Rob’s Travel Blog

 To begin where I left off…both flights were a lot better than expected ( often the case when one is so sure that everything will be dreadful). 5 hours to Abu Dhabi with the 2 back seats to myself, a passably good lunch and glass of wine and The New York Times to peruse. So far, so civilised. I had made a bid for an extra seat on the next flight and the young man at the checkout in Vienna assured me I’d been awarded it. No indication of this on my boarding pass so I very assertively advised the hostess of this- and, surprisingly (!) she had no idea of what I was talking about and said the plane was overbooked. I descended into a state of gloom as I watched the hoards come in. But the seat next to me stayed empty! My smile returned and I had a passably good 12 hours with a bit of sleep ( thanks to a Zopi) . Strange meals…dinner, an early morning snack of cheese roll and apple crumble and then another big dinner when one would expect breakfast! So far, so good. I managed a breath of ...

 I had questioned my decision to return via Vienna, but it was the correct one. The plane from Glasgow and then Amsterdam was in after midnight …and my dear friends were still waiting patiently for me! A 10 hour travel nightmare between Glasgow and Amsterdam. Then an altercation with a dodgy taxi driver in Vienna but it was so lovely to be the recipient of Ian and Geli’s hospitality again. Another delicious breakfast, a bit of shopping in the now familiar neighbourhood, a rest and then a final visit to the Augarten. Thankfully the 35 degree temperature of the previous day had been broken by thunderstorms, and the day was a mild 23 which opened up to a beautiful sunny evening for a final walk and dinner and drinks at the beer garden. Up at 6 to begin the trek to the airport…but first, breakfast at the local bakery. Once again chaperoned all the way to the gate…and here I am, waiting to get onto my flight to Abu Dhabi. Only 5.5 hours and at a reasonable time, so should be fine.

 Here I am at another airport…Glasgow…and have already been told the plane’s running 25 minutes late! So I hope I’m able to get my connection to Vienna as I will only have about 10 minutes to board now. I have the familiar knot in my stomach, related to being in transit, to leaving all my lovely rellies and considering the long haul home. None of it fills me with glee. So, I am trying to take a note out of Wee Hugh’s book and to spend time reflecting on memories. In his case this is the many happy memories he has of his 91 years of life, and also of his more recent day-to-day ones. Even if I can do that, I should be transported out of this place, so here goes… Saturday morning seemed a little clearer and I took the lovely Fara for a morning walk. She is gentle and somewhat nervous greyhound who wears a fetching raincoat on wet and chilly days. We discovered the further reaches of the village and that red squirrels might be seen. They are not numerous and we didn’t see any, but I do...

 I’m not really doing a good job of catching up…but the past few days have been less busy so I should manage that now. On Thursday morning I did a final sortie up to the little park whilst Hazel and Jude did an amazing job packing up. ( There were a few jokes about kitchen sinks when Jude brought the air fryer along for the outing!) No sun today so nobody was out. Garden art Jude and Hazel’s house- named Carlotta because it was owned by one of people importing sugar from the Southern states of America. The Tate & Lyle factory was based in Greenock and Wee Hugh was the accountant there. 43 Mearns Street in Greenock, where my dad and 3 siblings grew up. They were given this new house when the previous one was bombed. Hugh told us there was a high hedge when he started courting Rita but her dad cut it down to half size so he could monitor good night kisses. Despite him being “ a good wee Christian boy” We picked up Hugh and drove off into the lowering clouds. Hugh was in good form...