Author Archives: Martin

Palermo, Sicily

Posted on 08/02/2014 by Martin

We’ve been in Sicily for three weeks. We liked Sicily when we came a couple of years ago, but we were mostly on the east of the island then and didn’t get a chance to explore the capital, Palermo. Also, … Continue reading →

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Evesham

Posted on 11/01/2014 by Martin
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High water on the Avon at Bath

Posted on 09/01/2014 by Martin
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Phew!

Posted on 05/01/2014 by Martin

It’s all over! The festive season, that is. It just happened that our big family party this year fell on the Winter Solstice (21st) which seemed to give the event more relevance, I thought. For an evangelical atheist, like me, … Continue reading →

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The Stroudwater Canal, and Stroud

Posted on 15/12/2013 by Martin

The Stroudwater canal, near Stroud in Gloucestershire, is being restored. Sal, my Inland Waterways advisor, tells me that, eventually, this will link the Thames with the Gloucester-Sharpness, which can only be a good thing, surely? A possible problem is that … Continue reading →

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Oxford

Posted on 12/12/2013 by Martin

It feels like only yesterday that I was at Oxford. Actually, it was! Great day. Went to the Ashmolean for the Francis Bacon/Henry Moore exhibition. Well. I dunno, really. Bit mad and/or pretentious were they? Which is worse? We did … Continue reading →

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The Severn estuary

Posted on 06/12/2013 by Martin

There is a huge tidal range in the Severn estuary. At spring high tides the pier near us is covered, meaning that the fisherman usually on it have to cast from the sea wall. Later in the day we walked … Continue reading →

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Leisure lifeboats

Posted on 30/11/2013 by Martin

Walking back from the nature reserve yesterday afternoon we crossed the lock gates when three lifeboats were leaving. Not an emergency at sea, just retired boats, now lovingly cared for by their new owners. First out was the Pentland, a restored ex-RNLI … Continue reading →

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The Massey Shaw fire boat

Posted on 28/11/2013 by Martin

We have a famous lady visiting Portishead Marina; the Massey Shaw was a fire boat, built in 1935, which served the London Fire Brigade for many years and took part in “Operation Dynamo”, the 1940 Dunkirk rescues. She’s been restored … Continue reading →

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Family

Posted on 25/11/2013 by Martin

I have some very well-scattered cousins. Australia, Germany, Switzerland and many parts of England. All originating from a small area of east London, with valuable additional genetic input from north Essex in the form of Ivor. As far as I … Continue reading →

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