13th October picture of the day…

13 Tuesday Oct 2026

Posted by in Calder Valley, Musings, Photography, Picture of the day, Travel

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Tuesday dawned a wet and windy day here in the Calder valley, with heavy skies and high winds that sent clouds of autumn leaves skittering along the road before they got stuck to the wet tarmac. It was a good morning to be working from home as heavy rain showers kept lashing the windows. That said, it’s still incredibly mild, with temperatures in the mid-teens, so I shouldn’t really complain.

Whilst Dawn worked in the office I set up my laptop upstairs in the bedroom so that I could enjoy the view across the Calder valley, well – when the rain cleared! We’re still in the process of redecorating the living room so it’s cosier upstairs and it’s easier for Dawn to pop in for a chat when she needs a break.

Most of my day was spent picture editing. I’d started working on shots from Sweden yesterday afternoon and a concerted few hours work allowed me to get most of them edited and captioned. After that it was time to take a break and shift some paperwork, just for a bit of variety! By early afternoon the weather had broken, bringing mostly blue skies, so I nipped out for my daily constitutional and wander through our local woods ahead of the next shower. Leaves are really starting to fall now, soon there’ll be a thick carpet blanketing the paths, but at the moment the trails are still pretty clear – and not too slippy, or with hidden surprises thanks to lazy dog owners.

Later, Dawn had to nip out to a couple of appointments, so I had the cottage to myself which allowed me to really plow on with the pictures and finish the fourth of the twelve countries I visited. Sweden is now all loaded onto my Zenfolio website. You can find the railway images here and the travel images here. Next in the queue is…Tallinn, in Estonia. So, here’s a teaser from Tallinn…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

12th October picture of the day…

12 Monday Oct 2026

Posted by in Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, Ships, sweden, Travel

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The start of another week here at Bigland Towers, and one that will see me away from the rails until next week as I continue the massive task of editing all my European pictures whilst juggling other work commitments as well as life at home – and planning for the future. Not that I’m complaining. I’m rather enjoying not having to live out of a suitcase and be moving town/city/country every couple of days, although I know that I’ll get itchy feet again soon enough.

Whilst the morning saw the pair of us working from our respective offices (or, in my case, the bedroom) things ground to a halt by lunchtime as we had a visit from our new financial advisor. The family run firm that used to manage our investments have decided to call it a day for health reasons and sold on the business. Fortunately, they were more concerned about finding the right company to sell the business to than they were about making a fast buck. Our new advisor comes from a medium sized company with offices in Wakefield but he actually lives in Halifax. We were both impressed by him as he was real – and honest, without any of the fancy corporate bullshit or self-aggrandizement that can come with that world. We spent the best part of a couple of hours going through investments, the state of the markets, the Trump effect – and plans for the future. We’re confident that the new company will be a good replacement for the old family firm who’d looked after us so well.

With that important hurdle out of the way it was back to work. I spent the rest of the afternoon wading through pictures of Sweden. the picture editing takes time, but what takes even longer is researching the captions as I look up locations. In that respect Google maps is a godsend! It allows me to pinpoint streets and double-check I’ve got things right, as well as provide correct spellings. Keeping copious notes is a thing of the past thanks to Google, although there are times when I wish I’d scribbled a few more when I’m actually travelling. The Swedish pictures should be finished and uploaded onto my Zenfolio website by tomorrow, but here’s a taster for now.

The main concourse of Stockholm Central station is a relaxed place lined with shops and bars.
As I was on the ferry to Tallinn we passed another ro-ro ferry inbound from Helsinki. I was amazed at just how close to some of the small islands these beasts get, almost grazing them on occasion. This is no tiddler! The ‘Viking Glory’ weighs in at 65,211 tonnes!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

11th October picture of the day…

11 Sunday Oct 2026

Posted by in Architecture, Denmark, Photography, Picture of the day, Railways, Travel

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Sunday ended up being a lazy morning for both of us. My body clock is gradually resetting itself now I’m back in the UK, which means I don’t automatically wake up at 06:00 every morning, although that’s probably because I’m now sharing a bed again! Mind you, Dawn can sleep for England when she’s tired, whilst I’m almost always up with the larks.

