Summary: 96-Days on the road in the Old Dart

Thursday 8th September - 2022

Looking back at the last three months of my life on my traveling extravaganza around England & the Scottish Isles & Glens, l have decided to keep track of this spectacular trip by writing this blog so that l don’t forget my experiences & adventures in the Northern Hemisphere summer of 2022 in England & Scotland.

So much happened during my three months in the 'Old Dart' & if I don’t try to keep some kind of diary & photos, I’m afraid that down the track I will forget many fabulous sightseeing events & experiences that l have enjoyed recently on my trip to England & Scotland.

Let me start off by saying that I sure have enjoyed the many more pluses than minuses in my recent visit to the UK. Road trips aren't measured by mile markers, but by moments. So where do I begin?

(Above) My 12-Day Scottish Isles & Glen Trip was with the C·I·E Tour Company, travelling through the Highlands of Scotland by road in our magnificent new Coach.

By far the outstanding highlight of my trip to England & Scotland during that 96-day period has been without a doubt the weather. Not once in all my time there did l wear my raincoat or raise my brolly in anger because of the weather, absolutely unheard of, I'm sure.

It is so hard for me to rate everything on a scale of say 1-30 or more. It does not necessarily mean that every thing in the list below is from the best to the also rans, however in my opinion it is fairly close to how things panned out.

* Experiencing the Queen’s Platinum 70th Jubilee celebrating on The Mall near Buckingham Palace with another 1.5 million loyalists & punters on Thursday 2nd June was spectacular, especially because this will never happen again in my lifetime.

* My 12-Day Scottish Isles & Glens trip with the C·I·E Tour Company travelling through the Highlands of Scotland by road in our magnificent new Coach.

(Above) Attending Royal Ascot and being in the Queen Anne enclosure and being only metres away from royalty was certainly a trip highlight for me.

* Royal Ascot is definitely right up there on my list (see photo above) on Tuesday 14th June ‘22. I purchased a ticket that allowed my entry into the Queen Anne Enclosure. Dress regulations are very strict as you can see by the way the 'Squire' is all dolled up. (Not too bad for a young man that was educated at the Port Hacking Academy for young gentleman) in Miranda NSW, all those years ago.

Of course the added highlight for the day was when l had my hard-earned at 8-1 on the Aussie horse in the third race (Nature Strip) trained by Chris Waller in the £500,000 pound King’s Stand Stakes. It bolted home by seven lengths & l won a couple of hundred Quid of which l was delighted, which helped & l mean only helped pay for the hire of my Top Hat and Tails for the day.

Another added bonus was that l was within spitting distance of Prince Charles & Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall as they rode around the Queen Anne Enclosure in their horse-drawn Carriage.

(Above) Getting spoilt by the London-based Qantas Cabin Crew on my sector from London to Singapore aboard the Airbus A380. The lovely Greta Russo looked after me fantastically.

* Spending my 75th birthday in a Qantas A380 aircraft at 37,000ft over the sub-continent of India was also very special for me.

* Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo on the Edinburgh Castle Esplanade as a finale to my 12- day Coach tour around Scotland.

* Visiting Nairn, (15 miles or 25 kms) east of Inverness where my ancestors originally came from (my mother’s Dad, my grandfather was born in Nairn). It is an ancient fishing village port. Nairn is actually a boys name, however it means the river with Alder trees.

(Above) Visiting Nairn, east of Inverness where my ancestors originally came from (my mother’s Dad, my grandfather was born in Nairn).

* The Orkney Islands which is the Northern most section of the highlands with its rugged mountains, coastline, & vast areas of open land, visiting the Ring of Bodgar, a Neolithic henge & stone circle, then to see the well preserved 5,000 year-old-village dwellings of Skara Brae.

* Chance meeting with another travelling car enthusiast Aussie on the Battlefields of Culloden in his Vintage 1926 Rolls Royce sedan & Model A Ford box trailer. (Below).

(Above) Bob Roberts and his vintage 1926 Rolls Royce sedan & Model A Ford box trailer.

