First full day in Hong Kong

A good breakfast in the Langham Place Hotel(see photo opposite) followed by a long walk from MongKok down to Tsim Sha Tsui about 3 miles I think. It was great to walk around the small market areas and down some of the older streets in Hong Kong. These guys were just hanging around in the Hotel
Mongkok had a reputation some while ago as being a dangerous place to walk in Hong Kong and also an area where the world's oldest profession was well established. Well know its a lot safer and newer and cleaner and nothing else has changed. We visited the Ocean Terminal complex where the Cruise ships tie up and it was in the past the location of my office in 1980. Its changed a lot since then when it was a warehouse downstairs and offices up stairs but now its mostly designer label shops. We then took the Star Ferry from Kowloon to Wanchai Ferry Pier and headed thought the shopping areas to the Excelsior Hotel for lunch. A further long walk from Causeway Bay area to Central and Noel went to the Office to meet some colleagues whilst Jennifer went on a shopping spree and purchased a large packet of tissues.
The evening was spent in a nice bar close to the office with a group of old colleagues and followed by Dinner in the 'Outback' Steakhouse. An Australian Chain, just to ready us for the OZ part of our trip
A quick trip home by the most efficient underground system called the MTR for Mass Transit Railway and a glass of wine in the lounge before bed. A long and tiring day but most enjoyable

We leave tonight

Well it was quite a busy Tuesday what with my sister and Brother in law arriving late the previous evening from there home in France. They are to stay in Piplin House to ensure the continuation of the development.
During the day we had meetings with the builder, the electrician, the plumber and many others involved in changing how the the house will look. It rained quite a bit so that it was not possible for the the glass people to finish putting the glass in the end 'orangerie' as we call it.
Whilst we were having lunch the staircase was pulled down and the boiler drained so no hot water for showers we thought.
Anyway after a hectic day we left early for the airport and or upper class trip to Hong Kong. This is really the way to travel. Apart from a highly organised check in and private security channel we were in the Virgin Lounge within 15 minutes of arriving by car. We had a couple of wines with our dinned in the lounge before boarding our flight. We were both quite tired and slept most of the way to Hong Kong.
We arrived on time at Chap Lep Kok airport and in the Hotel about 90 minutes later. An efficient Airport and transport system. Oh God we could do with the same in UK. We have booked at the Langham Place Hotel in Mong Kok. Its a very good 5 star Hotel which has one many awards.

We had dinner in the Hotel at the buffet restaurant with all manner of goodies to tempt you before hitting the bed.

A New Year Dawns

Well the New Year dawns with a lot of things happening.
A lot of activity in the last few days what with the Cedar going up at the end of the house and also the framework for the conservatory now taking shape and only wait for the glass to be put in.
We are due to use the old utility room cupboards in the garage for storage and so we had to take them out of BIG YELLOW STORE so that they can be put up. All this was going on whilst we were continuing to clear Range Way of the contents. So many things to think of as we are leaving on a jet plane on 15th January until 5th April, visiting Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia. My brother in Law and also the architect of the project is coming to Weybridge to take otver the management side. In the meantime we had a surprise visit from our old Japanese friends Aki & Miko Ryuji who had flown in to attend a funeral in Bournemouth. We hope to visit them in October 2008. Lets see how the money goes.



A couple more photos to show you whats happening with jennifer surveying the garage mess.

A quick reveiw of 2007

2007 was an interesting if not challenging year, it had its good and bad points. Unfortunately Jennifer's father passed away in early September after a long illness which he fought gallantly. His sense of humour and knowledge amazed many people including the Hospice staff. He will be missed by many and a lot by his family.


