and you can
virtually enjoy the pilot’s view, thanks to a camera mounted in the aircraft’s
tail, and admire the landing.
As you know, I’m rather keen on flying and my log
showed that in October I completed my 199th flight. What better way
to celebrate the 200th than to travel on the finest plane in the
skies, the giant Airbus A380?
Anne retires
Anne has retired for the second time – but she is
still working!
Having given up the editor’s post for her magazine
seven years ago, she was guest of honour at this year’s major park home
exhibition at Stoneleigh in Warwickshire. This was to recognise her 40 years in
the industry at the Park Home and Holiday Caravan industry dinner. The event
was marked by an outpouring of affection by many people from the companies
attending the event that had known and worked with her for many years and
respected her in-depth knowledge of the industry. It was further commemorated
by the presentation of a generous gift of money for a well-earned holiday and
other mementoes.
In her speech she said it was now time for her to
retire properly but during the course of the four-day show, she accepted
several more commissions for the magazine which will keep her busy until
February 2014.
Will this really be the end? She will still
continue to serve on Government committees and an organisation, which champions
the lifestyle of park home living. So watch out for next year’s newsletter to
see if she has hung up her pen and notebook for good!
Anne was presented with a wall-mounted 'Congratulations and best wishes' board and is holding her model park home.
Cats
Our cat family continue to be a delight (for most
of the time!!) but they showed their displeasure at our taking a holiday by
being unwell when we came back. In the space of a week all three had been to
see the vet and it took the best part of a month to settle them down again.
Rascal
Coco on the left, with Dexter
Driving a Deltic
In May it was the ‘Drive a Deltic’ day on the
Swanage Railway. A ‘Deltic’ was at one time the most powerful diesel railway
locomotive in the UK and, with 3,300 horsepower at his fingertips, a driver
could race from London Kings Cross to Edinburgh at a top speed of 100 miles per
hour – the fastest in the country at that time. David came over from the Isle
of Wight and we had a great time on a stunning sunny day, the railway being
built through very attractive Dorset countryside. The Deltic’s train was a
pitiful two carriages and, even with just one of the loco’s twin engines
running, the train took off like a rocket. We rode as passengers first with
another enthusiast driving it, then it was our turn. The line speed limit of
25mph was exceeded four times, up to a heady 30mph! The familiar roar of the
loco was apparent when starting from the station and I soon got the hang of the
controls, although there was much to do and concentration needed: tooting the
horn for crossings, watching for signals and keeping an eye on the speedometer
as just a slight change in gradient would either slow us down or speed us up.
There was a regular service that day so we passed other trains on the journey.
We had express status and were not due to stop at intermediate points but we
were held at a signal outside Corfe Castle, which made the experience all the
more real. David drove it part of the way and his face has not stopped beaming
since! When I took over, I was told to give some extra power as we would be
starting on a gradient, so I gave ‘Royal Highland Fusilier’ full throttle and
the noise must have been heard over most of Dorset!!! Our day was rounded off
with a visit to Swanage signal box – a fascinating hour with lots of shunting.
Is that a bag of sandwiches he's carrying?
Anne’s birthday
Anne celebrated her birthday this year by visiting
a hole! This was a rather special hole in the city of Leicester where, a few
months earlier the remains of King Richard the Third had been unearthed. As
holes go it was unremarkable but its significance has done a lot for the
credibility of the Richard the Third Society, of which Anne is an enthusiastic
member, and for the City of Leicester, which is capitalizing on the find and
attracting more visitors than it has probably ever had before, with walking
tours and a large selection of memorabilia in the tourist office shop. Within
yards of the hole is Leicester cathedral where the good folk of Leicester plan
to lay the King’s remains to rest – but not if the good folk of York have their
way, because they want him for York Minster! It is recorded that the King’s
wish was to be buried in York. Is this a battle that he will win? Watch
this space!
The hole
In Leicester cathedral, with the famous painting of King Richard III.
Alan’s 65th birthday
Alan’s 65th birthday was celebrated in
April with an (you’ve guessed it) aviation theme. The event took place at
London’s original international airport – Croydon, where the combined terminal
and control tower is preserved. Guests, many of who were in typical 1930s-style
or military outfits, were greeted by Captain Alan Walters and Chief Stewardess
Anne for drinks and invited to board the ‘aircraft’. Sadly, take off was
severely delayed and by the time the in-flight catering, music - courtesy of
‘Route 66’ and the dancing had taken place, the pilot and stewardess were both
too drunk to fly the plane and the flight had to be cancelled. Thanks to
everyone who came along for the ride. It was a great evening.
