Anne and Alan's Christmas newsletter 2015

Welcome again to Anne and Alan’s Christmas newsletter. 2015 has been a year of highs and lows.

A sad start to the year.

Three years ago our family expanded with the addition of three lovely cats: Coco and Dexter (twins) aged around three years old and Rascal, a sprightly 13 years or so. All had arrived from the local Cats Protection branch and within the year these three very user-friendly creatures had settled down to the good life, their constant appetites being satisfied in exchange for lots of purrs and fuss.

Sadly, it was soon discovered that Dexter had a heart condition, probably since birth, and that his life was not to be a long one. But the end came much sooner than expected – in March - when a blood clot struck and, despite a dash to the vet, there was nothing that could be done for him. It came as a shock as, only that morning, he had been racing around the garden, full of energy.  Dexter was cremated and his ashes have joined those of the other cats we have previously owned in the slate garden, in his own imposing memorial, which was specially made for him in Wales. We miss him very much; he had been a challenge when he first arrived here and we had succeeded in bringing him up to be a loving, well behaved cat. It has taken his sister a long time to accept that he has gone and we have had to give her and Rascal lots of extra attention. Dexter was a very handsome cat and was much loved.

Anne's Little Prince, Dexter

Shock, horror in Coulsdon! Rascal is in bed with Dexter's sister Coco.

Dexter's memorial in the slate garden

Cardiff rugby

It has long been an ambition of ours to watch our favourite national rugby teams of Wales and Ireland play in a Six Nations match at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. This we did in March and we enjoyed the atmosphere in this impressive venue. Sadly, most of the action happened at the other end of the pitch and, although there were large television screens to bring the activity to the audience, it was actually better to watch it again on the TV at home the following day to see all the action close up and have a commentary. A lot of alcohol is consumed at these matches, not that there was any rowdy-ism, but there was a constant movement of men and women going to and from the loo, just as something exciting was happening in the game. Wales won and Ireland, usually a fabulous team, was not quite up to scratch that day. It was a good experience but, at £140 each, we will stick to watching matches on television in the future!

Military band and male voice choir entertain before the start of the match.

Richard III

As Anne is a member of the Richard III Society and keenly interested in the events and his story 500 years ago, we were not going to miss out on his funeral week in Leicester. We went on Sunday to see the procession accompanying his formal return to Leicester and saw the coffin pass close by us as it was carried on the gun carriage to the cathedral, accompanied by two knights in armour on horse back. The city was packed with onlookers and we couldn’t reach another viewpoint, so watched the rest on large TV screens in the city.

King Richard III passes through the streets of Leicester on a horse-drawn gun carriage.

It was a very emotional event. Anne had been unlucky in the ballots to get a place in either of the cathedral services so we decided to return to Leicester on Tuesday, along with around nine thousand other people that day, to see the king lying in state in the cathedral.  Because of another commitment, we couldn't go together so Anne set off early and spent three hours queuing on a cold and damp afternoon. I arrived in Leicester at seven in the evening and queued for nearly two hours and was lucky to be one of the last fifty to be allowed in that night. It was well worth the wait and we were pleased that we had made the effort. We were rewarded in capturing some poignant photos of the coffin, draped in an embroidered cloth recording important characters in Richard’s life, topped by a crown and medieval bible, and guarded by a soldier on each corner.

The King resides in Leicester cathedral with his guard of honour.

Finally, we watched the funeral service at the Institute of Historical Research, where a large screen was provided for the excellent TV coverage, in the company of other members of the society. This was certainly a week to remember. In July, we returned to see the tomb in its final resting place and apart from one of the church staff, had the king to ourselves for about 15 minutes. The tomb is simple and stylish and the good folk of Leicester and its cathedral had done much to make the whole year ‘fit for a king’!

King Richard III's final resting place in the cathedral.

Cricket at Beckenham

Anne’s wish to donate some of her cricket memorabilia to the Kent County Cricket Club (of which she was a keen supporter for many years), led to an interesting afternoon when, in return for her donation of signed cricket bats to the club’s museum, we were invited, along with our friend Doreen, to the first game of the season at Kent’s refurbished and impressive Beckenham ground. In a superb marquee we were entertained with non-stop food and drink and the chance to see the Kent team beat Surrey on a rather blustery evening.

Anne presents her cricket bat to Graham Johnson (on her left), a former Kent batsman, whose signature is on the back of the the bat.

Anne was also fortunate enough to attend two Test Matches – one against New Zealand at Lords Cricket Ground as a guest of Doreen and the other at The Oval against Australia, thanks to a kind invitation from Martin Roebuck.

Magna Carta

We joined a Richard the Third enthusiast group for a visit to the British Library in London to see the Magna Cater exhibition, commemorating 800 years since King John sealed the document. There was a fascinating display of many documents from the period and how the laws decreed have affected our country and many others since.

Who said it wouldn’t last?

Against all the odds we celebrated our 40^th wedding anniversary this year on 9^th August, the actual anniversary of the day we were married in Selhurst, near Croydon. The day was as hot as it was in 1975 but the surroundings were more attractive as the event was held at the Coulsdon Golf Club, with views across the fairways. A cross section of friends and relatives joined us for lunch.

We were lucky that so many of the original wedding guests could be there to share the day and enjoy a three-course meal, as opposed to the rather warm curled up sandwiches and collapsing wedding cake that had greeted them forty years earlier! We are rich in many good friends and it was good to see them all gathered together. Lunchtime music was provided by friends Roger and Mark who perform as ‘Jazz in the Bar’ at local venues.

If you were not invited, it was not because we had forgotten you! The size of the restaurant restricted our numbers and the venue itself was somewhat remote so only those with cars or easy access to the nearest railway station (served by a much reduced Sunday timetable), then a taxi could really get there. Nevertheless, you were in our thoughts.

Forty years on. At least the cake didn't melt this time! 

A Birthday treat

Back in April, on Alan’s birthday (yes, he was forty yet again!) a day out was planned to The Shard in London. The Shard, overlooking the River Thames and the City of London, is currently the highest building in Europe and has viewing terraces on floors 68 and 70. As my sister Sheila has her birthday in April too, we decided to make it a joint celebration but, in the event, the treat did not take place until October due to other commitments and rather poor summer weather.

Anyway, we set off to London and headed first for the River Thames Embankment Pier, passing a fascinating memorial to the Battle of Britain on the way. We boarded one of the many Thames cruising ships – the Thames Clipper, a fast catamaran which stops at most of the central London piers, giving passengers plenty of time to see all the riverside sights, in particular the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, St Paul’s Cathedral, the Tower of London, Tower Bridge and the imposing Shard, a tall and slim glass pyramid of offices, hotel, restaurants and viewing areas and now one of the main visitor attractions in London. The journey continued past the Cutty Sark sailing ship and majestic waterfront in Greenwich to the Millennium Dome, now better known as the O2 entertainment venue.

A short walk away is another recent tourist attraction called the Emirates Air Line, a cable car ride which soars high over the Thames to the north bank and provides excellent views over the Canary Wharf financial centre and the Millennium Dome, some 280 feet below, whilst in the other direction can be seen the unusual Thames Barrier, part of the London river defence system. By this time it was a perfect day with clear, blue skies and superb views.

Our round trip took us back to the Emirates Centre and Emirates, the middle eastern airline that sponsors this attraction, has an exhibition featuring its ever-growing airline operation where you could watch a speeded up video of one of their giant A380 aircraft arriving in Dubai, being serviced and then departing, a process that in real time would take an hour and a half, lasting about three minutes. You take a bumpy video ‘ride’ as a piece of baggage from check in to the aircraft hold and back again at the arrival airport then visit a replica flight deck and finally stand beside, and be dwarfed by, one of the aircraft’s huge engines. There is a refreshment area attached, ideal for our lunch stop.