So, whilst Dee snoozed, I got up, made some coffee and sat in the office for an hour with my laptop in order to get more pictures from my European trip edited, making the most of the morning. Our plan was to get some home DIY done, but that didn’t quite work out as expected because Dawn ended up finishing off some work work. As the weather was good I abandoned the laptop at midday to make brunch, then headed out into the gardens to begin to prepare them for the winter – and to harvest various herbs which we’ll dry to keep us going until next year. All in all it was a very pleasant and relaxed Sunday but one where we were still fruitful.

Late afternoon I had to nip out to pick up some shopping, so popped into our local pub for a pint on the way home. I was good and only had one, but then the pub was quiet and the choice of beers (whilst good) didn’t really fit my tastes, which is very unusual for the 6!

Back home Dawn took on cooking duties whilst I resumed picture editing. This enabled to clear yet another country so now you can find all my images from Copenhagen on my Zenfolio website. The railway ones are here and the travel gallery is here. Neither gallery is new as I’ve been going to Denmark since the mid 1990s, but you’ll find all the recent images will come up first. Here’s a sample from each gallery.

A tourist tour boat sails along the Christianshavns canal with Christianhavn on the right bank.
The lovingly restored old station interior at Østerport. The station’s a major interchange and open 24 hours a day.

The next place that’s in the queue for editing is the first new country for me, Sweden. Expect pictures to start surfacing tomorrow.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

10th October picture(s) of the day…

10 Saturday Oct 2026

Posted by in Belgium, Food and drink, Photojournalism, Picture of the day, Railways, Travel

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I’m playing catch-up with blogging right now as I’m a few days behind due to the weekend and spending time with Dawn away from computer screens. Well, mostly! I did spend a few hours on Saturday morning clearing some of the 1000s of pictures from my European trip which are in the editing queue – as you’ll see later.

But, by afternoon the weather had picked up, so the two of us decided to stretch our legs by walking into Halifax to pick up some shopping and have a wander around. There’s a new(ish) Asian supermarket that’s opened which we both wanted to explore. Umrah is located on Horton St, right in the centre of town. It’s well organised and offers a huge selection of Asian spices, fresh herbs , fruit and veg as well as all the usual dried and tinned ingredients. There’s also a butchers counter and (unusually) a variety of sweet and cake counters which include Iranian sweetmeats, which look delicious. We stocked up on a variety of bits at very reasonable prices. It’s good to know what it offers as the location means I can pick stuff up en-route to home from the station, saving myself a detour into King Cross.

We also nipped into the magnificent Piece Hall but didn’t linger as it was full of families with children taking part in a Scarecrow treasure hunt, which meant the place was overrun. Instead we wandered home via the Big 6 for a quick drink, after which I took over the kitchen. Having been away I’d not done any for ages. Getting back in the swing was a pleasure as I really enjoy cooking. So, whilst Dee put her feet up I rustled up an old favourite – chicken vindail, a South Indian dish with a Portugese influence. It went down a treat with some of the luxury soft chappatis we’d bought from Umrah earlier in the day.

Not a bad way to end a Saturday!

I mentioned that I’d been editing lots more pictures, here’s a link to the latest selection which are of Belgian railways. But that doesn’t just mean trains, it also encompasses some brilliant (and contrasting) station architecture. Like this;

The interior of the roof at Tournai station, which was completed in 1879.

In contrast, here’s modern Liege Guillemins which was rebuilt and opened in 2009.