Cyril K Brown
1917-2007 RIP

We started our house rebuilding program in August, much later than expected and of course it is know running quite late. Which is a bit of a nuisance as Jennifer and I are planning to leave on an extensive trip to meet the 'Roos' and Sheila's in OZ and then watching the grapes grow on the New Zealand vineyards. Should be a good trip and it has taken a long time to prepare and I am sure we will have a great time.
We will travel via Hong Kong and are looking forward to meeting old friends and business colleges
Michael moved to Scotland with his partner in September and this has been quite an upheaval, new home, new job, new area, new colleagues and of course many changes in the way the Ambulance Service works. Amazing really one NHS and multiple practices.?
The caravan has been laid up all year, for reasons see first paragraph, but now we are planning to go to France in May 2008 for as long as we can. We have also booked tickets to see Elton John at Brooklands Museum on the 11th of July, so we may come home from France early or just fly home for a day or two, we are undecided at this point.

Christmas was spent in Scotland seeing Michael and Joanne came with us and we are able to have a dinner at the hotel for just the four of us, almost like old times, only more expensive.














New Years Eve was spent with good friends in Wey Road where we saw in the New Year clutching a glass of good bubbly, what a way to end this
year and so much to look forward to in 2008.

18th december Update- the development Continues

Well I have just realised that I have not put an update on the web for a little while so here goes.
The Dormer Flat roofs have been completed and the proper tiles roof is being laid now and should be ready by hopefully the end of this week.
They have started working on the partitions for the bedroom and bathroom etc and again this will be completed soon. The Electrician is also here starting to wire up the new 'Wing' and so we have about 8 people on site working today, one being away with the flu.

The 'Orangerie' finally turned up on Monday the 17th, many weeks late. It was also delayed for a further 10 days due to some bad painting I understand. Anyway they have the intention of trying to complete this and make it watertight by Christmas. Lets hope they can do it. There is a chance that the guys may work between Christmas and New Year, lets see what they finally decide. We were planning a Scotland trip over Christmas but what with the workers perhaps being here we may have to cancel. This is really not so bad as we are off to Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia for almost 3 months on the 15 th January on out Virgin Tickets which were a retirement present from the company.
The planning of the house and new garden layout's together with ordering showers etc whilst planning our far East trip was quite tiring but we have managed it. WE had planned to have the development finished by Christmas but this is out of the window and likely to be end of February when perhaps we can start laying carpets and floors etc. The next four weeks will be very busy then.

Getting there, slowly but surely

Well, we are getting there slowly but surely. After almost 18 weeks you can now see what this delevopment is all about. It seems to be raising quite an interest in passers by and a number have come in to ask questions etc, this is apart from general neighbour interest.
Unfortunatly, we have suffered delays from suppliers of the replacement windows, about 6 weeks late at the moment and we are stil not sure when they will arrive, and the Orangerie (post word for a conservatory) is also ruunning at about the same latenessbut we expect it at the end of next week. As for the Glass Link building which joins the old house to the new, well perhaps sometime after Christmas but before November 2008 I understand. This is frsutrating as unless the whole thing is watertight then they cannot do the plumbing and electric etc or even join the building together.
The Cedar cladding and shakes on the dormers makes the house look so much different. Jennifer and I spent all of last Sunday painting on the contraceptive varnish(or something like that) and that made the wood grain stand out and also makes the house less new.
We have tried to take good care of the workmen, with lots of tea, cakes and Noel even made them all bacon sandwiches last Monday as a treat.
The costs are of course not in line with budget, are they ever,but we are doing our best to keep them down hence Noel has been working outside as a labourer most of the time.
However, we have come a long way since the first hole in the ground and we still have to strip our main bedroom and also lounge once the conservatory is up to allow the rest of the work to continue. Like knocking down walls and the old fireplace and putting in new door frames etc. It will get worse before it gets better.
Luckily I still have my hair and have not aged to much, but then again we still have a long way to go.

The house development continues

Well it been quite busy just recently with the house being rebuilt around us. Its not going to plan however it is moving along. The glass atrium and also the glass orangery are running about 4 weeks late and the windows three weeks late. They should arrive at the end of November or early December and this delay means that other important elements cannot continue.

