Week in Norfolk

The problem, if it is a problem, is that I no longer take my work laptop home on a regular basis anymore. Not since buying my own laptop. Good job as my new work laptop weighs a ton. Therefore I don’t have a laptop to use on the train. Which is when I did most, if not all of my blogging. Ah, you think, that’s why the blogs have been so thin on the ground of late. Well, yes. There is no entry in my daily timetable anymore marked, ‘write blog’ Too busy living my life to write about it. So is it a problem? Well living my life isn’t a problem, However, you dear reader likes to be kept informed of my goings on, plus its nice for me too look back on past events. Reminisce about them, also to see what was important to me then, which may not be so important now, or how some things have grown in importance over time. Anyway. I took the work laptop home over my holiday, hence me having the laptop on the train on this bright sunny Monday morning. So I’m able to blog today. Quite when I’ll blog next, I have no idea.

So last week Sue and I headed off to Norfolk to see my sisters new place. What a change it is from her last place. At least twice the size. Lovely inside and out. The back garden is wonderful. Small patio and seating area. Enclosed, and a nice sun trap. To one side are steps, which lead up and up, through the trees, to an top area, with trampoline (no I didn’t have a go) a huge stone water feature and more seating area, with one corner covered. With tree all around it’s a totally secluded spot. Lovely to sit up there in the summer.

Now that word, ‘summer’ became a bit of a theme during the week. Sue wanted to see Norfolk in the summer. She’d only see it at Christmas or beer festival week (end of October). Hence this visit, which coincides nicely with sisters new house. We were sat in a café in a book shop in Diss. Looking out over the lake and spotting the ducks, gulls and even a great crested grebe. All getting wet as it was lashing it down at the time. This place would look lovely in the summer, commented Sue. It is summer, I replied. And so it went on.

Having said that, it was a really nice week overall. Managed to get in a couple more National Trust properties. Stayed in a new, for us, Travelodge, Ely. Bought some nice plants for the garden, from some house just south of Mildenhall. Spent too much on food, but made up for that by not spending on anything else much.

Back on Friday, so I could got to the Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford, which was cancelled due to rain. So a piecefull weekend is in store. Busy week again. Work today. Farnborough Airshow tomorrow with my good mates Paul and Mark. The going to Reading each day for the rest of the week to do a course on Microsoft SharePoint.

Oh well, next station is mine, so I’d better sign off now

Grand Day Out

With my annual train season ticket I get some free travel tickets and I decided to use one of them today to go and do some spotting in London. So by 8.30 I was a Clapham Junction. Meet up with a guy from South Wales that I'd met before at Eastleigh just a couple of weeks ago. Had a good chat with him before moving on. There was a lot I wanted to do today. Trafalgar Square for a short while to get any buses passing and to see the heritage services that still operate Routemasters. Then off to Marylebone for the train to Ruislip. Caught the bendy bus up there, Slow ride but nice to sit and watch the world go by. Marylebone is the one London terminus station that I rarely visit. So got a load of new numbers and my first ride on a Chiltern Train. Quite nice. Quite comfortable but could do with on train announcements to say what the next stop was. Passed the new Wembly Stadium. Looks good.

Quick visit to Northolt to see the biz jets (of which there was 5). Then tube done to Greenford to do the First Great Western branch line into Paddington. Shocked at Greenford that there were still semaphore signals. Passing Acton Main Line station I noticed that there were some other spotters there. So I got off the train and so glad I did. Behind the station is the freight lines and it was quite busy with locos and wagon plus all the stuff coming out of Paddington. So glad I discovered this little gem. I can see me visiting here in the future. There aren't many trains that stop here and seeing that Action is served by no less than 7 stations this one is reasonable quite. With long platforms us spotters can stand down the end of the platform and not get disturbed by non-spotters.

Wanted to do the Gospel Oak to Barking branch and see the DMU’s which never go anywhere else but no time. Off to London City Airport for the tea time rush. Went via North London Line. Sue bought me a DVD of the drivers eye view of this line for my last birthday so I was good to travel on it. Quick change at Straford. Thought I’d take a few piccies of the buses whilst I was here. Got kicked out of the bus station as a guy there claimed that I needed a permit to take pictures there. Oh well it was only going to be a two min stop anyway.

London City Airport is great. Only visited here once before just after it opened and its improved a lot. Just past the terminal building is a little open area with a few seats where you can sit and look across the water and see everything landing/ and taking off. The other side is a huge Travelodge. Must stay at that one some time. Quite busy at the airport, so much so that I lost track of time a bit and it was soon time to head for home.

Took Docklands Light Railway to Bank station. As these trains are driverless there are seats right at the front of the trains and I grabbed one of these and dreamed of being a train driver. Very bumpy ride on the DLR. You do get thrown about quite a bit at some points on the route. Quick ride on the Waterloo and City Line (my first time on this line for years) and back at Waterloo and home. Great day out.

Good Things Today

1. Free train trip to London
2. Action Main Line Station.
3. London City Airport
4. Pretending to be a train driver on the DLR

New Travelodge

Following last night at brothers, stayed the night at the Travelodge in Guildford. A new one for us. One of the biggest we’ve stayed in. Nice room over looking the railway line. I know that there is a site which lists good hotels to plane spot from, perhaps I should do one for train spotting.