Die Reise nach Wien – iii
July 18th, 2026
“Das lichtmaschine ist kaput”
After two eventful weeks in the Austrian capital we said our goodbyes. It was the end of a relationship for me and so a blue return home alleviated by the company of a bi-lingual native who knew the region. The journey would have been far more difficult without him which leads me to wonder if he had been encouraged to travel on my behalf as much as his own desire to visit London.
I don’t remember the journey back from Vienna until the German city of Wurzburg where the red light on the dashboard came on once again indicating a loss of charging from the dynamo and this time it was terminal. “Das lichtmaschine ist kaput” were the mechanics exact words, late at night at a garage in Wurzburg, which is where from memory we spent the night while I believe the battery was charged while we slept, since there would be no more engine charging available.
Die Reise nach Wien – ii
July 18th, 2026
“I wouldn’t take that out if it was made of gold”
The evening of our arrival consisted of a welcome home for my girlfriend and a buffet. For me, meeting the family and at last a good night’s sleep – but the state of the car weighed heavily on my mind and the following days were devoted to its further repair.
My two week stay in Vienna involved spending the first few days underneath the car in a garage pit made available by a friend of the family. The missing fourth gear had become a priority being one of many items preventing any chance of a return to England in that vehicle, and I could not afford another.
Die Reise nach Wien
July 18th, 2026
“You will not get to Vienna in this rustbucket”
Nearly fifty years ago I had to decide whether to say goodbye to my girlfriend at the airport, or drive her back to Vienna in order that we could spend some more time together before saying goodbye. A friend of hers owned an old Morris Minor ready for the scrap heap, in spite of which we accepted the offer of a loan. Such is the folly of youth.
Read the rest of this entry »Reports of my death …
June 28th, 2026
The absence of posts in recent years and the occasional down time may be ascribed to two different causes. The former owing to my relocation from Cambridge to Cromer in Norfolk, beyond easy reach of London, and the latter to technical issues.
“November 8th 2018 UPDATE: I went round Maiden Lane with a resident and two friends earlier this year to see what had been done. The new blocks are out of scale with the older blocks while mimicking them architecturally; and the sunken gardens are badly shaded.”
My last London visit was to Maiden Lane with Tom Cordell of Utopia London fame, in order to review the changes made by Camden to pay for long overdue maintenance of the estate. The architects added a tall block for private sale, built some additional low rise housing and painted the estate. See the quote above.
Norfolk
Cromer doesn’t offer the 55 minute journey to Kings Cross that Cambridge did, day trips and blogged walks have been out of the question for some years and don’t seem likely to return. I am unwilling to spend three hours each way on a train in order to spend not much more than that time walking the streets and will have to leave that to others in closer proximity.
Elswick Newcastle – research notes
November 13th, 2017
I was planning to write this up and perhaps one day I will. But the closer I look the more the subject grows and the less I actually know about the district. You can see my walk above and I met some interesting people but life is taking over and this will have to wait. Likewise Byker. So I’ll leave these notes here for anybody else planning to go.
Jesmond – schools, big houses, 4x4s, and students in Tyneside flats
November 9th, 2017
My walking route from Sainsburys High Heaton. Yellow pins points of interest, many missed though later research found them.
Jesmond – research notes
November 8th, 2017
Faulkner, Beacock and Jones (<£10 on Amazon)
A building list in the order in which they appear in the book – with notes from Pevsner Northumberland when found.
“Jesmond was no more than a village up to the middle of the C19th when it became the residential suburb for the wealthiest inhabitants. The monuments reflect both these aspects.” p254/5 [1]
North Shields in the sunshine
October 20th, 2017
I like North Shields. Its impressive collection of buildings on Howard Street, and along from the ferry to Fish Quay and beyond are ample reason to praise it as one of the most attractive districts of North Tyneside.
I came to know it gradually, firstly Howard Street in fading light at the end of a long day in Hebburn, Tynemouth and Whitley Bay. Then in bright sunshine three days later one afternoon when the walk East from the ferry along New Quay, past the former Northumberland Arms (aka the Jungle) and then the former Porthole and Golden Fleece (now architects offices) to Union Quay showed the area at its best.
Later up the steps to High Town past the High Light and up Howard Street in the evening sunlight watching the DFDS ferry leave for Amsterdam.
Another look at North Shields
A wet walk round Tynemouth
October 20th, 2017
Misty Priory
Below the intention outlined in blue. Above the reality seen through rain. We’ll start with my wet arrival in Tynemouth and come back to the housing search further down the page.