The cedar wood covering the lower part of the house is almost complete but we are now waiting for the upper floor cladding and insulation to be fitted. It is intended to use cedar wood shakes, or something like this, only there appears to be a delay on fixing these.
In the meantime, last Friday afternoon we packed our bags and disappeared over to a large shopping area South of Lille, where we visited Castorama, owned by Kingfisher who also own B & Q to look at sanitary ware, Loo's to you. The result was we purchased three loo's, three wash basins and the taps to match at a price 30 to 50 percent lower than from B & Q in UK. We have also looked at showers and again there is a huge difference in price and so we arrange to purchase those in France as well.
Well its Monday morning at 0945, the bricklayers are working, the guys doing the cedar work have not arrived and the delivery from Travis Perkins with sand for the bricklayers has failed to show since last Friday, so all is normal chaos here.
We have finalised our Australia and New Zealand trip planning and we leave mid January. We have hid to fix all the hotels in NZ as its the busy period there and this was a lot of fun working through this process but I must say that the New Zealand Tourist website is amazing, we were able to plan our trip, places to stay and locations to visit. Once its fully finished we will circulate tho interested parties..
Ken and Madelaine are due back this Wednesday morning and ken is starting to put the roof on the bedroom etc.
I have added a few pictures on this Blog but more are available on the Phanfare photo site.

Recent events

Well its been a very challenging and interesting year so far. So no real incentive to keep this blog up to date
The sad news is that Jennifer's father Cyril passed away early September after a long illness and therefore the last few weeks have all been about sorting out the estate.
However ,in the meantime , the redevelopment work started on the house in early August and will continue through to December, we hope to finish by Christmas but lets see. In the meantime Michael with his fiancee have moved house from the one bedroom flat in Aldershot to a three bedroom house in Rosneath, Scotland. About one hour North West of Glasgow. They have delightful views from their house over Gairloch, see picture.

With a view like this he will be able to see the rain quite clearly. Michael has joined the Scottish Ambulance Service whilst Celina is hoping to get a job in a beauty salon nearby in Helensburgh.

The van Michael ordered for his effects to Scotland was not big enough so a few days later we rented another van and drove to Scotland in the worst weather of the year. It took 12 hours to get there and 8 to get back. We stayed in a very nice Hotel on Loch Lomond. We did not tell Michael or Celina that we were coming and it was a great surprise when we phoned from outside their house to say we were there.
On Sunday 6Th of October we brought the caravan from its storage location in Walton-on-Thames back to Weybridge and spent many hours give it a good external clean and then took it back to storage and put a cover over it. It has been most unfortunate that we could not use the caravan this year apart from a few days because of illness of Jen's dad. Anyway it will be ready for next year when we hope to take off in late April or early May once we have returned from our trip to New Zealand and Australia which we have put back from last year.
The brick layers turned up this morning, a couple of weeks late!! so lets hope we can get back on track quickly, unfortunately the weather today is rain the whole day but the forecast for the rest of the week is better.
I will try to kjeep this Blog up to date in future now we hope that our life is getting back in shape again. Just to keep me more busy I have bought a large Casio Electronic Keyboard, I used to play the piano when younger and I hope to regain the knowledge which may mean I need some lessons, lets see.

Up, Up and Away

I have often said that I would like to experience a glider flight so for my Christmas present last year Noel arranged for me to go to Lasham airfield to do just that.
As the weather was so poor I did not get around to organising the trip until last month. So on a lovely sunny morning we set out for Lasham which is south of Basingstoke.
"So you are here for three gliding lessons" said Barry my gliding instructor. That was a bit of a surprise I was only expecting a joy ride.
After showing me around the glider and helping me into my parachute we climbed in and waited to be towed into the air by one of the small tug planes.
Up, up and away it was a bit bumpy then a loud klunk and we banked away to the right away from the tow rope and plane.
"Oh no I think I might be sick" Here I am 1500 feet up sitting in a fiberglass tray only about 8 inches wider than me with a plastic bubble over my head and an ex RAF pilot behind me.
He was busy talking about what there was to see how the stick and flaps work etc. Now he said hold the stick gently in your right hand, now push forward. Wow it was like being on a roller coaster with nothing in front of you.
And so it continued terrifying and fabulous at the same time.
By the time we landed for the first time I was beginning to relax. There were two more flights to go. Each flight he got me to take control a little more I will never make a pilot but it was a great experience soaring round and round on the thermals to gain height. We went up to 3500 feet so we had plenty of room to fall while I tried to control the glider. Thank goodness he was there.
Finally it was time to return. i was exhasted but it was worth it.