The next country in the queue is Denmark. Travel and rail pictures from Copenhagen will start appearing tomorrow.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

9th October picture (s) of the day…

09 Friday Oct 2026

Posted by in Food and drink, Musings, Picture of the day, West Yorkshire

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After the 1000s of miles I’ve travelled over the past month and finally getting home after working in Swindon I was looking forward to a restful night at home. Only that didn’t quite work out that way. I woke up in the early hours of the morning feeling very itchy, a quick feel of my legs and backside confirmed my worst fears. I was having an allergic reaction to an insect bite – something I’d not had on that scale for over 20 years. I had to wake Dawn up to check that it wasn’t my imagination. Dee was shocked at what she saw as it’s never happened to me in all the time we’ve been together. On further investigation we found it had also spread to my torso and arms. Bugger! Fortunately, ever since it first happened to me in India in 1991 I’ve always ensured that I have anti-histamine tablets to hand – just in case. These worked a treat and the rash, swelling and itching disappeared within a couple of hours, allowing me to get some sleep.

I have no idea what the damned thing that bit me is, but the reaction isn’t much fun. Thank the Gods for anti-histamine tablets…

Friday began wet and miserable so I was content to have a duvet morning, working from a horizontal position whilst sipping coffee and editing pictures – content in the knowledge there was nowhere I needed to be other than home! There were no hotel deadlines to check out to, no trains to catch and no sights to see. I could kick back and listen to the rain bouncing off the bedroom window.

Admittedly, I did start to get restless by late-afternoon, but by then I was sufficiently rested and recovered to potter around the house and consider nipping out for a pint in my local, where I’ve not set foot for over a month. Besides, it was Friday and there was free pork pie to be had!

The Big 6 in Halifax always has a fantastic selection of real ales – and free pork pie on the bar on a Friday

Now I’m gradually making inroads into the 1000s of pictures from my travels which are in the queue for editing and having captions added. Here’s links to the first two galleries – both from France. First up are the travel pictures, next are the railways gallery. Time permitting, I’m planning to clear the Belgian galleries over the weekend.

The day ended with Dawn making a cracking supper – spicy prawns with her superb home made focaccia bread.

Dawn’s excelled herself with her focaccia making skills. The dough has to prove in a warm space. Dee improvised. Rather than turn the heating on she used a baking tray, cooling rack and a hot water bottle!
One of our favourite dishes. Spicy prawns (with lots of chilies). Just make sure you’ve put a toilet roll in the fridge ready for the next morning!

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

Rolling blog. The OLE challenge (and challenge to get home)…

08 Thursday Oct 2026

Posted by in Photography, Railway Engineering Institute, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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06;00.

My body clocks stubborn setting of 06:00 has stood me in good stead here in Swindon as we prepare to get ready for today’s OLE challenge at the Network Rail training school here. Today’s weather is a great improvement on yesterday’s were everyone got a soaking, so I’m confident of getting some good pictures without drowning the camera. But first, there’s the important matter of breakfast…

08:25.

We’re at the training centre and changing into PPE before the first session

14:45.

It’s been a busy morning with various hands on tasks or other learning.

A general view of the training centre’s outdoor facilities.

17:00.

The course finished just before 16:00 with a presentation of certificates to the participants by Garry Keenor, author of *the* book on OLE. After which it was time for me to pack my PPE and hotfoot it to Swindon in order to start getting back North. A caught a short-formed GWR service to Bristol Parkway (but at least I got a seat).Now I’m crammed into another vestibule of a 5 car Cross-Country Voyager all the way to Leeds. Will I manage to get a seat on the way? Who knows?

At least I can people watch, and what I’ve noticed is that all three young women in the vestibile have cut themselves off aurally through the use of earbuds (in the case of one) or headphones by the others. Rendering on-train announcements about anything trivial or important entirely redundent.

17:20.

Upon leaving Cheltenham we swapped one gaggle of headphone wearing women for an even greater number. It’s almost like Dr Who’s ‘cybermen’ have taken a feminine, human form – only with more fluidity – even if the deadpan expressions are the same. Maybe I’m noticing these things more after my tour of Europe.