Anniversary celebration
38 years of married bliss saw us celebrating by
taking a trip on the Emirates Air Line - a cable car ride across the River
Thames with excellent views of the Millennium Dome (now the O2 theatre), Canary
Wharf, the Thames barrier and the river with central London as a backdrop,
dominated by The Shard - at 1017 feet high currently Europe’s tallest building.
After a meal in central London we went to the theatre to see ‘Top Hat’, a
musical set in the 1930s with an excellent story line and breathtaking dance
routines.
Shows
In addition to ‘Top Hat’, we’ve been to the
highly-charged ‘Burn the Floor’ dancing extravaganza, featuring two of the top
Strictly Come Dancing stars, ‘Let it Be’ – a tribute to the Beatles and a
couple of local shows featuring Elvis and Abba tribute singers. Anne also went
to see ‘Thriller’ and ‘Dreamboats and Petticoats’.
A little culture
Wisley
I used to pass the entrance to Wisley gardens on
my way to work and a visit there had been a long time on our things to do list.
We checked out the website and were somewhat under-whelmed by its contents and,
therefore, did not arrive there with high hopes. We were in for a great treat –
full of colour, beautifully laid out and so much to see, not just the gardens
but pavilions of exotic plants, a superb shop and places to eat. We heartily
recommend a trip there.
These colourful gardens cover a large area
Tangmere
Our annual summer day out with friends Pat and Tony saw us at the Tangmere aviation museum in West Sussex. Tangmere was a World War 2 Royal Air Force fighter base and the museum captures the spirit of those days and brings the story up to date with modern developments and excellent displays. A superb day out.
Our annual summer day out with friends Pat and Tony saw us at the Tangmere aviation museum in West Sussex. Tangmere was a World War 2 Royal Air Force fighter base and the museum captures the spirit of those days and brings the story up to date with modern developments and excellent displays. A superb day out.
Glasgow
A few years ago the Scottish artist Jack Vettriano
came to Alan’s attention, thanks to Debbie’s wall calendar at work. Currently
Jack has a retrospective – an exhibition of 100 of his paintings at Kelvingrove
Hall in Glasgow. Not one usually to be seen taking an interest in art, Alan
went to the exhibition and was captivated by these originals and the detail in
the paintings.
'In thoughts of you' by Jack Vettriano
My favourite at the exhibition: 'Along came a Spider'
By train, sea and air – news for the transport enthusiast. If you are not one of them, skip this bit!
There have been two big railway events this year,
one in London and the other in York. The year got off to a good start, despite
the snow, with London Transport celebrating the 150th anniversary of
the London Underground by running steam trains along the line from Edgware Road
to Moorgate, with four trains being run over each of two weekends. Extensive
tests had shown that such an event would not set fire to most of London so an
original London Transport locomotive, resplendent in maroon livery hauled an
old set of preserved underground carriages back and forth, aided by an antique
electric locomotive. Characters in period costume on the trains and stations
and a brass band provided an 1860s atmosphere and a good time was had by all,
including Glenn and I who spent the day watching the action before boarding a
train ourselves.
The scene at Moorgate underground station. The engine is Metropolitain number 1.
A great anniversary
Wednesday the third of July was the 75th
anniversary of Mallard’s record run so I went to York to see all six surviving
A4 locomotives gathered there to celebrate the event (two of them repatriated
from USA/Canada especially). Loads of people were there so photography was
difficult but is was an excellent display with two locos in BR green, three in
LNER Garter blue and one in BR blue. I timed my homeward journey to be as close
as possible to the 1938 record run and at 75 years and 6 minutes after the
record was achieved, my train dashed down the same track at 125 mph, sadly not
hauled by steam!
'Bittern'(some of the A4s were named after birds) stands at Kings Cross after a commemorative high speed run from York to London in December.
Bodmin pannier tank extravaganza
Alan went to the Bodmin and Wenford Railway’s gala
pannier weekend in April. I had a great time watching and riding on the
intensive service, with four 0-6-0 pannier tank engines (all different types)
and a big 2-8-0 tank engine. The railway has two lines radiating from Bodmin
General station and, as Bodmin is atop a big hill, both lines are steeply
graded and the engines work hard – music to the ears! I was also able to travel
on the freight train – a novel way to see the line and to watch the loco from
the brake van. As the weather was damp and cool, I spent a lot of time riding
but there was plenty of shunting and activity and much steam and smoke. There
were many highlights but, in particular, seeing and riding behind the
Hawksworth pannier number 1501 – unusually for a pannier tank loco, equipped
with outside cylinders.