Alan with sister Sheila give some idea of the size of the jet engine. There are four of these on an A380.

Then it was on the underground back to the Shard for our visit and from the viewing platforms we could see for a distance of thirty miles, way beyond London’s outer limits. However, just below our feet was the City of London, the river and excellent views of many famous buildings including the Tower of London and the growing array of high and stylish office buildings - the ‘Gherkin’, if not the tallest, still the most eye catching. We can heartily recommend this fascinating day in one of the finest cities in the world.

The View from The Shard with the round City Hall and Tower Bridge beside the River Thames. Canary Wharf financial district is in the distance. 

Holidays

Holidays have been difficult this year. Alan had a week in Germany pursuing his interest in German steam trains (which included a visit and overnight stay in famous Colditz Castle), then a week in Wales (plenty of attractive steam trains there) with his good friend John from Sydney who was in the UK for a holiday.

Colditz castle

Following the demise of Dexter the cat, his sister had become increasing difficult in eating and, as this would make putting her into the cattery with Rascal difficult, we have had to abandon the idea of a joint holiday this year. So Anne was able to take a break with her friend (also named Ann, but spelt differently) whilst Alan took his turn in looking after the furry family. The two Annes went for a Warners Holidays short break to Littlecote Manor hotel in Wiltshire and lived the highlife for four days. Although a vast array of activities and entertainment are provided by Warners, it was also possible to take coach tours of the area to the city of Bath, Blenheim Palace, the ancestral home of Winston Churchill, and a day’s excursion through the delightful countryside, towns and villages of the Cotswold Hills. They had a good time.

Blenheim Palace

Summer days out

Our summer day out with friends Pat and Tony saw us taking a Thames Cruiser to Greenwich, with lunch at a famous riverside pub, and a fascinating visit to the tea clipper sailing ship ‘Cutty Sark’.

Three new figureheads for the Cutty Sark collection!

Alan joined his training company colleagues for a day trip to Corfe Castle in Dorset, which included a super pub lunch with wonderful views over the Purbeck Hills, a visit to the castle ruins, then afternoon tea. Anne went on a tour of Buckingham Palace as well as one to the Royal Mews, where the royal and state carriages are kept.

TTC friends Fiona, Debbie, Sue and Dot near Corfe Castle.

Theatre, entertainment and culture

We went to see The Imitation Game - an excellent film.

Three theatre shows this year: ‘Riverdance’, ‘Gypsy’ and a hilarious comedy called ‘The Play that goes wrong’.

Music: The Kinks, sixties pop group featuring three of the original band members, and a Johnny Cash tribute duo. As usual, our local band ‘Route 66’ with Roger and Mark in the lineup, has kept us entertained on several evenings with music from the sixties to the nineties.

It is rare for members of the public to have access to the Livery Companies of the City of London but we were privileged to visit Goldsmiths Hall this year. Nearby Guildhall is open to anyone most days and free to visit. Both buildings have magnificent interiors.

The Guild of Aviation Artists put on an excellent exhibition this year and we were also privileged to attend a very interesting talk about the fire that destroyed London’s Crystal Palace in 1936.

Work

As Anne decided to finally retire this year there has been little ‘official’ work but she has succumbed to invitations on a few occasions and one of these took us for an overnight visit to the beautiful Victorian town of Llandrindod Wells in Wales. We were there to write an article about a new park home development, which had the previous year won the television competition, ‘Four in a Bed’, for the excellence of its bed and breakfast accommodation. We were made very welcome by hosts Ian and Joan, who also shared their passion for showing their Shetland ponies at horse shows and had won first prize with their favourite pony Arthur. Their hobby opened a new world to us and was most interesting. However, we will not be buying a pony and will continue mowing our grass with a conventional lawn mover!

Joan and Ian with their prize-winning Shetland pony, Arthur.

Weddings, etc.

Two great weddings this year: Our Godson Richard married Jenna at a venue called the Old Barn in darkest Kent. It was a super day, marred only by the worst weather any marriage ceremony could ask for, which made photographs in the beautiful gardens almost impossible.

Our industry friend Frances married John in Weybridge and they were blessed with fantastic summer weather, both in the Register Office gardens and at their outdoor reception.

The Bax family had two events this year. Anne's cousins Lesley and Tony celebrated their 50th anniversary, whilst son Andy and his wife Emma clocked up 25 years.

Those blue hair streaks knock years off them!

We sadly said goodbye to Alan’s Aunt Iris, also our good friend Roy Linsell, a leading light in the local group of the Richard III Society, who had given much pleasure to the group’s members over many years. John Weir and Phil Bobbins will be sadly missed, too.

Roy will be especially remembered for the historical tours  that he organised.

So that’s our year in brief. As last year, Alan’s transport interests have been gathered together at the end of this newsletter for the benefit of his transport-interested friends, but everyone is welcome to read it.

It’s goodbye from us, with best wishes for Christmas and 2016.

Peace in the forest. May 2016 be peaceful for you.

The following section is mainly for the benefit of fellow transport enthusiasts who enjoy trains and planes, although all normal mortals are welcome to read it. There are some ‘steamy’ stories – you have been warned!

Rail Galas

I've been lucky to get to six notable preserved railway galas this year, each impressive and providing excellent entertainment:

The Great Central Railway put on a superb programme on a very cold weekend in January with nearly a dozen steam locomotives in service hauling passenger, freight and mail trains – a highlight being a demonstration of the travelling post office, which picked up and deposited bags of mail as the train steamed past at speed. This railway has several miles of double track, so the service was intensive. Cosy coal fired waiting rooms at all the stations helped to keep the cold at bay, as did the hot all-day breakfast served in one of the dining car trains. Guest locomotives were the Hawksworth Pannier 1501 and ‘Dinmore Manor’, resplendent in its new black livery.

Dinmore Manor

Next was the Severn Valley Spring Gala, which excels in running a mix of main line, branch line and goods trains along its scenic route. Particularly memorable was Hawksworth Pannier 1501 working an un-fitted brake train accompanied by the clanking of wagon buffers as it shunted around. Guest engines: the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway coal tank and a Great Western pannier tank on London Transport red livery.

Hawksworth 1501 shunts the goods train at Highley.

The Webb coal tank.

London Transport liveried pannier tank at Arley.

The Mid-Hants Railway had two galas this year. The Spring event was action-packed, with the blue record-breaking A4, which achieved 90 mph on the main line on three occasions, putting a dash of colour into an otherwise dull February day. At least six steam locomotives were at work that weekend. The autumn gala had an LMS theme with the only operational ‘Crab’ locomotive joining forces with an Ivatt 2-6-0 tender locomotive and supported by resident ‘Black Five’. Other resident locos including A4 ‘Bittern’, ‘Lord Nelson’ and a 9F large freight locomotive joined the fray. A Drummond ‘Greyhound’ added a Southern Railway contrast.

The 'Crab' - an unusual design of locomotive.

Didcot Railway Centre, a preserved Great Western Railway locomotive shed, produced yet another impressive open day and succeeded in portraying a typical busy depot with several steam engines bustling up and down the track, shunting and re-fuelling. The two passenger lines provided rides in vintage steam and diesel railcars and locomotive- hauled trains.

Action-packed Didcot.

Finally, the Bluebell Railway brought back its ‘Giants of Steam’ weekend after an absence of five years and its efforts were rewarded by vast crowds on both days, eager to witness the first ever appearance of an A4 locomotive (‘Bittern’) on the line, accompanied by Schools class ‘Cheltenham’ and the entry into service of its own standard class five ‘Camelot’.

