Monday 25th April

Another fine day!
Most of the Machrins go to Village Hall to clean up after the ceilidh but I play 17 holes of golf with Tony and Dave. Shoot about 90 ( par 70 ) so quite happy as I have Ian's father's blade clubs. Course in somewhat better condition than in 2009 with fewer thistles but I don't expect to see it as a venue for the British Open in the foreseeable future.
At 4.00 drive down with other wedding guests to the Strand, a stretch of land between Colonsay and Oronsay, which may only be crossed at low tide.
Glorious walk makes for a lovely walk to the Oronsay Priory where we enjoy sacrilegious sandwiches and bubbly while sitting under ancient cross.
Back to Machrins and then off to Machrins Beach where the youngsters had set up a beach BBQ. Special experience with all the Chinese lanterns dotted about the dunes although at first sight we appeared to have walked in a Ku Klux Klan meeting!
Evening ends in tragi-comedy as Doug totally legless ( he had been drinking scotch through the afternoon )
by the end of the evening. We were then treated to the spectacle of Doug, assisted by an almost incapable Ian and a very sensible Rob ( Sam Wood's partner ) making a very precarious way back to the vehicle, which Doug's wife Jan was to drive home. At one stage D an Ian tried to take a short cut up a bank which was more akin to the north face of the Eiger with both falling face first into the sand. Ian's reassurance to me that " I'm not as bad as you think I am " only added to the hilarity of the occasion.
Finally back at Machrins Andrew, Ian ( now semi-sober ) Jan and I manage to  manhandle the dead weight of Doug up the stairs and ono the bed.
Doug subsequently falls out of bed but he apparently has a very good night's sleep. His powers of recovery are of Olympic proportions.
In bed by 2.00 am

Friday 22 April

Another clear if chilly day.
All the group meet for breakfast at 9.00 and Graham offers to store our unneeded items while we are on the island- offer gratefully accepted.
Head off into the lovely town of Oban where we again meet up with some of the youngsters attending the wedding.
Renew our acquaintance with old friends, Doug and Jan Forson from Edinburgh and meet for the first time Andrew and Jan McMorrine who hail from Skye and will be sharing the house on Colonsay.
Big buy- up of food and drink,especially the latter then off to the jetty for the 2 hour trip to Colonsay.
Sea like a millpond and we have the added bonus of seeing The Waverley, the last remaining paddle steamer in operation in this area.
Doug has made arrangements for the soon-to-be bride and groom to visit the bridge, a real highlight for them.
Arrive in Colonsay to be met by a large crowd and a young piper, Lewis who pipes the couple on shore. More of the remarkable Lewis later.
Ian and Trina take us off to Machrins, our home for the next week, where we meet up with the other guests.
Our house mates for the week are:
Ian and Trina
Doug and Jan
Andrew and Jan
Donald and Helen Warden ( Oxford)
Jimmy and Janet Primrose ( The isle of Arran )
Jimmy and Donald are old schoolmates of Ian so it should be a rather raucous week!
Much booze drunk sitting around the kitchen table,including yours truly but when Ian arrives back at the house I decide to retire, but not before Jan McMorrine appears, Lady Macbeth-like to scold us for making such a racket at that ungodly hour.
This reprimand is all to no avail and Andrew, Ian, the Forsons and Donald continue their rebellious ways until 1.00 am ( one of our earlier nights as it later turns out!)

Saturday 23rd April 


WEDDING DAY!