Having called at Worcestershire Parkway we have breathing space in the vestibule – even if the saloon is still standing room only! I’ve revised my suspicions about one of the women. She’s sat on the floor doing her makeup. Very un-cybermen like behaviour!

18:30.

I finally managed to get a seat after the Birmingham New St melee, where we simply swapped one load of packed people for another, with the added fun of folks trying to cram on before everyone had got off! The same was true of our Tamwoth call when I thought the train just might start to empty out a bit. Truth is, Cross-Country are an intercity service in name only. For much of the day and on much of their core routes they’re little more than a glorified regional commuter service with small trains.

19:35.

We’re now North of rainy Sheffield. Whilst this Voyager is still packed it’s no longer full and standing. It’s also an ex-Avanti hand me down unit which means it still has a ‘proper’ buffet counter in coach D which I can now access to buy some muscle relaxant!

20:50.

Deep joy (part 4372). I was in Leeds in plenty of time to catch my 20:27 connection. Apart from the fact it was late due to a passenger  being taken ill. Then the time kept slipping. Then we were told it would be terminating short at Bradford Interchange – just as it was too late to leg it over to another platform to get a Leeds – Manchester Victoria train that was going all the way! Grrr…

UPDATE:

I finally got home just before 22:00 after changing trains at Bradford Interchange with Dawn picking me up from Halifax station to drive me home. So, that’s it for now folks. I’m going nowhere (except locally) for a while. I’ve a massive amount of pictures to edit and other work to do. Even so, expect a few more blogs on different subjects and the odd picture from my travels.

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

Home again, off again…

07 Wednesday Oct 2026

Posted by in Photography, Railway Engineering Institute, Railways, Rolling blogs, Travel

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12:00

My time at home was brief. Just one night for now as today I travel to Swindon to join the annual Railway Engineering Institute (formerly the Permanent Way Institute) OLE challenge so my trusty suitcase has swapped its holiday contents for railway standard PPE.

Right now I’m on train number 1. A crowded Northern Class 195 is carrying me to Leeds where I’ll pick up a Cross-Country Voyager for the long journey down to Bristol Parkway. I can’t say that the idea of spending so much time on a cramped Voyager is felling me with glee. It’s rather a comedown from 1st class in a high-speed German ICE!

12:57.

Ho hum. My Cross-country train fron Leeds to Bristol Parkway is running 19 minutes late and it hasn’t even made it to York yet – much less Leeds. So that’s my 8 minute connection at Bristol out of the window then…

13:46.

Deep fcuking joy! We’ve just left Leeds 32 minutes late on an utterly inadequate 5-car Voyager which is completely rammed. There are 12 people stood with me in the vestibule by the disabled toilet in the rear car and every other vestibule is the same. God, how I hate Cross-Country.

But it shouldn’t have been like this. We should have had a modern, high-speed intercity line with plenty of capacity between Leeds, Sheffield and Birmingham in the shape of HS2 – until the Tories cancelled it. Now this is all the North and Midlands have to look forward to and put up with.

16:00.

We’ve finally reached and left Birmingham  New St 42 minutes late.Fortunately, enough people left that I could finally get a seat. To be fair to my fellow vestibule inmates, the atmosphere was rather ‘wartime spirit’ with a lot of laughing and joking, despite the conditions. Apparently, part of the problem had been caused by an earlier fatality at Northallerton, which resulted in several preceding services being cancelled. Events completely out of Cross-Country’s control. But throwing out a 5-car on a long-distance Edinburgh-Plymouth service really isn’t good enough.

22:00.

Time to bring this blog to a close. Having made it to Bristol Parkway I transferred to an on time GWR service which got me to Swindon, albeit an hour later than planned. I was just in time to have a quick drink and chat with colleagues in the REI reception before we swung into the sit-down meal and presentations, which kept me busy taking photographs. Now we’ve wound down for the evening. I’m back in my hotel room editing pictures and prepping all my kit for tomorrow. The day’s been so rushed that I’ve hardly taken any pictures other than official ones. The only shot I managed on the journey was this one back in Leeds when a Colas rail class 70 passed through on a cement train.

maybe I’ll have chance to do better tomorrow when I’m on my way home, although it’ll probably be a late one…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 29. Back in the UK.