A4 'Bittern' pulls away from Horsted Keynes station.

Not a gala, but mention must be made of York museum’s commemoration of the 50^th anniversary of Sir Winston Churchill’s funeral train, which featured the locomotive plus a Pullman carriage and the funeral van. An excellent display - the paintwork on these restored items was outstanding.

Locomotive 'Winston Churchill' pulled the funeral train.

Dresden

Yet again, the Dresden steam festival beckoned and I joined the tour with fingers crossed that I might enjoy a ride behind my favourite East German locomotive – the 01.5 rebuilt Pacific. After an overnight stop at Erfurt, travelling via Brussels and Frankfurt, we moved on through Leipzig to the Dollnitztalbahn railway, home to the Saxon-Meyer narrow gauge tank locos, and had a private train for our group, making a number of photo stops in both directions. These smoky 0-4-4-0 engines are very attractive but look rather odd as the four cylinders are grouped in the middle, between the two sets of driving wheels. Not far from the railway is Colditz Castle and we stayed there for the night. The castle, more of a fortress town really, is located on top of a hill overlooking the town of Colditz. We were treated to a superb guided tour and regaled with stories of the attempts by officer prisoners of war to escape.

The Saxon-Meyer - a powerful narrow gauge locomotive.

Travelling via Leipzig, we arrived in Dresden in time for an afternoon steam tour to Zittau, hauled by two Pacifics, including my favourite loco on the front. On the return journey I visited the footplate during an intermediate station stop whilst the second locomotive was attached to the front of the train engine and was invited to stay there for the remaining part of the journey to Dresden, travelling at up to 70mph with both engines sounding their hooter-style whistles as we passed through stations – an exhilarating experience!

East German Pacific - the one I was lucky to ride on.

Other highlights of the trip included a ride over the Tharandt Incline (a 1 in 37 gradient for 11 kilometres) on a full length train hauled by two 2-6-2 tender locos; parallel running with two steam trains running beside and overtaking each other, and visits to the three narrow gauge railways in the Dresden region. Finally, the steam festival itself, the theme for which was the Pacific locomotive - and there were eight examples in attendance.

Storming up the Tharandt incline.

The Weisseritztalbahn clings to the river bank for most of the route.

The night-time display with a re-built West German Pacific on the turntable, ready for a twirl.

I flew home directly from Dresden to London City airport in just two hours instead of twelve hours by train, and £100 cheaper!

Wales

This year’s pilgrimage to Wales included several favourite lines, plus one new one – the Llanberis Lake Railway, a charming ride along the lakeshore and an interesting visit to an old slate quarry centre. We also went to Aberystwyth to see how the Vale of Rheidol line had progressed over the years and were very impressed with what has been achieved. The line itself runs through delightful countryside as it climbs up through the valley. The journey to Wales was punctuated by a stop at the Severn Valley Railway on the way there, conveniently a special weekend with two Deltic diesels, plus Taw Valley on its first day in service after a long overhaul. The homeward journey coincided with the Gloucester Warwickshire Railway’s summer gala.

The mighty Deltic on the Orient Express Pullman train.

Devil's Bridge on the Vale of Rheidol line.

West Country class locos 'Wells' and 'Wadebridge'  double-headed several trains on the GW Railway.

Amsterdam grice

My belated birthday present - a return flight from Gatwick to Amsterdam on a Garuda Indonesia 777-300, was my first experience of the stretched version of the 777 and impressive, as the layout in the cheap seats was 3-3-3 with good legroom. An excellent snack was provided on the 41-minute flight (which was full, with a high percentage of passengers going only as far as Amsterdam). I stayed for two nights in a Schipol Airport hotel with a view across the airport and enjoyed the sight of taxiing big jets arriving from all over the world whilst I was shaving.

A smooth flight - only 41 minutes from Gatwick to Amsterdam.

I spent Day Two visiting, for the first time, the preserved Hoorn-Medemblik steam tramway, which was just a 50-minute direct train ride from Schipol. I was made very welcome there and, having stated that I was a member of the Bluebell Railway, was given a free ticket! There were about 10 locomotives, three of them steam tram types and an interesting collection of rolling stock, all out on display for a special event.

A Henschel-built tram locomotive was in service that day, hauling Austrian carriages.

The railway obtained this loco for just one Guilder. It cost 60 million Guilders to restore it!

A fully enclosed tram engine and vintage carriages were on display.

Farewell to the Vulcan

In its last flying year we were able to watch a spectacular display at Eastbourne from the end of the pier as the Vulcan jet bomber performed low flypasts and steep turning climbs. It was so good that I decided to watch it again the following week at the Shoreham Air Show. Sadly, because of the crash by the preceding aircraft, the Vulcan display had to be abandoned.

A low-level flypast, seen from the end of Eastbourne pier.

Manchester trams

On a recent visit, I was amazed to see how the tram network has grown – and is still growing, with a second route across the city in the course of construction. To accommodate this addition, the tram area in Victoria station has been remodelled and a new, stylish glass and steel curved roof added.

Manchester Victoria station is the hub of the tram system.

Brooklands

Always a fascinating day out, the Brooklands motor, aviation and bus museum hosted the bus Transportfest and I had my first ride on a horse drawn bus. Providing a total contrast, this five miles per hour vehicle was boarded beside the nose of Brookland’s 1350 miles per hour Concorde! Riding the bus’s top deck was a challenge as there was little legroom for the travellers of today and the stairs were only wide enough to accept the heel of the foot as one disembarked. However, the ride was delightful with the sound of hooves clip-clopping along, although the vehicle’s springs and hard wooden seats left a lot to be desired. 

Next time I'll travel downstairs on the cushioned seats!

Hovering to the Island

The only public carrying hovercraft service still survives between Southsea and Ryde, Isle of Wight and I still get a thrill as the machine lifts off on dry land then swoops onto the sea for the ten-minute crossing. The two current hovercraft are due to be replaced in 2016 by a new type, but it is great to see that a British invention is still alive and kicking on the Solent.

At low tide, the hovercraft approaches Ryde on the Isle of Wight, skimming over sand and water. The sea here is too shallow for ships, which have to dock at the end of the pier for the train connection to the island.

Christmas Newsletter 2014

News from Anne and Alan     Christmas 2014

A warm welcome to all our regular readers, and hopefully some new ones! 2014 - what a year! It has passed swiftly and lots have happened to us. In a change from the usual format, Alan’s transport news, much anticipated by some of you (but probably not read by most!), has been grouped towards the end. The eagle eyed reader will probably notice that the fonts and font sizes sometimes change. This is as much a mystery to me as it is to you and it could take until next Christmas to put it right. So, we've decided to publish the blog now, warts and all!

Anne’s eyes

Top of the list is to report that Anne, whose eyesight has never been good since the age of seven and who has used contact lenses for around 50 years, has now got perfect vision, other than for reading. This is a result of a conversation with her optician, who informed her that they had reached the limit of sight correction with contact lenses and recommended an operation on both eyes to replace her natural lenses. Unfortunately, this service is not available on the National Health but the excellent service, spread over two weeks with one eye first, followed by the other later, was well worth the fee as she can now see better than she has ever done and probably better than all the rest of us, as clarity can decline with ageing. She is amazed by all the detail that she can see, even individual branches on trees half a mile away across the valley, and is now hoping to drive again (if confidence is regained), something she has been wary of for the last few years. The operation was similar to that for cataracts and the deed only took 20 minutes, although overall it took most of a morning as safety and health procedures were rigorously observed.  Well done to Anne – it was a nervous time, but in the end was so easy. If you feel the need, call us for details.

