Homeward bound

Noel Coward wrote, "Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun" and yesterday was a prime example;  Britain came out to celebrate the hottest day of the year.  One woman chose to sunbathe between a row of gridlocked cars on the M3, while 50,000 day-trippers went to Bournemouth beach (perhaps that was where the gridlock was)  and when they arrived, stood for 20 minutes in the queue to buy an ice cream.  The mercury soared to 33 degrees as railway lines threatened to buckle,  and passengers on the Tube in London complained that the temperature recorded 45C in some of the carriages - 18C hotter than the EU  allows for transporting cattle!

According to the Met Office, however, this is no heatwave. That would need the daily maximum temp. to exceed the average by 5C for five consecutive days.  It did issue a warning yesterday - for rain!  It's good to be back in England, even if just passing through.

Another funny story I read this morning was about the theft of some solar panels from a field on the first day they were going to earn their keep!

We flew from Dublin to Heathrow this  morning, where a very helpful fellow directed us to the train, which took us  from terminal 2 to terminal 4, which is international departures - for free!

Our first experience with The Tube

and inside the Train

Heathrow Airport is a huge airport so walking from one terminal to another isn't a preferred mode of transport.

The airport was very warm - they just don't seem to know how to cope with warm weather. Or else the air con was broken.

It has been great to see the sun in Ireland and the locals have loved it.  Saw some very pink people walking around.  But from what I am hearing, it sounds like Victoria could do with some sunny weather - we'll try to bring some home with us...

We're in the airport at the moment - 7 hours to Dubai.  And hopefully then, some sleep...

Now we are in Brunei

As you can see, not too crowded!

The locals call Brunei 'Venice of the East'.   Perhaps that's punching above their weight...

We arrived back in Melbourne just before 5am and to our delight, after clearing security without the channel 7 cameras finding us, were  surprised by Helen's 'welcome  home'  pat on our shoulders. What an incredible friend!  Then Mark and Lyn Curtis joined us - a bit later.

Arrived back in Wangaratta before lunch to a very wet garden.

We are so thankful for the Lord's provision and protection.  He has been with us the whole journey, keeping us safely in His Hands.  In a troubled world, we travelled safely and  on our walk, we remained healthy and fit (and didn't get lost too much).  We have learnt much more about perseverance - not just the physically aspect of it, but the life of Christ's endurance.  And what a precious quality of life it is.  Praise the Lord!

Armagh

What a wonderful joy, to see our dear friends John and Barbara Hall and Marion Starratt again after only seeing them in Australia last year.   We shared a great meal together, took a tour around the veggie patch, (Jona, you've got some competition - John and Barbara's is fabulous).....

took a short stroll along another country lane to Jonathan and Wendy's house for a quick visit.  Had enough time to enjoy the magnificent view out the back of their property

before leaving for Marion's house in town.

Had a cruise around this lovely, spaciously laid-out town in the morning, before meeting Marion for lunch.  There is a very picturesque cricket ground here.  

The  cricket ground is the green patch in  front of the  church.

Bet you didn't know that the Irish played cricket, been at it for over 150 years.  Made use of the wifi at the library before heading back to Marion's.  John shared dinner with us before Heather (another sister) came to say 'hello'.

We said goodbye to Marion in the morning

and headed back to Cavan for our last night in Ireland.

We called into Monaghan.  The locals say it's a great place to shop, it's certainly another well laid out town, not the long, long street like some.

The beautiful floral displays continue

I loved the way the street curves, it draws you to see what's round the bend, and the different colours in the buildings make the town so lovely.  We enjoyed our visit to Monaghan even if we didn't take advantage of the great shopping opportunity. 

We walked around the lake in the centre of town before we left,  which  was a restful spot, with lots of duck waiting for a fed. 

Back in an  Caibhain  (Allan enjoyed calling Cavan by the Gaelic name),  it  was wonderful to see all Howard and Catherine's family one last time,  before we leave Ireland.  We have had some wonderful times together, we've laughed a lot!