* Bingeing on 12 West-End Musicals in as many days that included, the new smash hit Tina, Mamma Mia, Back to the Future, Phantom of the Opera, Kinky Boots, Anything Goes, Cabaret, Bob Marley, Mouse Trap & the new ABBA Voyage Show at the specially built ABBA Arena in the East-End of London before departing on my 12-day Scottish adventure.

(Above) I just happened to stumble into the World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow during my walk around the city's center.

* Stumbling upon the World Pipe Band Championships on the day l arrived in Glasgow where there were thousands of competitors from all over the World including Australia to try to bring home the championship trophy.

* Being present in London on their hottest day ever recorded at 40.3°C or 105°F.

The railway tracks were buckling, the runway at Luton Airport was melting, public transport (trains & buses) were cancelled, it was complete chaos for a 24-hour period. However l think a lot of the Pommies used it as an excuse to get out of going to work for the day.

l stirred them all up by telling them that this is a normal winter's day back home in Sydney.

* My private tour of the Ceremony of the Keys at London Tower that was arranged by my friend & English bobby Policeman, John Cannon. He is the guy that l meet in 2018 when l first went to the Isle of Man TT Motorbike races.

(Above) The first get together of our C·I·E Tour group in front of the magnificent Medieval Cathedral in Glasgow the day before we started our 12-day Scottish tour.

* The first get together of our C·I·E Tour Group in front of the magnificent Medieval Cathedral in Glasgow the day before we started our 12-day Scottish tour. In this photo we were missing approximately 10 people, late arrivals, they joined us the following day. In total there were 30 of us in the touring group, 20 Americans, 7 Canadians & 3 Aussies.

Moving right along: I could continue telling you more highlights of my 3-months in the UK, however l would be here all day. These were the major highlights of the trip, there are too many to mention here right now, so what l have decided to do is to break down the sporting, entertainment & cathedrals events & that information is as follows.

(Above) I conducted a night-time musical bombing raid on twelve West-End theatrical productions in as many days, and that included, the new smash hit 'Tina'.

Sporting Events.

* By far the best sporting event l went to was the British Super bike Championships (see photo) at my favourite race circuit in the world at Brands Hatch.

* TT Bike races on the Isle of Man. l didn’t enjoy the racing as much this year as l did in 2018 because the organisers have changed the format & l believe that the programme is not as good as it was in 2018.

* This year's Festival of Speed at Goodwood, definitely not as good as the Goodwood Revival that l have had the absolute pleasure to attend on two previous occasions over the years. This year's Goodwood Revival is on between the
16th-18th September ‘22. 

(Above) St. Magnus Cathedral in the Orkneys dating game back to the early 1100s. It only took 300-years to build. The cathedral is only 885-years old, how does that grab you?

l had to return to Australia for the National Model A Ford Rally to be held in Goulburn between 11th-17th September ‘22. Otherwise, l would still be in England to attend the Goodwood Revival, there is nothing else like this event any where in the world, if you are fortunate enough to be in England during September don’t, what ever you do, miss out on the Goodwood Revival.

* British MotoGP, more comment on that later & it is definitively not pretty. See further down for my comments on this race.

* The British F1 Grand Prix at Silverstone. l am not a fan of the Silverstone Race circuit it is too big, has absolutely no personality what so ever, I had to go to the British F1 Grand Prix this year because l was there at the time, however l will never go back to that circuit, it is also way over the top as far as ticket prices are concerned.

(Above) Me, at the British F1 all dressed up in Daniel Ricciardo team colours that l had just spent £80 pounds ($137.00 Aust) on to purchase & now they aren’t worth Jack Sh*t.

Entertainment:

* Simply Red performed at an outside Concert about 30 minutes from where l was staying at my B&B in ancient Redbourn at a specially built stage in Bedford Park, l thoroughly enjoy Mick Hucknall vocals, especially when he sings “Holding back the Years”.