Anne with new friend on her birthday. Her new favourite song is 'I can see clearly now'!

Holidays

United States of America

Having planned the trip for three years, the long awaited visit to America’s deep south happened in March. The holiday to the USA went well, with most things turning out to be better than expected, although scenically it was no big deal as most of the landscape down through Mississippi and Louisiana is pretty flat. Driving on elevated highways over the vast swamplands was interesting but at 70mph there was little chance of spotting anything lurking in them.

We went on a two week ‘Sights and Sounds’ tour of the Deep South, the emphasis being more on the sounds – in particular the sounds of our youth. We started in Atlanta which included a city tour, following in the footsteps of Martin Luther King and a visit to the CNN television news centre, then moved into the state of Tennessee to stop at Chatanooga, famous for its ‘Choo Choo’ and the Glenn Miller song. Apart from the preserved station which is a train and hotel complex, there was no working Choo Choo. However, the preserved restaurant not only provided excellent food but also singing waiters, who entertained us between courses. Fabulous views from the top of Lookout Mountain, accessed by a funicular railway, which is claimed to be the steepest in the world, were enjoyed in zero temperatures the following day. Is hard to believe that a Civil War battle had been waged in so high and inaccessible a spot.

We journeyed via the Jack Daniels bourbon distillery in Lynchburg, a pretty small town that has county laws that prohibit the sale of Jack Daniels within 12 miles of the distillery so, sadly, no samples - but we were allowed to sniff the brew in one of the vats! Nashville was the next major stop, a famous music centre where the likes of Elvis, Roy Orbison and Jim Reeves first rose to fame, and we visited the studio where their early hits had been recorded. The city tour revealed a copy of the Acropolis in Athens and there was time to visit the Music Hall of Fame and a Plantation House on the outskirts of town. We were to see many more fine houses during the trip.

Nashville, not Athens.

We stayed at the complex next to the famous Grand ‘Ole Oprey and went to an evening show in its vast auditorium, where more than 3,000 fans filled the audience for the 40^th anniversary show of country and western music. Next stop was Elvis Presley’s birth place, then onto Memphis to visit Graceland and enjoy the musical delights of Beale Street. We went to another famous studio where Elvis, Johnny Cash and their contemporaries made recordings, and saw the infamous motel where Martin Luther King was assassinated.

Graceland - Elvis's home.

Lively Beale Street in Memphis.

'Well, it's one for the money ...'   Alan sings at the very spot where Elvis did.

We gradually headed south and took in two famous battle sites of the American Civil War – a subject about which we were generally ignorant but came away much better informed.

New Orleans was a highlight, helped along by streetcars, musical Bourbon Street, the French Quarter and a Mississippi steamboat evening cruise. A completely different style of city to the American norm and considerably warmer than the previous places on the trip.

Mississippi steamboat 'Natchez'.

Typical wrought iron balcony in the French Quarter.

We travelled home via Houston, stopping on the way at a reconstructed Arcadian village, where we had a totally unexpected meeting with a seven foot long alligator, only six feet away from us but a bit close for comfort as there was no-one else there keeping an eye on him. Rather than attempt to eat us, he kindly posed for photographs, then slipped off the riverbank and swam away.

Ah, humans. Yum, yum!

We spent a fascinating day at the Houston Space Centre, where we watched the progress of the International Space Centre in orbit in the new mission control and astronauts training for their next flight. Other highlights included sitting at the controls in the Space Shuttle simulator and visiting the old mission control, from which the moon landings and space shuttle flights were controlled. All in all, a great holiday.

This large electronic wall map in the Houston Space Centre watches the progress of the International Space Station. When we arrived it was at the centre of the large circle on the left panel, approaching South America from Asia. Travelling at 17,000 miles per hour, twenty minutes later it was over north-west Africa.

Alan at the Flight Director's desk, from which the moon landings were controlled.

An amusing postscript: Still recovering from jet lag, a time change and a BST time change here, we found that the car battery was flat when we got home so I took it on a run to Horsted Keynes on the Bluebell Railway and spent the day there getting some steam up my nostrils. Sadly, I dozed off on the last train back and ended up stranded at Sheffield Park. It cost £22.00 for the taxi ride back to the car!

Dublin

For the ‘couple who have everything’ (and no space for any more!), Christmas and birthday presents can be a bit of a challenge. So, presents are a bit of a movable feast and tend to be more experiences these days than something to wear or a hobby item.

Anne’s 2013 birthday present, long overdue, arrived at the end of April 2014: dinner and Irish traditional music in a well-known Irish pub – in Dublin. We set off at three o’ clock from Gatwick airport and were in our Dublin hotel by five, and in the Ulysses Bar by six, recovering from the rigours of the journey with a drop of the ‘hard stuff’: gin for Anne and Irish Whisky for Alan. At 7.30 we arrived at the Oliver St John Gogarty in the Temple Bar district of the city – just a 20 minute stroll from the hotel via O’Connell Street (the main thoroughfare) and across the River Liffey, on a sunny spring evening.

An impressive meal was followed by two groups of musicians with the music coming fast and furious with traditional Irish songs, violin fiddling, banjo and guitars and accordions plus an excellent display of Riverdance-style dancing, all helped along with Irish coffee (with whisky in it and topped with cream) and some Guinness. A great evening.

The Oliver St John Gogarty.

Next day, it was back home again, but not before another stroll in glorious weather with time to explore Dublin cathedral and the famous and very grand post office in O’Connell street.

Scotland

In July, Alan took his sister to Scotland for a week’s holiday. Sheila had not been to Scotland before so we compiled an itinerary to show her some of the best parts. All but one of the journeys was by train (and some ships).

Our first base was in Glasgow, staying in a hotel, just a few yards from Central station. Next day we took the train to Wemyss Bay and caught the ferry to Rothesay on the nearby island of Bute – one of several islands that sit in the Firth (estuary) of Clyde. We enjoyed exploring the town and its waterfront gardens, then had a bus tour around the island, with views of the majestic mountainous island of Aran nearby, before returning to the quay in time to see the preserved paddle steamer ‘Waverley’ make a short stop on one of its regular summer jaunts around the islands.

Paddle Steamer 'Waverley' on a scenic trip in the First of Clyde.

On Sunday we were whisked by train across to Edinburgh, where we visited the Royal Yacht ‘Britannia’ in the nearby port of Leith, before returning to the city for an open top bus tour. The castle, situated on a ridge and above Princes Gardens and the monument to Sir Walters Scott, dominates the town below in all directions and we passed the café where the Harry Potter books were written as well as the historic Old Town and Royal Mile leading down to the Palace of Holyrood House. We can highly recommend the ‘Britannia’, which has been beautifully renovated. We had lunch on board, which was fit for a King (and at a princely price!!!)

The following day saw us catching the lunchtime train from Queen Street station to Fort William, the train weaving its way along the West Highland line past lochs (lakes), mountains and moors - a breathtaking journey. We stayed the night in Fort William, near the highest UK mountain of Ben Nevis and located on the side of Loch Linnhe before setting off the next morning to the beautiful location of Glenfinnan and its monument to Bonnie Prince Charlie. That afternoon we caught the express bus past Loch Ness to our next base, Inverness. Here, we encountered a snag. Our city centre hotel had been overbooked so we were transferred to a lovely four-star hotel on the edge of town. Whilst a little inconvenient, we enjoyed the luxury hotel and its superb food.

Glenfinnan.