Cold windy day to start with but thankfully dry.
Up by 6.30 for early shower and then off to Machrins Bay near to the golf course.
After lunch get  into our wedding attire and drive out to the beautiful Killoran Bay, the site of the wedding ceremony and Gail prepares herself for her role as chief photographer ( ably assisted by many others)
All going to plan when Ian drops off the first of the bridesmaids in the bridal car, a suitably bedecked Land Rover Discovery. Drama ensues when the mobiliser on the Discovery malfunctions and Ian is forced to evacuate the vehicle, rear end first with his kilt on. Sadly, there was no camera on hand to record this momentous event but it should provide fodder for any number of apochryphal stories in the future.
Wonderful, joyous ceremony overlooking the beach,after which we all adjourn to the Colonsay Hotel for a superb buffet-style meal.
Weather now perfect so many guests take the opportunity to eat out on the hotel lawns.
Short stop back at Machrins and then to the Village Hall for a Ceilidh.
Good speeches all round although noise from the adjacent kitchen made parts of them inaudible to some older guests (such as DFI ). MC for the evening, Andrew McMorrine was at his polished, amusing, best
although his calling on the father of the bride 3 times ( after Ian had already spoken ) somewhat blotted his copy book. ( he had meant to say father of the groom but got his sexes mixed up )
Fantastic band and much participation in the very energetic Scottish dancing.
I win a bottle of quality malt whisky by getting my gold coin closest to the bottle and as I don't drink scotch the signs of affection from my fellow house guests increase markedly, especially from Donald Warden. They noticeably waned as the bottle started to empty during the course of the week!
Home at a relatively respectable hour after a memorable day.

Sunday 24th April


Another fine day so a group of us set off to the beautiful Ardskenish Bay. Gail stays back to help Trina with food preparation.
Back by 2.00 just in time to join all of the other guests for a BBQ in the garden at Machrins. Gavin from the local Pantry cafe had arranged for a marquee, which came in very handy as the day turned decidedly chilly later in the day.
We all retire to the lounge for a very cosy evening get-together in front of an open fire.
Much reminiscing, mouth-organ music from Andrew Mac and LOTS of alcohol made for a memorable evening, interrupted only by Ian and Trina's nephew, Alex bringing in a worse-for-wear American fiancee, Mallory who had come down with some sort of rash and was feeling very fragile. She recovers quite quickly and we all conclude that the fragility was most likely the result of jetlag combined with the demon alcohol.
Not in bed before 1.00 and learn later that Doug and Andrew Mac had stayed up till after 3.00!

Thursday 21st April

Excellent breakfast then off to Glasgow. Still the drab old city that I recall from the 1970’s.

Train to Oban through some truly magnificent scenery, especially along Loch Lomond and Loch Awe. Train divides at Crianlarich so fortunately we have selected the front carriages which go to Oban rather the rear end which goes up to Fort William.

Arrive at Oban to be greeted by Ian Wood, a friend from the 70’s, his daughter Karenna and her fiance Lee.

Ian gradually recovering from problems associated with a hip replacement but otherwise well and prepared for the wedding of Karenna and Lee on Colonsay.

Glenburnie Hotel a fine family hotel overlooking the bay.

Dinner at La Piazza ( an Italian restaurant for you linguists out there!) and meet up with a number of the other guests attending the wedding.

In bed by 11.00 ( definitely not a sign of things to come on Colonsay )

Wednesday 20th April

Sunshine again!

G into Stafford for a manicure so we say our goodbyes to Tone and Marg after a great week together.

Set off north up the M6 late morning and plan to take a detour to Kendal in the Lake District ( we had spent our wedding night there in 1973 so wanted to re-visit the scene of the crime.). Too much traffic so we stop to eat our snackfood at a parking spot with a great view of the surrounding hills.

Arrive in Moffat at about 3.00 and are pleasantly surprised to find that the Balmoral Hotel has upgraded us to an apartment in the Stables. Moffat is a delightful town so take a quick stroll along the river, view the narrowest hotel in the world ( The Star )

Dinner at the Buccleuch Arms where we eat far too much of the local fare before retiring for an early night.

Tuesday 19th April

Another gloriously sunny day so we set off with Tone and Marg to visit the Dorothy Clive Gardens in Woore in Cheshire. The gardens, which were developed by her husband to make her life as an MS sufferer more comfortable are superb, especially on such a day.

Return to one of our favourite pubs, the Hollybush at Salt, where Tony shouts us a typical pub lunch- a reminder that no matter how hard they might try no country can emulate the British pub.

Afternoon spent back in the garden at Tone and Marg’s before yet another evening recalling mainly our footballing days.

We all then pack our bags, Gail and I for the trip to the island of Colonsay, T and M for an Easter break in Borth in North Wales.