Back on the road again, well at least for 10 days

It's been a challenging year so far what with Jennifer's dad requiring considerable care and attention, however he has outlived the Doctor's expectations and keeps on going. However it's been tiring for both of us as we have also been arranging the Resident Party which took place on the 30th June.
The party was a great success but spoiled by the poor weather, rain and more rain .
We decided we needed a break and some sun. To tow the caravan to the sun, in the South of France, would take perhaps 3/4 days each way and only allow a few days on site and it would be difficult should we find it necessary to come home quickly. So after a very quick Board Meeting we decided to go to the Jebel Ali Hotel in Dubai for 10 days. We know that the weather will be hot and sunny but also that we can get back quickly if need be.

And so a quick trip on Virgin Atlantic was great, we got some good seats near the pilot on the way down, but near the wings on the way back. We spent most of the time, sunbathing, book reading and swimming. We also visited a couple of the very large and comfortable Malls for a small bit of shopping and also to give us a bit of time away from the heat. Neither of us wanted to burn and so we took precautions by slapping on the sun tan lotion. There were quite a few Brits at the Hotel who seemed to spend the complete day laying in the sun, not good at this location as it can start many skin problems later on. Oh well it keeps the NHS busy.
We also met with some of Noel's ex colleagues for dinner and lunches which was great, most enjoyable.
We did not take too many photos this time as we have visited this Hotel and Town several times before and there is no point in repeating.
Dubai has grown like crazy since we were last there in 2004, major building everywhere including construction of the tallest building in the world, number of stories not confirmed due to secrecy. The Emirates Mall, the largest outside North America, has a huge skiing area, yep that's right skiing and SNOW.

For a detailed report visit SKIDUBAI. To see the Arabs enjoying snow fights and skiing etc when it's 42 degrees outside whilst below 0 C inside was quite amazing .
We are back home now and hoping that we can start on our house development so that we can finish in time for Christmas.
Well that's the latest news from us and all the photos are on the photo BLOG

A few days in East Horsley Caravanning

Tuesday 8th May
We arrived at the Walton on Thames site to collect our Caravan. One hour later after checking everything we left for a long drive of about 8 miles to East Horsley where we arrived at about 13.30. The sun was shining and there were a few cloudy patches but we were given a great site overlooking the Lake. We spent about an hour getting the van level. The problem was that there was a depression in the ground which was not easily visible and this meant the van leant drunkenly to one side. Anyway we fixed this and continued setting up the water, loo and gas and then discovered that the 12 volt system which drives most things was not working - Damn!
After fiddling and reading all the books for about an hour we realized that there was something wrong which we could not fix. This is not an unknown issue and the caravan site had the business card of a company that they thought might be of help. We gave them a call and they will come tomorrow morning.
The rest of the evening we spent sorting out our things and making ourselves comfortable. This has taken longer than normal as we had almost emptied the van of all items. We then made a quick trip to raid the fridge at our house in Weybridge. Dinner was Lamb Navarine and rice, very nice.
And so off to bed.

Wednesday 9th May

It rained overnight and the weather for the rest of the week looks a bit damp. Anyway the engineer arrived and half an hour later after having found a loose connection in the fuse box, now we are running full speed and all systems are go..
We put up our gazebo as the weather at the moment is not too warm and to put up the full awning might be too time consuming when we won’t use it . Following lunch we walked in to East Horsley and did some shopping and came across the American owned butcher who naturally sells US Grade meat. We used to buy from this butcher several years ago. Anyway we purchased two good US Sirloin steaks. So tonight it’s steak and salad for dinner..
I will miss the Chelsea v Manchester United game on Sky TV tonight unless it’s on the radio? We shall see.
We like this place and so have extended our stay for another 8 nights, its £10.00 a night for everything and very good value. Will take some photos tomorrow and put on the website.