The next excursion was to Kyle of Lochalsh, courtesy of another famous rail journey through mountains on the way to the Isle of Skye, located just a short distance from the mainland. Returning the following day south from Inverness to Glasgow, the train took us on another stunning ride over the Cairngorm and Grampian Mountains, and we completed the day by taking the Glasgow city bus tour for a very interesting two-hour ride, seeing many different facets of the ‘Toon’ that had been missed on previous visits.

Our final day in Scotland was spent visiting famous Loch Lomond, just an hour away from Glasgow, whose banks were indeed bonny in the sunshine. We had a two-hour loch cruise, visited a birds of prey centre, complete with a Golden Eagle, and a tour of the ‘Maid of the Loch’ - another paddle steamer in the course of preservation.

We were lucky that, in the whole week, we experienced only one rain shower. We certainly saw Scotland at its best in lovely sunshine.

Lake District

Our week in the Lake District was preceded by an evening cruise on the River Thames on the Paddle Steamer ‘Waverley’, which was on its annual round of excursions from different UK ports. We departed from Tower Pier in daylight, through majestic Tower Bridge, which had to be opened to let us through and before long it was dark. We had a good meal on board then went to the bar to enjoy a band playing traditional jazz music as the lights of London’s riverside slipped by, including the Canary Wharf business district, Millennium Dome (the O2 theatre), the Thames Barrier and finally back through Tower Bridge, now bathed in floodlighting.

Tower Bridge opens to allow 'Waverley' access to the Pool of London.

Next day was spent driving to our Lake District base, seven miles west of Penrith in the northern lakes and we had a good week of weather, save for one wet and windy day. So we had a good time exploring the outstanding mountainous scenery, small villages and, beautiful lakes, plus a couple of train rides, which are well known as some of the most spectacular in England.

Beautiful Derwentwater, near Keswick.

Car capers

Alan’s car, affectionally named Boris, has had a chequered history of reliability in the five years he has been with us but his fate was sealed in September when he slipped out of gear at 70mph on the motorway and then needed six re-starts on the way home. To cut a long story short, he was diagnosed as needing a new gearbox and radiator to the tune of around £5,000 (his current value was £800!) so sadly he had to go – a pity, as he was the most luxurious and best car (when he worked!) Alan had owned.

Boris has been replaced by a Skoda Octavia estate, which we have named Siegfried. He is a beautiful metallic dark blue colour but not quite as large as Boris, so a bit easier to park.

Farewell to Boris ...

... and greetings to Siegfried.

BBC visit

Alan’s birthday treat this year was a visit to BBC’s Broadcasting House in London, which is responsible for 24-hour news services worldwide, the weather forecasts and comedy and other radio shows.

We were given a guided tour around the old original building, finished in Art Deco style, before moving to the state of the art news centre where we could see the news gathering teams at work and a live weather forecast. We were also able to have a ‘hands on’ experience and, thanks to the reticence of most of the group, Alan tried his hand at making the sound effects for a play and then being a newsreader.

Shows and entertainment

‘Morecambe’ – this one-man show was memorable, as was ‘Relative Values’ – the best Noel Coward play we have seen. Our friend Pauline is a member of a local Rock Choir and we had a fabulous evening when several of the choirs joined together to sing in a nearby theatre.

In a local club called ‘The Venue’ we saw some excellent tribute bands including Abba, The Bee Gees, the Rolling Stones and Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash look and sound a -likes.

In the last three months, there has been a lot happening, with theatre visits and music. Highlights have been Agatha Christie’s ‘The Mousetrap’, Dionne Warwick, ‘The Lion King’, ‘Dance ‘Til Dawn’ (with Strictly Come Dancing’s Flavia and Vincent – needless to say, a superb Argentine Tango among many other super dancing routines) and the great comedian Jasper Carrott in a fabulous evening of music and comedy.

We went to the Drapers Hall in the City of London on one of the rare occasions that it is open to the public and admired the stunning rooms and main hall. This was followed by a walking tour of the city, highlight of which was the Royal Exchange, now a venue for expensive shops and places to eat just opposite the Bank of England.

Anne entered the Race for Life this year and joined more than a thousand women on the walk/run around Croydon’s Lloyd Park to raise money for the Breast Cancer charity.

Anne, sadly not the first home, but not the last either!

And no report would be complete without reference to the Strictly Come Dancing evening, hosted by Jacky and Peter, when our ‘old dancing crowd’ get together to watch the semi-finals and add our views and criticisms to those of the TV judges!

Anne, Peter, Pauline, Geoff and Jacky.

Line Dancing extravaganza

Anne, a keen Liner Dancer, went with her dancing group for a long weekend to a Warner’s holiday complex on the Isle of Wight. She had a super time, not only dancing, as there was a full programme of other activities and trips around the island. She highly recommends Warners for the excellent facilities and food.

Wimbledon

Anne was taken by her friend Cathy to see the tennis championships at Wimbledon during the summer. They had great seats and enjoyed watching some of the famous players, including Andy Murray against Kevin Anderson, Alize Cornet versus Eugenie Bouchard and Novak Djokovic playing Jo-Wilfred Tsonga.

Edinburgh Tattoo

Anne’s 70^th birthday present was actually enjoyed during 2014, the birthday year. She had long held an ambition to see the Royal Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle so we set off by train on Thursday 7^th August and had a sunny welcome in Edinburgh where we arrived at 4pm. It was the Edinburgh Festival – an annual event of music and comedy so we were lucky to have overnight accommodation just 10 minutes away from the railway station. We headed off for a stroll to dinner in Princes Street, where we had the meal accompanied by a view of the castle, perched high on the mound as the sun started to set. It’s quite a climb up to the castle as we and 8,999 other members of the audience, many from far flung parts of the world, made our way to the castle esplanade, where the show takes place.

On the stoke of 9pm an RAF jet made a noisy and fast flight low over the castle and the music and dancing began with the bands of bagpipes and drums contrasting with that of the Royal Marines and all done in spectacular marching formations of many different patterns. The non-stop show lasted for nearly two hours, with visiting national musical and dancing troupes in colourful costumes contrasting with the changing colours and patterns that were being projected onto the castle walls. Special mention must be made of the Police Band of Singapore who performed an intricate and entertaining musical formation march. All was finally rounded off by the traditional lone piper atop the castle playing a lament and the audience singing Auld Lang Syne. A fantastic show and far better than we had expected.

The spectacular Tattoo, with the castle in the background.

We spent the next morning exploring parts of Edinburgh that we had missed on previous visits, including the West End - and the Old Town, with its steep winding roads and impressive buildings, the Royal Mile and St Giles cathedral, followed by a ride on one of the brand new trams – Edinburgh being the most recent British city to build a new tram system. Thus well exercised, we returned to retrieve our bags and back we went to the station, arriving home at 9pm. Edinburgh is so different from any other British town and a great place to visit.

Spectra

During one of Alan’s keep fit night-time walks in August, he saw a strange large light high in the sky, looking like a huge comet. Had a spaceship of aliens arrived? Surely their craft could not be that large and, just visible below it and reaching to Earth, was a thin shaft of light. The Internet was consulted and the apparition was revealed to be ‘Spectra’ - a fascinating event in London to commemorate the start of World War One, one hundred years ago.

The beam of light could be seen from the far edge of London.

Spectra was indeed a shaft of intense light (actually 49 shafts created by searchlights) generated in a small park area beside the Houses of Parliament in London. The forty nine lights came together 10 miles above London and the head of light could be seen for miles around – we live 15 miles away from which I had first seen it.  We went to London to see this ‘for one week only’ attraction, which had been installed in secrecy and was switched on as most of the country switched out their lights and illuminated candles to commemorate the start of the Great War. It was possible to stroll through the huge lights and there was strange ‘out of this world’ music and sounds being played.