Monday 18th April

Yet another fine morning so take long walk over Cannock Chase with Gail.

Late morning drive into Stafford for Gail to buy more books for her travels. Check out The Chambers restaurant which will be the venue of our dinner later in the day.

Afternoon spent catching up on the blogs before heading back into town for dinner with old friends from my childhood village, Gill and Alan Farmer and Tony and Penny Rogers.

As always had a great time reminiscing on our misspent youth. Personally I can’t recall the escapades which they all seem to clearly remember( probably more of a comment on me than them! )

Gill doing a 26 mile walk on May 14th for Breast Cancer and apparently hopes to break the 25 hour time barrier!

Trip to Europe April to June 2011

Sunday 10th April- Perth to Singapore, Singapore to London

 Journey not off to the best of starts when we are advised at check-in that we have not been granted an upgrade using our Frequent Flyer points. We suspect that it’s merely a case of Qantas punishing us for not using them over the past two years on our overseas trips.

Service and food on board good but flight attendants seem to be getting older ( or is it just Gail and I getting younger?)

As is so often the case it is wet and windy in Singapore and there is soon a deep depression over the Irelands when we are told that our upgrade request for the Singapore-London sector has also been rejected.

Mood made even worse when we realize that D has window seat and G has aisle seat but on the other side of the aisle. A polite request to a large lady, who bore a striking resemblance to an All Black second row forward, to switch seats was met with a decidedly aggressive ‘No’, much to G’s disgust.

I then had to endure 13+ hours with this female who had by this time been named by G the ‘Butch Bitch’.

Bumpy take-off from Singapore in one of the new A380’s but afterwards enjoyed a very good flight with superb service and top quality food.

Monday 11th April- Arrival in London

Arrive in London at 7.00 am on fine, if a little misty morning.

Leave main suitcases at Left Luggage and catch Tube to Westminster for a one night stay at the renovated Mint Hotel which proves to be great value-for-money and very convenient.

Manage to get early check-in and after watching Rory McIroy implode in the last round of the Masters Golf ( losing to South African Charles Schwarzel ) we walk up past St James Park to the Strand where we do some shopping for outdoor clothes. At 6.30 we meet Daniel and Laura, my brother Tony’s grandchildren, for a meal at a pasta bar in Covent Garden. Great to catch up with the young guys who are both faring well in their respective careers of accountancy and law.

Relatively early night as we try to reduce the effects of jetlag.

Tuesday 12th April- London to Stafford

Lovely full English Breakfast, followed by a stroll around the area on another fine morning.

Judging by the huge number of tourists London is really gearing up for the Royal Wedding on which the Brits appear to be relying for an economic turnaround.

Pick up our Ford Mondeo from Hertz and head off over to Slough meet up with an old friend, Gordon , with whom I had shared an office for 10 years at Ladybird Childrenswear during the 1970’s.

Gordon and his friend Judy still appear to be enjoying a life of gourmet food, quality wine and occasional travel, in spite of having suffered a heart attack during the past 12 months.

Great to catch up on old times over lunch at the Marriott Hotel, after which we drive up to Stafford, arriving at Tony’s at about 6.30.

Great to see Tone and Marg looking so well and surprisingly suntanned, apparently courtesy of 2 weeks lovely sunny weather.

Relaxing evening settling in. Late night for D but G off to bed fairly early as the effects of jetlag take over.

Wednesday 13th April- Stafford

Marg and G take a walk over a lovely rural area nearby called Jacob’s Ladder while Tone and I head off to garage for some repairs to the boot lock on his car. ( getting into the boot by crawling behind the back seats was becoming a bit tiresome! )

D uses then uses T’s mountain bike to go for ride around the area to prepare for Croatia bike tour. While out and about I meet a fellow Old Edwardian ( former students of my old grammar school in Stafford ) David Pearsall, who was also school captain. I diplomatically resisted the temptation to remind him of the day when a sixth-former had broken his nose after being pushed around once to often by the highly unpopular Mr Pearsall.

Dinner at T and M’s. G has another night but D sits up with brother to see Tottenham beaten 4-0 by Real Madrid in Champion’s League.