Allan got to see the silage brought into the storage pit.  John bringing in a load 

This tractor drives back and forth to flatten the silage and press the air out of it.

The silage is 10 feet deep  and will be covered with black plastic and old tyres,  to preserve it for later use.  

Allan was disappointed to wake this morning and discover it  was raining before  the silage was able to be  covered.  Farmer Allan is finding it hard to leave but don't fear - the call of the grandchildren is heard in our land so Grandad will be home soon!  And he's bringing Granny with him....

And to finish off - a couple more quotes from Howard

"Leitrim people would steal the harness off a nightmare" .
"The scud at the butt of the lug".  Good luck figuring that one out...

We'll see you all in a wee while....😴😴

Belfast

Sunday again!  Last one before we land back on Australian soil.....

Joan and Chares decided that we would take a leisurely Sunday stroll down a country lane, before lunch.

They took us for a walk on Friday evening, after dinner and we got drenched!!  Wetter than any time on our Coast to Coast walk!   Good old Ireland, impeccable weather.  But how could we stay unforgiving and hesitant with such pleasant company..... Charles is a great conversationalist - he slots in jokes in such a manner that you think he's serious.

Anyway, we were walking along this lovely, quiet lane.  Surrounded by properties with horses in each field.  Perfect I hear you saying.

Well, what we didn't factor in was the silage.  The farmers have been waiting for a few weeks for the weather to dry out so they could cut their silage and get it into storage.  We have had 3 days of magnificent summer, sunny days.  Perfect for drying out the silage and as they say - make hay while the sun shines.

So along came the BIG tractors with their even bigger trailers, full of silage.  And these tractors don't drive slowly along the country lanes!!    

Joan managed to stay on her feet while the tractor flew by..

 

Just squeezed past Charles' car... 

One of the lovely, grand homes along the lane.

The hedges along this lane where filled with honeysuckle, roses and bramble bushes.

Lunch followed then some sad farewells.  Now we  are off to Armagh. 

Newcastle and the Silent Valley

Today we are off to Newcastle, a beachside town, where the Mountains of Mourne flow down

to the Irish Sea.  These mountains are very majestic and provide an imposing backdrop for the town.  Once again, crowds of people everywhere enjoying a most beautiful sunny summer's day.  

We had a great hankering to walk up on top but Charles has had trouble with pain in his back and leg so we didn't suggest it.  Charles drove us to Annalong where we saw an old Cornmill with a huge  water wheel.                            

and a little inlet which flowed under the bridge a quiet  spot  to enjoy the ducks,   

They spent more time with their heads under the water than above it.

the harbour, 

the stream and  the cornmill  with the water splashing over the waterwheel.

Lunch at Top Nosh was another true Irish experience  before we drove on to the Silent Valley Mountain Park.  Ben Crom Reservoir, Belfast's water supply, is  a  lovely spot for a walk or a picnic.  The dam is surrounded by mountains, including Slieve Donard with  beautifully kept sweeping lawns 

for children to roll down 

 Walking towards the reservoir

                                                             with the mountains in the background.

Once again, a lovely display of wild flowers along the pathways

The wall of the reservoir

Imposing mountains create a magnificent backdrop and a ready supply of water from the runoff  

every time it rains - often! 

Dreaming of home...

The photo doesn't translate the size of these mountains very well...

And magnificent vistas looking towards the Sea.  This really is such a pretty area...  

Came back to Newcastle for a quick walk around before  dining in one of the local restaurants, with a stunning view out to Slieve Donard.

Newcastle  

We really enjoyed our day with Charles and Joan and the magnificent scenery of the Mountains of Mourne.  The sides of the hills are covered with stones which provide the natural resource for the stone walls which separate each field and property.
Such a lovely vista, looking towards the Sea.

