U.K. Trip - Part 4

All too soon, my trip was at its end - it was time to return to Elk's Street.

Andrew gave me a lift into town and I got the train to the airport. The train was quite crowded with early-morning commuters heading to Manchester, so I sat down in one of the few available seats, next to a young man with short hair, broken teeth and a slight aroma of alcohol. We exchanged a few words, and he was quite chatty, telling me about his daughters and work etc - the usual small talk. As the train approached Manchester, he gestured towards the window and said; "There's my old home, Forest Bank." I thought nothing of this, imagining that it must be the name of the village we were passing. He then continued; "But I spent the last six months in Strangeways." This meant rather more to me. "Best prison I've ever been in," he continued. He got off the train at Picadilly and I wished him well. I hope this nameless ex-con with the colourful language gets himself sorted out but somehow I'm a little pessimistic; alcohol on one's breath at eight in the morning is not a good sign.

Manchester Airport was the usual airport scene; queues, more queues, removal of shoes, jackets, and belts for so-called security, wandering around duty-free shops selling stuff no-one really needs, and hanging around drinking exhorbitantly-priced coffee. The flight was announced and we all boarded. So far, so good, but then..."Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We are having some problems with a computer, which unfortunately is one that is needed for flying the plane..." Suffice to say, we did not leave on time.

Aircraft with dodgy computer.

Finnair is famous for taking safety seriously, so we didn't leave untill the equipment was working and everything was in order.

Having safely landed in Helsinki, a few hours' train journey took me back to Elk's Street and my Finland home.

UK Trip - Part 2

My visit being in early spring, the garden was not looking its best, but signs of the gardeners' work could still be seen, as the photos below show.

The early spring garden.

Orchids in the living room...

... and Bird of Paradise flower in the conservatory.

Catherine and Andrew, making good use of their 'flexitime', took a day off work and we had a little outing to Blackpool. Blackpool, as a typical seaside resort, is very quiet outside the season but the weather was kind to us and we had an enjoyable walk along the newly-renovated South Shore Promenade.

Part of the South Shore with some modern art in the foreground and the Big One rollercoaster in the background.

The photo doesn't do justice to the rollercoaster as it is not clear just how huge it is. Certainly nothing for me!

Hire bicycles in the foreground and the famous Blackpool Tower in the background.

The gang on the promenade (before getting the obligatory Blackpool Rock).

Everyone, with the possible exception of Paul, who voiced some discontent, enjoyed the trip and the bracing sea air.


In the evening, I was invited round to Catherine and Andrew's for a meal, followed by a trip to the local. We went to the Farmer's Arms and I was able to see at first hand the slow death of the British public house; the place was empty. There are many reasons for the demise of traditional rural pubs: the ban on smoking, very cheap beer from supermarkets, the growth of gigantic regimented pub chains, the stratification of British society so people only spend time with others of the same class, but whatever the reason, it's a bit of a shame. Mind you, the levels of drunkenness in UK cities are appalling, so a more censorious attitude to alcohol is certainly not the cause.

Catherine hard at work beading.

Jonathan sitting on the sofa with Paddington and an economics textbook.

UK Trip - Part 1

As Elk's Street followers will know, Dad has been 'in the wars' a little lately, so I decided to make a brief trip to the UK to see him.

In Kouvola, my path crossed with the new Helsinki-St. Petersburg 'Allegro' train.

I set off from Elk's Street in the early afternoon and spent the night at a cheap(-ish) hotel near the airport, Hotel Pilotti. This was the same place Henry and I stayed in on our trip to Malaysia in summer 2007. It was a horrendously early start the next morning, not because the plane was leaving particularly early but rather because of having to allow for all the security checks.

The flight arrived on schedule and I got to Mum and Dad's in time for lunch. After lunch, it was off to the game - Everton vs. Sunderland!

Part of the main stand of Goodison Park .

The Blues on the attack.

The final score.

As can be seen from the final score above, a good time was had by all!


In Preston, some things had changed, and others hadn't.

Dad in his chair - the unhealthy peanuts replaced by the more healthy 'Fruit Pastilles'.

Mum - still knitting.

The following day, after a two day drive across Europe, Esther and family arrived from Switzerland.

John and Mark.

James.

Esther and Paul.

Hannah.

John had to go back to work so, having delivered everybody, he flew back to Switzerland, leaving his family and the Mercedes van in Preston.