06 Tuesday Oct 2026

Posted by in Photography, Railways, The Grand Tour, Travel

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Only slightly later than planned…

That’s because I missed my scheduled ferry from Calais this morning! A combination of factors meant I had difficulty finding the P and O check in desk so by the time I get their it was closed, even though my ferry wasn’t sailing for well over an hour. I now know that their operation when it comes to foot passengers is very much a one man and his dog operation. Or, in this case, one woman! most ferry companies seem to have given up on carrying foot passengers, leaving P and O the only one – and the next ferry wasn’t until 15;00, five hours later.

Still, I had a very nice hall to myself, a couple of staff and a pair of recreated Bleriot aeroplanes.

The newish Calais passenger hall. The ferry counters are tucked away right at the back.  The entrance to the hall is hidden away at the side. There’s no entrance at the front. It’s fair to say this three storey building is underutilised.
A closer look at the planes. The closest one is a replica of the one Bleriot flew across the channel in 1909.

However, there was wifi and plug sockets, so I managed to get some work done and the time passed quickly. When it came time to get on the bus to get onto the ferry (you’re not allowed to walk on and off anymore) there were just four of us. Me, another chap and his two children. So I can kind of see why all the other ferry companies had shut their counters down completely. It seems the days of foot passengers pitching up to catch ferries across the channel to the UK are almost over. We’re a dying breed…

In truth the whole ferry was quiet. it seemed packed on the way in with an endless stream of HGVs leaving its bowels, but when I went for a look around once we’d left port there were few passengers in the duty free of cafe and one of the cafe’s wasn’t even opened. ah well, at least Dawn’s happy with my duty free shopping – a large bottle of Chanel No5!

Now I’m back in the UK, aboard a train that seems really tiny after all the ones I’ve been aboard recently. A SET Javelin is carrying me to London.

It’s now 19:06 and I’m speeding North in another Hitachi product, this time it’s an LNER ‘Azuma’ which will carry me to York. Compared to German ICEs these things feel very rough riding, even at the lower speed of 125mph. I nearly spilled my gin and tonic! On the positive side, LNERs 1st Class offering does include free food and drink at this time of day.

Baked potato and chilli hit the spot.

22:45.

Today was nearly a day for missing things.  My LNER train was late into York, meaning I only made my Northern connection with a minute to spare.

Now I’m back home and relaxing for the evening. But I’ll be back on the rails again tomorrow as I need to be in Swindon for a commission on Thursday. It’s only on Friday that I’ll be train free for a while. I’m looking forward to being camera rucsac free for a while too…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 28. Aachen to Calais.

05 Monday Oct 2026

Posted by in France, Germany, Photography, Railways, The Grand Tour, Travel

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Today I’m homeward bound and heading for the coast to get a ferry back to the UK, but not without exploring some very different styles of architecture. I left Aachen aboard one of DB’s fleet of ICE trains, which are without doubt the best trains I’ve used on this trip. The levels of comfort in 1st Class are hard to beat, plus the fact they can nip along at up to 250kph. In just over 20 minutes I was across the border and at my first stop, Leige’s Guillemins station, which is a stunning piece of modern architecture. I was there in ideal conditions too as it was another beautifully sunny day, which really showed off the station’s roof to best effect.

Having spent a couple of hours admiring and photographing the place I moved on by local Belgian trains which left a bit to be desired – even in 1st Class. Whilst the double deck coach I travelled in had plug sockets, there was no wifi. Plus, there was a problem with the sockets if you’re using UK plugs with an adaptor. You have to use the plug upside down, but there’s so little room between the socket and the seat cushion that they don’t fit – which is why this blog’s a day late!