* When l first arrived in London l made reservations to see Gladys Knight & the Pip’s (Midnight Train to Georgia) & also Franki Valli & the Four Seasons (My eyes Adored You & Can’t take my eyes off of you). They performed at the world famous Royal Albert Hall in Kensington Gore in London & let me tell you those two concerts were sensational.

Cathedrals & Medieval Churches:

* The best? The number one as far as l an concerned and it leaves every thing else for dead is the 19th-Century Mount Stuart Gothic palace on the Isle of Bute. This house as they call it is a magnificent Gothic architectural revival. What impressed me more than anything else was the Marble Hall soaring to a height of eighty feet or (25metres) constructed from rare Italian & Sicilian marble & alabaster.

(Above) Number 1. as far as l an concerned and it leaves every thing else for dead is the 19th-Century Mount Stuart Gothic palace on the Isle of Bute.

The two great tapestries which adorn the walls of the Marble Hall were produced by the Dovecote Studio in Edinburgh started in 1912 and halted during the First world war. The two master weavers, John Glassbrook & Gordon Berry were both killed in the war & when work resumed on the tapestry in 1919 their initials were woven onto the border. The tapestry was completed in 1938. When first displayed one enthusiastic member of the public felt moved to praise it in the letter pages in the Scotsman ‘The Bute tapestry is, in my opinion, the greatest art production that has been achieved in Europe since Michelangelo did the roof of the Sistine Chapel’.

The tapestry is huge, I have a photograph of the actual tapestry in one of my earlier blog from this trip. If you are interested all you need to do is to click here & you will be able to see the tapestry & the magnificent marble stair case, it is worth your time & energy to have a look at this master piece, plus the marble staircase that l took photographs of while l visited this superb building.

(Above) Boarding the retired HM Yacht Britannia for an onboard inspection of the former royal yacht of the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. Britannia was in service from 1954 until 1997.

* Check out St. Magnus Cathedral in the Orkney’s dating game back to the early 1100’s. (see photo) it only took 300 years to build. The cathedral is only 885 years old, how does that grab you…

Disappointments: They were but few, however l must mention them.

* The British MotoGP that was held at the Silverstone Race Circuit on Sunday 7th August was a complete was of time & money. Listen to this; as far as l am concerned it was a total rip off.

(Above) The British Superbike Championships at the Brands Hatch track in Kent, was a highlight for me.

It cost me with a grandstand seat plus entry at Silverstone $326.00 to watch the race. Compare that to the British Superbike Championships that l went to at the intimate Brands Hatch Circuit it cost me with grand stand seat plus entry only $94.00. When l went to school & did my arithmetic at the Port Hacking Academy for young gentleman, that works out to be almost three times the price as the British Super-Bikes, any wonder spectator numbers were down 50% from last years event. One look at the empty Grandstands says it all, you do not have to be a Philadelphia Lawyer to work that out.

* I was so disappointed when we arrived into Edinburgh, this City is one of the most beautiful cities in the whole wide world, bar none.

The Garbo’s had been on strike for about a week before we arrived there, please check out my photograph of the Filth & Squalor (see photo) throughout this magnificent city, it really broke my heart to see this, not only that what about the health hazard.

(Above) A major disappointment was seeing the garbage piled up in the beautiful streets of Edinburgh during the garbage collector's strike.

I realise that this blog is almost as long as War & Peace, however l needed to do this blog for myself so that l have an accurate record of the highs & some lows of my “Adventure before Dementia” recently in the UK.

Hopefully my storytelling keeps you interested enough to keep reading about my adventures. I just had to complete all these details because next week it is onwards & upwards when l attend the 27th Model A Ford National Rally in Goulburn & we will all be moving onto another adventure in our lives.

I'm looking forward to Goulburn, NSW, where the forecast is predicted to be freezing cold all week. Bring your woolies with you. Min. Temp 2°C or 35°F - Max. 12°C or 53°F.

That’s all for now, catch up with many of you Model A Ford enthusiasts in person over the next week or so. I am looking forward to making many more acquaintances during the week.

Stay safe, & happy motoring.

Cheers

Warbo.