Thursday 14th April- Stafford

D starts the day with brisk walk along nearby canal. Shopping in Stafford centre and then on to Lilleshall in Shropshire where we have a superb lunch at The Red House.

G’s choice of Scampi not the best as D, M and T enjoy a wonderful Seniors’ Special meal from the Carvery. Less than 35 UKp for 4 meals and drinks! Difficult to beat that and another reminder, if such were needed, that an English pub is still a unique institution, which simply cannot be replicated anywhere else.

Stop by in the village of Gnosall ( where I spent most of my younger days ) to put some flowers on Mum and Dad’s grave.

Rest of day spent allowing the huge lunch to go down.

Friday 15th April - Stafford

M and T have appointments in town so after another pleasant walk along the canal D and G also head into Stafford.

Lunch at a familar haunt called The Soup Kitchen then back to T and M’s for a superb chicken dinner during which T regales us with stories of his National Service days. He is in great form and it’s lovely to see everyone so relaxed and enjoying this all-too-rare time together as a family.

Highlight of the day- while going into Marks and Spencer toilet we meet an old fellow struggling to reverse out of a disabled toilet and meeting a second old guy being helped into the same toilet. The first guy takes one look at the second chap and blurts out “ Jesus he’s in a worse state than I am!’ I didn’t stick around long enough to hear the second guys response or to gauge how much the comment had taken off his life expectancy.

Saturday 16th April - Stafford

Another beautiful start to the day weather-wise. G and D take our usual walk across Jacob’s Ladder and we are treated to a picture-postcard scene- deer, pheasants, hot-air balloons, cattle grazing, truly idyllic.

All morning spent enjoying the sun in the back garden and then off to see an old friend Janet Wiseman in my childhood village of Gnosall. Janet doing very well at 81 years of age after losing her long-term companion, Kate who died the previous year at the age of 97.

Enjoy cordon bleu lunch of 2 hot cross buns in the car before calling on Tony’s daughter Di and her husband Terry who live in a heritage cottage in Gnosall.

Very enjoyable couple of hours just chatting about holidays past and planned, football ( Terry is a Milwall supporter but his rehab is going well!). True to form the Milwall fans had recently carried Turkish flags into their ground during a match with Leeds in sensitive reminder that 2 Leeds fans had been stabbed to death in Turkey the previous year. Things obviously haven’t changed a great deal at the aptly named Milwall home ground of Coldblow Lane.

Back to Stafford for very tasty fish dinner followed by an even tastier dessert of City beating United 1-0 in the FA Cup Semi Final. It’s always one of life’s pleasures to see Sir Alex looking depressed!

Sunday 17th April- Stafford/ Church Stretton

G and D take another stroll over Jacob’s Ladder and then along the canal, passing the lovely Milford Hall Cricket Ground, where D had played a number of games in his youth.

It’s an archetypal English ground in a tranquil, secluded setting, complete with superb pavilion where no doubt cucumber sandwiches are scoffed at tea break on match days.

10.00 am sees us set off towards Shropshire and to the attractive town of Church Stretton, situated close to the Welsh border, where Andy, my nephew, and his wife Mo now live.

Both of them looking very well, especially Andy, who has over the past year lost about 20 kgs. This svelte character is a far cry from the ‘ fat bastard’ ( his words ! ) of well over 100 kgs.

Really good to have our annual get-together over a lamb roast from super chef Andy, ably assisted by sous-chef Mo. Food washed down by 2002 La Rioja Shiraz which we had brought with us. Fine array of cheeses  ( one of which smelt like a pair of Andy’s old rugby socks ) rounded off a great meal.

Plans for possible European holiday rendezvous discussed, including even some cycling in France now that they are both into more strenuous exercise.

Ben, their dog as beautiful as ever. ( Craig had once said “ God your’e ugly ,Ben!” when peering into Ben’s character-laden face ). Crufts would probably say that Ben is not classically beautiful but he would no doubt win a prize for ‘ most fascinating canine ‘.

Back at Stafford by 8.00 to hear the news that Stoke had beaten Bolton 5-0 to qualify for FA Cup Final on 14th May against Man City.