Still, the train was comfortable and uncrowded and I got to Brussels on time to catch my next connection to Tournai. This was a station I passed through on my first day. I didn’t have time to stop and explore then but I was fascinated by the sheer size of the station building. This time I decided to tarry and I’m glad that I did as it’s a classic – both inside and out.

Moving on again I changed trains ay Lille – where there’s desks with plug sockets on the concourse for anyone to use – before arriving in Calais, another place I didn’t have time to explore on my inward trip. This time I did. What a contrast to Dover, its counterpoint across the channel, which is a bit of a shithole. Calais has life and vibrancy, some attractive restaurants and cafes – and this…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul

The grand tour. Day 27. A slight diversion…

04 Sunday Oct 2026

Posted by in Community rail, Germany, Photography, Railways, The Grand Tour, The Netherlands, Travel

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After making contact with some Dutch commmunity rail colleagues I ended up making a little diversion – and visiting the 12th country of this trip. I realised that Aachen was only a couple of hours by rail from an award winning station which I’ve had the pleasure to judge in the community rail awards but never been able to visit. Stationspark Deurne.

So, this morning I put that right by crossing the border on a two hour long trip via Eindhoven. I’ve not travelled on Dutch mational rail operator NS (Nederlands Spoorwegen) for several years and certainly not in 1st Class. I must admit, it was a little underwhelming and also rather dated. Most of my trips were on their double-deck EMUs, where the upper deck is split 60/40 with standard class. The biggest difference is that in 1st you get 2+1 seating and a bit more legroom. Power sockets are provided but there’s only one between a pair of seats. If you’re in a solo seat you’re stuffed!

First class on a Dutch double-deck EMU is a bit Spartan.

Still, the sun was shining, it was an easy 2 hour journey via Eindhoven and the reception I got at stationspark Deurne from Michel Lintermans and his wife Frieda was worth the trip! As well as a tour of their community station garden and artwork – I also got fed some regional delicacies!

Sitting with Michel outside the community garden
Apple and Plum tart. Extremely tempting as it was – I was good and only had small slice of each. It’s a regional delicacy known as Vlaai.

Whilst this was my 12th country since leaving the UK it was the first where I’ve encounterd ticket barriers like these at Eindhoven Centraal.

Oh, another observation about Dutch railways. Toilets.

I went for a pee on the train but found both toilets were out of use. Annoying, but We were only a few minutes away from Heerlen where I was changing trains. Only both station toilets were knackered too. Bugger! As I wasn’t going to risk being caught short again if the bogs were screwed on the next train I ended up having a pee off the end of one of the platforms. That’s fine for me as a bloke, but what about women?

19:45.

I’m now back in my (new) hotel in Aachen and relaxing in the hotel whilst downloading today’s pictures from the camera. Toilet problems aside, I have to admire Dutch social infrastructure. The amount of car-free space puts the UK to shame, but to be fair that’s true of just about every country that I’ve visited on this trip. travelling around Europe makes you realise just how backward the UK is when it comes to our love of the motor car and motorists attitude to anything that they see as being ‘anti motorist’ rather than what it really is. Pro people.

Tomorrow I make my way back through Belgium and France to Calais, where I’ll be spending the night before catching a ferry the next morning to deposit me in Dover and return to the septic Isle. Part of me is looking forward to it, another part isn’t. But hey – I still have tomorrow…

I’ve a small favour to ask…
If you enjoy reading this or any of the other blogs I’ve written, please click on an advert or two. You don’t have to buy anything you don’t want to of course – although if you did find something that tickled your fancy that would be fab! – but the revenue from them helps me to cover some of the cost of maintaining this site (which isn’t cheap and comes out of my own pocket). Remember, 99% of the pictures used in my blogs can be purchased as prints from my other website –  https://paulbigland.zenfolio.com/

Cheers,

Paul