 

A Drive to Belfast

Left Bruckless this morning, heading for Belfast.  Before we left Bruckless House,  we shared breakfast with an American couple from Long Island, New York.  Joan (another Joan - I think we could start a club) has lots of relatives in Ardara.  Her husband was telling us about his sheep-shearing skills.  It reminded us of the confidence of the American people...

We headed east from Donegal to Pettigoe - Banjo Patterson's grandfather came from Pettigoe (according to our tour guide in the boat).  This was an adventurous journey across the top of the mountains, once again moor-like terrain although there were pine plantations growing beside the lakes that dotted the way.  The road just follows the contour of the land, with fresh bog diggings  ready to be bagged, for sale.  The mist was hanging low and we thought that you would go weary of this 'summer' weather.

Pettigoe is where we crossed the border into Northern Ireland - no boom gates and police checks, just keep driving. Now driving through forest, sometimes through dark tunnels, created by trees overhanging the road.

The Irish are an optimistic people.  Just saw a house with its roof covered with solar panels! We   passed through Lack, and asked for God's help....

We are in British territory - flags are now red, white and blue..  No more green and white.  

This is Mum's territory too. She often talked about Fivemiletown, Ballinamallard and Clougher.

And these country roads continue to follow the contours of the land, we can feel every bump, twist   and turn.  Allan's rally driving skills are coming into their own, bringing us  into Augher.

The M1 brought us to Moygashel, on the outskirts of Dungannon - Joan's birthplace.

Went to the shop Mum and Dad used to own and found that the family who bought it from them are still running the business.

Philip Busby and Joan in front of the shop. Philip is the son of the couple who bought the shop, who now runs the business with his wife.

The shop doesn't ever seem to change on the outside

The inside has changed  totally.  Right down the back is where we used to live and where I was born.   The Busbys  now live in a separate house behind the shop.

While talking to Philip, we discovered that  many of the locals who knew our family are still living in the same houses.  Change happens slowly in Ireland..

Coming into Moygashel was a bit of a shock, there were flags flying everywhere, not just the bunting across the roads that usually flaps in the breeze but big, confronting images of mask covered faces, British flags and army insignias and lots of them.

This arch  was standing over the road as we entered Moygashel.  It will remain until the end of the month.  It is supposed to be a celebration of the battle of the Somme.   We saw many of these banners in different towns, particularly Protestant strongholds.

As we were taking a photo of the shop, a man stopped and asked Allan, "Are you taking a photo of the poster because we don't want that in the newspaper".  Allan explained to him that this was my birthplace and his demeanour changed totally.  He was most disappointed for us that we had missed the 11th July bonfires  and the 12th July marches.    He showed us a photo of one of the stacks before it was burned.  It was BIG!  We heard the news that another bonfire in Belfast caused three houses to be destroyed by fire,  sparks  from it blew across to the houses and  began the fire. This is big in Northern Ireland and sometimes can be the cause of trouble.   Apparently this year was a good year...

This explained why there were such crowds at Glenveagh on 12 July - lots of Northerners like to get out for the day.

Our drive through/around Belfast was easy and we arrived in Newtownabbey.  My cousin Joan, yes another one, and Charles live here and we are visiting for a couple of days.

Bruckless House

Bruckless House is an 18th century house set in 18 acres of parkland and gardens.  The gardens are part of the Heritage Garden Walks.

Front of the house.  

Side of the house

The garden wanders down to Bruckless Bay, where a pair of swans seem to live and feed permanently.

The same tree Frank has growing in Greystones, often called 'the wedding tree'.

A beautiful rose growing on an arbour 

A friendly  brood  of chickens

A sweeping vista in front of the house

 The trendy green bath I mentioned in a previous post 

The view from the dining room window 

We enjoyed our 5 night stay at Bruckless House, with Jane and Joan and their four corgis.  The house is an amazing old building, a great way to experience life in a past era,  where we met other guests from France, America and Ireland.   We now say farewell to the South, even though it is in the North West of Ireland!