Spectra's 49-light base.

London Loo tour

Here’s a rather novel way to spend an afternoon. A charming young American lady called Rachel from San Francisco has come up with the idea of a Loo Tour around central London. In fact there are two separate circuits and the one we chose to join started, very appropriately outside the ladies and gents in Waterloo station! The other covers, again appropriately, the postal districts of WC1 and WC2!

We joined Rachel for the tour – she was easy to spot as she brandished a large sink plunger instead of the usual tour leader umbrella and wore a bright blue T-shirt with suitably toilet-humoured quotes. There were eleven of us in this group with men considerably outnumbered by women and we were the subject of much attention as Rachel led the way with plunger on high. In common with many men of my age, the need for a toilet is more frequent than in days of yore, so I make it my business (ha, ha) to know where facilities are located.

The history of the need for public toilets was explained and there were amusing and sometimes lengthy quotes from Shakespeare and others which were spoken with aplomb. We heard about the highest loo in London (and in Europe), at the top of the Shard. This costs around £25 to £30 to use but you do get fabulous views of London thrown in! We then learned about the council funded official free Pee in a Pub scheme (as opposed to sneaking in and out and hoping not to be spotted).

After a short walk we inspected the Jub-a-loo (erected in the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Year), on the South Bank near the London Eye which charges a handsome 50p for one pee, but which is emblazoned with Union Jack toilet fittings and pictures of The Queen on the walls, keeping a wary eye on proceedings. Then, over the River to see a variety of handy, and sometimes unusual, installations as well as being given tips about pubs and hotels where access to the loos was easy and free. The most unusual example, yet one of the newest, is a male urinal close to Embankment underground station which spends the daytime hours retracted beneath the pavement and then surfaces to provide relief in the ‘wee small hours’, saving the adjacent Embankment Gardens of much nocturnal trade. Not far from there was a modern equivalent of a French male Pissoir, sadly lacking the wrought iron construction for which they were famous and offering, like the retracting type, little modesty for the user or discreetness for the female passer by.

It was explained that the River Thames used to be wider until the need to reclaim the north and south banks for the sewers became apparent when the smell over London finally got ‘beyond the pail’! Many street lamps used the methane gas generated in the sewers to provide gas lighting and one such example still exists.

Our tour ended in a below-ground cocktail bar outside the Lyceum Theatre, which had once been a gents’ loo and had enjoyed a certain amount of infamy in the days of Oscar Wilde, when the loo was used for a wider range of pursuits! I had used this establishment on more than one occasion and consider myself lucky to have escaped unharmed!

Celebrations

Tony Cousins celebrated his 70^th birthday in style near Bournemouth, Rosemary Waxman celebrated her 60^th birthday in equal style in London and Roy Linsell hit 85 and Shirley Linsell 80 in Seaford. Not to be outdone, Mike Quinsey reached 80, too. However, Win Coldham was 90 so she wins the prize! Steve Fosh retired in October. Glenn celebrated his 65^th birthday six months after the actual day on the Bluebell Railway. Congratulations and best wishes to them all. We took the opportunity while in London for Rosemary’s event, to see the display of poppies in the moat of the Tower of London, which was just about full. We got there after dark, hoping they would be floodlit but they weren’t so we were thankful that we had had a daylight visit a couple of months earlier.

Tony and Sue

Rosemary

Roy and Shirley, with Nick and Margaret

Mike with his chocolate birthday cake. Delicious!

Win. Hope we are as bright and agile when we reach 90!

Steve, with Victoria (left), Carole and Gemma.

Glenn enjoying Pullman service.

Tower of London poppies and ...

... even more on the other side.

And our annual celebration of friendship with Pat and Tony took us to darkest Kent for a trip on the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch miniature railway. These small trains seem to hurtle across the Romney Marshes, although they actually travel at little more than 20mph. The landscape around Dungeness, where the land protrudes into the English Channel, is rather unusual as it is formed of stones. Another annual gathering took place in July with Alan and some of his colleagues from the Travel Training Company on a day out of exploration, lunch and gossip in Salisbury, followed by the Christmas event in London, which included a visit to Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery, lunch in an Arabian Souk restaurant, complete with belly dancer, and some stunning views of London by night.

Tony, Pat and Anne at Dungeness. Locomotive Black Prince simmers behind them.

Paula, Sue and Debbie outside Salisbury cathedral.

Anna, Katie and Alan join the other three on the River Thames Jubilee Bridge. What? - No Fiona?

Alan belly dancing at the Souk Medina.

Lavender Fields

Just two miles and over the hill from Coulsdon are the famous Lavender Fields in Banstead, so we went to see this spectacular sight in the middle of Summer.

Visitors, knee high in Lavender.

Our ‘family’

This report would be incomplete without mention of our furry family, so here they are. Dexter, the larger white cat managed to find a baby squirrel laying on the ground in the wooded area opposite the house and rescued it by bringing it home and placing it carefully in the garden, where he kept watch over it until we came to investigate. Alan picked up the little creature, which had its eyes closed and appeared to be dead. However, the squirrel was breathing and unharmed so off we went to the Wildlife Centre near Croydon, where it was taken into its new home, fed and put with a little female squirrel which had suffered to same fate  – falling out of a tree. It seems that squirrel mums can be quite careless. It was explained that baby squirrels don’t open their eyes until about two weeks old. So, three cheers for Dexter, the hero cat of the year!

Senior cat Rascal plans his next meal.

Dexter, left with sister Coco. Spot the difference!

And now for the transport stuff

If you are leaving us at this point, thank you for reading and we wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New year.

With love from Anne and Alan
 

If you are interested in transport, this section is especially for you, but all are welcome to read it and drool over the lovely machines featured.

Alan returns to Germany

The trip to Germany was a great success, apart from the escalator incident in Mannheim station on day one when the fellow in front of me lost his balance and fell backwards onto me. His weight knocked me backwards and over I went too. Luckily the chap behind me managed to stay upright and eased my fall as the escalator continued upwards. With the two ‘dominoes’ with their feet a metre in front of them and pointing upwards, we couldn’t move but, luckily, someone managed to stop the escalator and not too much harm was done – some bruises, pulled muscles, a painful wrist and a bleeding finger. I dread to think how much worse it could have been! Anyway, we continued to our hotel and I was able to enjoy the trip.

The visit was for a steam spectacle based on a town called Neustadt, not far from the Black Forest in south-eastern Germany and not far from France. The event was called a Plandampf and, for six days, steam trains replaced a number of diesel and electric local services radiating from Neustadt, with eight steam locomotives based in Neustadt engine shed. They were larger types: three pacifics, two 2-8-2s and several different types of 2-10-0s, all hauling ‘heritage’ carriages, plus an ancient 0-6-0 tender loco on shed duties. Some engines fell by the wayside during the event but the whole plan of trains did operate. It was exciting to see up to six locos in Neustadt station at one time, outnumbering the modern trains, and there was plenty of smoke and hooting of whistles, with some of the branch line services being topped and tailed by different locomotives.

All the days were great and there was time to fit in a preserved railway with a charter train just for our group where we were able to jump off the train and see some run pasts. We also visited one of the Barry-style scrap yards, which was home to around 50 large locos, many from East Germany and all owned by one man – who has a second large collection at another location. He had restored several for his adjacent museum and we were treated to a guided tour.

