All in all it’s not been a bad day – if one ignores the world falling apart around one that is! But from a personal perspective it’s been rather productive. Having been cooped-up for the past couple of weeks I was happy to escape the confines of the house for long enough to meet my exercise targets for the first time since we had to self-isolate. The weather may not have been great as we’ve had gloomy, gloomy skies and threats of rain all day, but even a stroll down into Sowerby Bridge was enjoyable – even if there was nothing to do there other than pick up some shopping! Simple pleasures…

Admittedly, the walk back along the canal was lovely. There’s something special about being able to walk alongside water and the stillness of the canal where the only interruptions are Ducks is very therapeutic. The exercise was a lovely break from staring at screens – although I’m back to that now as I trawl through emails whilst scanning old slides. Mind you, some emails are welcome, such as the one I received earlier telling me that a commission regarding some new train conversions is back on. I’ll be blogging about that another time but it’s a welcome return to a semblance of normalcy. As well as dealing with the present I’ve still been scanning old slides from the past – which has provided me with the picture of the day – which is very much a moment in time.

I took this on the 10th June 1998 in the Perhentian Islands, Malaysia. This is people of all nationalities (including a solitary Scot!) gathered around a TV in a restaurant to watch the opening match of the 1998 World Cup which was between Scotland and Brazil. Neither Lynn nor I were great football fans, but what struck me about this night was how international it was. There were people from dozens of countries who’d pitched up in the Perhentians who just wanted to watch the footy! There’s another twist too. These two islands are mostly ‘dry’. Alcohol’s hard to come by (or expensive when you can get it) so it was probably one of the most sober group of football supporters I’ve ever seen – hence the absence of beer bottles on the tables. Even so, looking back at this picture I remember it as a cracking night in a place I’ll always remember.

I’m gradually scanning the rest of the pictures from this trip, so expect more from some off-the beat locations to feature over the next week or two…

I’ve a favour to ask…
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