24/09/2009, Sydney
A combination of intense cold front activity associated with a moderately deep low over Victoria brought this monumental duststorm to much of NSW and some of Qld. The photos are not taken through a filter and are not retouched in any way. They were taken at 7.30am when it is normally bright sunshine. See the photo gallery for the pix.
| 14. In Sydney |
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07/09/2009, Sinzig, Germany
We travelled from Glasgow to Bonn via South Africa I think. It took 12 hours door to door. Don't ask. Luggage arrived two days later. Schiesse. We have not been near a single boat although we observed them travelling up and down the Rhine of course. We have been walking in the Ahrtal and sampled the local produce naturally. A bike ride was in order and so we hired bikes seemingly made of Californium 252, one of the heaviest elements in the periodic table. Fortunately they came equipped with granny gears which were needed for every hill. After spending all morning trying to find our way to Altenahr we finally dropped in and then spent the afternoon riding back down valley in pouring rain.
Our tour has also included kitschy Limburg and the Moselle valley. A big family do on Sunday was pleasant. Leaving tomorrow for home.
| 18. Scotland |
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01/09/2009, Glasgow
Slàinte mhath - pron. slan jee var - means cheers in Gaelic
muckle - large or big
flugga - steep sided island
suffix -ey or -ay is an island e.g. Orkney is literally the island of the pigs/salmon/or something else depending on what your translation of ork is.
brough - pron. brock - an old stone fortress
quoy - marsh or wasteland enclosed to become farmland
bairn - an infant in Glasgow
wean - an infant in Edinburgh 40 miles to the east
tarbert - a narrow isthmus of land between two bodies of water
kyle - a narrow body of water between two bits of land
howe - a mound of soil
hoosse - pron. like "mousse" the animal, house in Orcadian
firm - farm in Orcadian
mash tun - large wooden tub to hold early stages of whiskey production
skerry - low rocky outcrop in the water, can be quite small and awash or even a small island
ness - a point or promontory of land
firth - a river estuary
loch - large body of fully or partly enclosed water, either fresh i.e. a lake, or salt like a long bay or sound.
henge - a mound and ditch around a stone fortress
inver - a river mouth
bothy - a very small one room dwelling or even shack, cognate with bivvie?
bothy bar - a type of public bar in a hotel, possibly with booths for 4 people to sit in.
| 18. Scotland |
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31/08/2009, Stromness
The weather finally started to settle. Amazingly not gale force. A drive down to South Ronaldsay over the famous Churchill barriers was the order of the day. The barriers are causeways built during WWII to link several islands around Scapa Flow. These were built after a successful U-boat attack on British naval vessels anchored in the Flow. The first stop was the Italian Chapel. It was built by Italian POW's who were employed on the barriers. The chapel is made from a Nissen hut and a concrete facade. The interior is painted in faux tiles and arches and is quite impressive. Sadly it was finished in 1945 and so not used much. We drove further south to Burswick and witnessed quite impressive tidal flows near the wharf for the ferry from John O'Groats, not far away, but across the rather dangerous Pentland Firth. The firth has recorded tidal flows of 18 knots! Overfalls in the firth were clearly visible and looked very intimidating. After a visit to the mediocre stone age Tomb of the Eagles it was up to the sea stack coastline of Yesnaby and then finally the Maritime Museum of Stromness which was excellent. We strolled down to the marina and found a Challenge 72 yacht moored. We were invited aboard for a cuppa and found the crew most interesting. The yacht "One Hull" from Hull on Humber is doing challenge training for disadvantaged youth who struggle to obtain education and employment. A very worthwhile endeavour with a 60% placement rate following the sail training programme. See the website in our links. Our final rendezvous for the day was to the famous Hamnavoe restaurant in Stromness for excellent salmon. We have now left the Orkneys and are back in Glasgow before heading off to Germany tomorrow.
| 18. Scotland |
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Turn your lap top on its side to view.
| 18. Scotland |
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29/08/2009
Sailing on Loch Fyne
| 18. Scotland |
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