On one evening we were able to visit Neustadt engine shed and watch all the locos returning from their day’s work. However, a real highlight of the trip was a longer distance run to Heidelberg and Heilbronn, along the scenic Neckar River with deep, winding valleys, passing pretty villages and towns, with a Deutsche Bundesbahn re-built class 41 2-8-2 working hard on the gradient up front. Coming home we were hauled by a beautiful DB class 01 pacific. This was a journey to remember, indeed, and so were the locomotives - the big 2-8-2 with its wide diameter chimney and loud, black oil fired exhaust and the elegant 4-6-2, which had been superbly preserved. The week was rounded off with a private train for our group being hauled over a scenic route by an ageing and smallish class 58 2-10-0, a Prussian design. After six days of steam, I was griced out!

A Deutsche Bundesbahn Class 41, rebuilt from the Reichsbahn original.

The modified Deutsche Bundesbahn Class 01.

The ageing Prussian locomotive, now known as a Class 58.

Farnborough

Had a treat in July, courtesy of Steve Fosh’s daughter Victoria, who works at Farnborough for an aircraft charter company. She got us into the air show free (now an eye-watering £45 per person) and we had a great time, which included climbing aboard the first A380 built (still in its test configuration), a BA A318 which does the London City to New York run in seven hours with room for just 32 passengers in beds, and a preserved Lockheed Super Constellation – which used to do London to New York in 14 hours! Victoria managed to get us into two brand-new executive jets – something that neither Steve nor I had done before – and an experience definitely not open to the general public. We are thinking of chartering one – they cost a mere 20,000 Euros per hour. A day trip to Nice for lunch sounds appealing, when we win the lottery!

The Falcon executive jet.

The flying display was impressive, with the almost silent take offs of the A380 and the new stretched version of the Dreamliner 787-9 contrasting with the noisy preserved Vulcan bomber and the equally noisy Eurofighter. The new Airbus military A400 did an excellent display and there were many other types that contributed to the ‘100 years of Flight’ theme. The Red Arrows gave their usual superb performance.

The huge A380 Super Jumbo gives a stunning aerobatic display.

The famous preserved Vulcan bomber ready for its noisy display.

The new A400 military cargo aircraft.

Shieldhall

The good ship ‘Shieldhall’ was built in a River Clyde shipyard, near Glasgow in 1955 and spent its life conveying treated sewage sludge from Glasgow for disposal at sea. After 21 years, she was moved to Southampton and continued in her role until 1985. An oil-fired steam ship and now the oldest working steamship in Northern Europe, it has been preserved and now spends its life at Southampton, providing pleasure cruises on Southampton Water, along the coast and around the Isle of Wight. My five-hour cruise took us up past the cruise liner terminals, where three ships were being prepared for evening departures, then turned back towards the Solent as far as Ryde, before returning home.

Now strictly speaking a ‘pleasure cruiser’, the ship is well preserved but, as built for cargo, there is limited protection from the elements in poor weather. I was lucky as it was a very warm day and spent most of the trip on the open decks, inspecting the engine room, enjoying refreshment and having an hour on the bridge in company with the Captain, crew and the Southampton pilot, who was in command of manoeuvres in that stretch of water. Southampton Water was busy that day with a number of large cargo ships arriving and departing and the usual action from Isle of Wight car ferries and passenger catamarans. On top of that, the fine weather had tempted many sailors with yachts and cruisers to take to the water and the Shieldhall was expertly steered around and between them. This proved to be a very interesting day – next time I will be tempted by a three-course lunch in the Saloon!

A painting of the good ship 'Shieldhall'.

Porthmadog

I was invited by the Welsh Highland Heritage Railway, which runs another Welsh Highland preservation centre in Porthmadog, to see the latest addition to their steam engine fleet. The invitation was because I had contributed financially to the restoration of Russell, one of the original WHR locomotives built in 1906 by Hunslet of Leeds, a 2-6-2 tank. Subsequently cut about to fit into the Ffestiniog Railway loading gauge in the ‘nineteen thirties’, it then sported a new low cab roof and cut down chimney, which transformed a good-looking machine into a real horror! Gladly it is now back in its original, handsome state.

So, off to Porthmadog for a weekend and provided with a cab ride on the ‘brand new’ engine. And there was lovely for you – not a spot of dirt on it and a very smooth ride. Sadly, the track is only three quarters of a mile long but it was fun, they have an excellent museum and they are a friendly bunch of people. Hopes are high for a return of Russell to the full length of the main Welsh Highland Railway, once a few technical niggles have been sorted out.

This is 'Russell'.

Whilst there I fitted in a short ride on the Cambrian line up to Pwllheli – only 20 minutes each way but never done by train before, then went down to Harbour station to have a good look at the new track and platform layout on the Ffestiniog/Welsh Highland Railways. The work is impressive. Sunday was a glorious day for a trip on the WHR to Caernarfon, hauled by the green Garrett.

The new platform 'at work'.

Spent an evening in Spooners restaurant with Roy Wood’s wife Jan plus two other guests, one of whom was the resident engineer at the time I was track laying the final mile of the WHR, so it was an interesting and lively evening.

Roy (he sadly died a year ago) is commemorated at Blaenau Ffestiniog station, as he was frequently in charge of the booking office there. A station lacking in seats for waiting passengers, three have been provided made of timbers, separated by slate (for which the town is famous) and mounted on slate bases, with a plaque on one of them. A fine tribute to Roy, who did so much for both railways in Porthmadog.

Roy's three seats.

Roy Woods, former editor of The Snowdon Ranger magazine.

Jan had found a collection of black and white prints amongst Roy’s memorabilia and has presented them to me to provide them with a good home. It records a gricing trip to East Germany in 1977 (I didn’t go on that one) and there are many steam gems therein. Just up my Strasse – to coin a phrase!

The imposing Deutsche Reichsbahn 01.5 pacific - Great shot, Roy!

A handsome British steam locomotive

As this year comes to an end, another ambition was at last achieved. A steam excursion was run in November from London St Pancras station to Lincoln, returning to Kings Cross and, at the head of the train was the preserved London Midland and Scottish Railway Royal Scot class locomotive number 46115 ‘Scots Guardsman’. This was only the second time I had seen one of these engines – the first was in 1965, when one of its stable mates hauled a freight train from the sidings in Carlisle on a drab morning, belching steam and plenty of smoke. A wonderful sight, etched in the memory, as I couldn’t get the camera out of the bag quickly enough.

The Royal Scots were regular performers on the main line from St Pancras for a number of years and it’s said that this is the first steam train on this route since the station was re-built in 2007. And what a treat the trip turned out to be, with plenty of 75 mph running and several water stops, during which it was possible to admire and photograph this handsome machine. There are many things in life worth waiting for, and this was one of them!

46115 draws breath at Lincoln, before being turned  and replenished.

London Transport celebrations

I went to see two of this year’s underground events: The 150^th anniversary of the opening of the Hammersmith and City line and the 125^th anniversary of the opening of the Chesham branch. In both cases, several steam trains we operated, with preserved carriages and steam locomotives at either end of the train.

Metropolitain number 1 stands with its vintage train at Hammersmith.

LT150 and electric locomotive 'Sarah Siddons' head a Chesham special.

A bus rally was staged in Regent Street during the summer to celebrate London and its buses, and exhibits ranged from a horse drawn bus, complete with horse, to the latest ‘Borisbus’ (without Mayor Boris) and electric/eco vehicles.

The RF type for British European Airways services between central London and Heathrow airport.

One of the best known of London bus icons - the RT type.

Extraordinary aircraft flights

2014 marked the end of an era for four outstanding passenger aircraft designs. These were the first generation wide bodied passenger aircraft that came into service around 1971 and were designed for long distance travel.