Other trips have included an excursion to Plymouth
with blue Tornado, the opening of the Bluebell Railway extension to East
Grinstead, visits to Barrow Hill engine shed, the Great Central Railway, Didcot
Railway Centre, the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, and a trip to Scarborough
hauled by the green Duchess of Sutherland. The Mid- Hants gala was a steamy
affair the day before the hurricane hit southern England and it was very
atmospheric as darkness fell. Finally, we went on an excellent full day
excursion from London to Bath, travelling Pullman style, hauled by two ‘Black
Fives’.
'Tornado' moves forward from East Grinstead station onto the Bluebell Railway - the first through steam train for 50 years.
The Bath special, waiting to depart from London's Victoria station
Quite a few sea trips this year – by catamaran and
by hovercraft to the Isle of Wight, a fabulous sunny day trip to Calais on one
of P&O’s new ships and four crossings in two days across the Irish Sea from
Holyhead by Stena Line fast HSS and on the Irish Ferries giant car ferry 'Ulysses'.
The HSS arriving at Holyhead
'Ulysses' sails into Holyhead
And flying is not left out as I made a round trip
to Glasgow from London City airport on a 100-seat Embraer 190 and was rewarded
by a clear day to arrive in Scotland for the scenic run in to land. Arriving
back in London in the early afternoon I went into the Emirates aviation
attraction near the O2 and was able to fly their two airline simulators – the
Airbus A380 and the almost as big Boeing 777-300. Great fun and no crashes!
The incoming flight arrives at scenic Glasgow airport
Time to say goodbye
Sadly our old friend Doris died this year at the
age of 104. Rumour has it that she had no more wall space for telegrams from
the Queen and decided to call it a day. If we are as lively and clear minded as
she was if we reach that age, we won’t be disappointed!
Sadder still was the news that Alan’s old friend
Roy Woods from Sealink days in the 1970s, died suddenly at the age of 60 and
Alan went to the funeral in Porthmadog, North Wales. Roy was a great supporter
of the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland narrow gauge railways and had contributed
a lot to make both of these popular tourist attractions very successful.
This picture is included as a tribute to Roy. The train is standing at Beddelert on the Welsh Highland Railway, where I last met up with him.
Celebrations
There has been much to celebrate this year. Our
neighbour Geoff had an excellent 70th birthday lunch event at the
local golf club, our Badminton club friend Aubrey had an 80th
birthday garden party, Cathy went with Anne and Julia to The Ritz in London for afternoon tea for her 60th birthday treat, Tony Stone celebrated 60 in Bournemouth with a fine
Italian lunch and a preserved London bus tour around the town and coast and Colin and
Di marked their 40th wedding anniversary with lunch on a Thames
Barge and a trip along the Blackwater River. Anne’s friend Annie was 60 so she
took her to Harrods in London for afternoon tea. Glenn reached the ripe old age
of 65 and has just retired. Mark from the Route 66 music group celebrated 65
also, whilst Amber reached the ripe young age of one and was christened. Finally, Lesley, Anne's cousin in Tenerife also joined the '70 Club'.
Geoff enjoys a well-earned glass of wine
Aubrey and Helen celebrate
Cathy with Julia at The Ritz
Tony's birthday bash. Any more fares, please?
Di, Colin and barge. Hooray and up she rises!
Anne meets Anne at Harrods
Glenn and Amber on Christening day
Lesley proudly wears her 70 badge at the UK celebration dinner with Tony
Meeting up with the work gang from TTC at Woking is always a celebration and we fitted in two this year, the first on a stunning day on the Isle of Wight, overlooking the yacht racing in The Solent, and a winter event in London, which included a guided tour of St Paul’s cathedral and a Thames cable car ride by night.
The TTC Gang high above the River Thames: Sue, Katie, Debbie, Paula and Fiona
Finally, we were invited to the wedding of our
friends’ daughter Lara as photographers and spent the whole day snapping away
as the bride and her entourage prepared themselves in the morning, then the
procession by foot to the nearby church and, finally, the reception. A long
day, full of fun.
It's traffic chaos in Bletchingly as the bride sets forth
And it’s goodbye from us
And so we come to the end of another busy year
with lots of happy memories and interesting experiences. As the pantomime
season is upon us (oh no it isn’t!), (oh yes it is!) we
hope you made it to the end of this missive and, for those who did we wish you
Merry Christmas, Seasons Greetings and a Very Happy New Year.
With love and best wishes from
Anne and Alan