McDonnell Douglas DC10

First to go was the McDonnell Douglas DC10. Carrying around 345 passengers, this three-engine aircraft came after the original 747 jumbo jet but was not so large. They came to fame in the UK with Laker Airways and were the most numerous of the mid-size types. It was the first time such a design had been seen, distinguished by an engine on each wing, plus a third engine mounted in the tail. Many moons ago I had travelled on DC10s, first to Canada, then later to America.

At the end of 2013 Bangladesh Airlines, the last operator of the passenger DC10, took their four aircraft out of use but decided to celebrate the type by bringing one to Birmingham airport in the UK during February for three days of enthusiast flights, flying three times each day on one-hour scenic flights.

The events were well organised and Birmingham airport is one that is good for viewing. So I arrived there in time to see the midday flight taxiing close by, and then taking off – quite noisy by today’s standards. I then went to the terminal to check in and was able to watch the aircraft return. Rather than come close to the terminal where it would have been hard to see and photograph it, the aircraft was parked away from the terminal and passengers ferried out to it by bus. We were then given half an hour to view and photograph the DC10 before boarding for our three o’clock flight.

On entering the plane, as expected for a machine that had mainly been ferrying Bangladeshi workers across Asia, there was an instantly recognisable pong of curry! Not that we were going to be treated to any food, but the smell seemed to have become part of the aircraft’s fabric. Anyway, after a few deep breaths, I got used to it and made my way down through the cabin in what could be described as a 1970s time warp, as the seats were covered in patterns of large colourful flowers in greens, purples, oranges and reds. The aircraft walls had a similar flower pattern in what must once have been a tasteful beige but, like many of the other plastic fittings in the cabin and toilets, had aged. A step back in time and a joy to see!. Clearly geared up for a race of travellers smaller than us Europeans, the seats, nine abreast, were tightly spaced making it difficult for me to sit in, as my knees were jammed against the seat in front. No such luxury as first class in this aircraft  - cheap seats only. Luckily, this was a one-hour flight; a seven-hour flight to Bangladesh would have been most uncomfortable. The Bangladeshi crew added to the colourful interior with their bright flower pattered saris.

After a short delay, we were pushed back out of the parking space, the tug detached and the engines started, and then we taxied off to the runway. With only 150 passengers on board and no luggage or cargo, the pilot opened the throttles and we all sat back to savour our last ever flight in a DC10 as it rapidly accelerated with engines at full power. It wasn’t long before we lost sight of the ground, into cloud and out of the top of it to be greeted by sunshine and lovely cloud formations below.  Sadly, the scenic flight element of the trip was a great disappointment, as there was low cloud, which obscured the northwest of England and the highlight, the Lake District.

After 30 minutes, we turned left in a wide arc and were soon heading back. Arriving at the same time as some other aircraft, we were directed by Air Traffic Control to pass the airport, turn around over Coventry and come back again so we ended up with a 10 minute flying bonus. A smooth landing rounded off this never to be repeated experience and we headed back and disembarked for a last close-up look at the end of a flying era!

Incidentally, the MD11 passenger jet (a stretched and updated version of the DC10) also made it last flight - in November, operated by the Dutch airline KLM. The three last celebration flights, providing about 1,000 seats, apparently sold out in just six minutes so I was unlucky with that one.

Named 'New Era' but now the end of an era, the DC10 arrives in Birmingham.

Airbus A300

Sunday 13^th April was the end of another aviation era – the last flight of a passenger Airbus A300 in Europe. When the Airbus Company first started making aeroplanes at the end of the sixties, they identified the need for a short to medium distance aircraft of high capacity and built a twin-engine wide body aeroplane, which could carry around 300 passengers; it came into service in 1974. This design became very popular with European airlines, which bought a lot of the type. The Americans were very sniffy about them and refused to purchase for some years but eventually a couple of airlines caved in and soon realised just how good this European-built product was. The success of the A300 eventually led to Airbus (in April 2014) being the largest aircraft producer in the world and the proud builder of the smaller families of A320, A330 and A340 airbuses and the huge, double-deck A380.

Monarch Airlines had the honour of being the last passenger A300 operator in Europe and decided that it was time for their fleet of four aircraft, now getting on in years, to go. The aircraft were the final variant to be built – the slightly longer A300-600, which were constructed from 1984 onwards. With just a few seats empty, more than 300 enthusiasts gathered at Gatwick airport to bid the type farewell with a final one-hour flight to Birmingham. This, hot on the heels of the last passenger DC10 flight in February, was to be a special event and I was there to join in the celebration.

The last regular Monarch fight duly landed from a return trip to southern Germany, to a great cheer from many well-wishers and taxied to the stand in the south terminal. On the beautiful sunny afternoon, passengers for the final flight were allowed to walk on to the tarmac and take photographs before climbing on board via a traditional staircase and settling down in the modern and up to date cabin, uncluttered by divisions, with a clear view of the interior from one end to the other - a very spacious aircraft. The captain made a special announcement of welcome for the last time on the A300; we were pushed back from the stand and the two engines started.

This was indeed to be a special flight as the airport fire brigade put a fire tender on each side of the taxiway and fired a special salute over the aircraft, forming a great water arch for the plane to pass under. Before long we moved onto runway 26, paused and then we were off, westbound – making a spirited take off run without the weight of any luggage in the hold. At about three thousand feet we make a complete right turn to head east and continued climbing, before turning northwards with Heathrow airport below on the left and London on the right.

As the aircraft levelled out at its cruising height, the celebrations began as the stewards and stewardesses dispensed champagne to all the passengers and, shortly afterwards, came around again! Spirits were indeed high as it was a clear day and much of the country could be seen below. Hot on the heels of the drinks came the souvenirs, handed out by another captain (there were several on board for this last trip). First were the emergency instruction cards, then souvenir certificates. There was even time for a competition and the first person who could quote the registration letters of the four A300 aircraft won a trip for two, to anywhere on the Monarch route network.

As it would normally take just 20 minutes to get to Birmingham, we flew past the city and continued northwest to the Peak District and picked up the in-bound route to Manchester. The A300s were frequent visitors to this airport during their career with Monarch so we reduced height and made a farewell flypast along the runway at just 2,000 feet before the engines roared again and up we soared. Not many of us passengers had ever done that before.

And so we turned south for Birmingham, headed past the airport then turned back for a superb landing, about an hour after leaving Gatwick. But it was not all over. The aircraft was parked at a stand away for the terminal and everyone given the opportunity to visit the flight deck and to congratulate the pilots and all the crew who had provided a fitting end for this fine aircraft. The captain and chief stewardess made emotional speeches – these aircraft, which had been a second home to them for many years, were going to be missed. But, what a great send-off! Ample time was provided to view and photograph the aircraft before being bussed back to the terminal.

We’ll still be able to see the A300 in the skies of Europe for a few years yet, but they will be carrying freight and parcels, not passengers.

The last flight is over and the star poses at Birmingham.

So, I hear you ask, what was the fourth type to retire this year? Well, it was the Lockheed TriStar, an aircraft that was a completive design to the DC 10. The last operator was the British Royal Air Force, which celebrated its departure with a four-hour trip around the UK, flying over a number of airfields with which the type had been associated. Sadly, I didn’t get on that either!

Mallard’s record run

As part of the 75^th anniversary celebrations of the World steam speed record by locomotive ‘Mallard’, there was a second display when all six surviving Class A4 engines came together. This was held at the Shildon museum.

The six A4s, line abreast at Shildon.

World record breaker 'Mallard'. 126 miles per hour in July 1938.

The End – At Last!

Happy 2015!