Thursday 10th May
Well the weather is not getting any better!!. It’s still raining and looks to continue for at least the next week. Great.
We went to the Gym this morning and the Cheslea- Man U match was being shown again, that got the heart pumping.
Had to go back home to meet with a Chimney specialist to discuss what is possible with regard to our lounge chimney and fireplace. As part of our house renovation we have thought of moving our fireplace about two feet to the right and this could mean moving or changing part of the chimney. So we met a knowledgeable technician who said it may be possible, perhaps not the full distance, but certainly at least part of the way. It is our intention to remove the coal fireplace and replace with a modern gas fire which can heat the room quickly.
Went back to caravan for dinner and the heavens opened some more, I can’t think there will be any water shortage in our area this year, we shall see. On the way back to the caravan we stopped off in Argos and bought a LCD/DVD TV for the caravan and so was able to catch up with the news and watched a very interesting re-enactment type documentary about Saddam Hussain’s daughters who were married to important members of Saddam government. It was well done but finished late.
And so off to bed.

Friday 11th May

Well blow me we woke up and it was still raining, thinking of trading in the caravan for a boat!! Anyway we had decided to take a cross country trip to another Caravan Site near Redhill. It was well organised but not so attractive as East Horsley. After that we headed back to Cobham for lunch. On the way we passed the Chelsea Football Training Ground, Oh what a hallowed place!!! There was even some fans outside waiting to get player signatures
We had a quick lunch and did some shopping and then went back to East Horsley.
When will this rain stop? Today is our daughter Joanne’s birthday and we are helping her tomorrow with a BBQ at her home for about 25 people. Should be a challenge cooking if this rain continues.
It will be an early start tomorrow as we need to go shopping for the BBQ food with Joanne.

You think traffic is bad on the M25-Look at this!

The Boeing 737 stuck in city road

By Monica Chadha BBC News, Mumbai

No-one is assuming responsibility for moving the plane

Residents of the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay) are wondering how long it will take to remove a disused Boeing 737 that has been abandoned in a busy road.

The decommissioned aircraft was being driven through the city at the weekend when the driver got lost and then abandoned the plane.

The Boeing used to belong to the private company Air Sahara.

Some locals are angry that no action is being taken to move the plane. Others say it is a tourist attraction.

It appears that after taking a wrong turn, the driver found himself facing a flyover that was too low for him to take the plane under.

The driver has not been seen since and no-one is assuming responsibility for the 737.

Sunday surprise

Restaurant owner Ramji Thapar is one of the puzzled residents of the Chembur area of the city.

Pradeep Malhotra - 'My work is suffering'

He woke up Sunday morning to find the aircraft on a giant trailer abandoned on the road.

"Saturday night I shut shop and go home and everything is fine," he told the BBC news website.

"Sunday morning when I get here, this aircraft is here near my restaurant!"

The fuselage of the decommissioned aircraft, with the engine, wings and tail removed, was being taken by road to the capital Delhi late on Saturday night.

Reports say it was supposed to be used at a flight training academy.

The plane has become the centre of attraction with people coming from all over the city to take a look.

"I've been fascinated with planes and never seen one so closely," engineering student Vamsi Shastri said. "It's huge!"

His friend Ankur Rane said, "It's fascinating to see an airplane on the roads when one is only used to seeing cars and auto rickshaws."

No joke

However, for Pradeep Malhotra, who runs a catering service in the area, the plane has become a huge problem because it is parked right in front of his shop.

"My work is suffering because the food cannot be loaded in the big vehicles," he said.

"I have to load it in the smaller vans and then carry them to the bigger ones parked at the back.

"I don't know how they are going to take it out because you can't reverse it, its too big, and you can't go further down the road."

Some residents said they had not complained simply because they assumed that the authorities would be making it a priority to get the plane out of the city.

Five days on, it is still not clear who is responsible for the aircraft and its transfer to Delhi.

France Visit

Off to France we went.

This visit to France was quite important but we had such little time and so did things in a bit of a hurry. We left Portsmouth on the Brittany Ferries Sea Cat to Cherbourg, a fast but not necessarily comfortable boat, It travels at 45 knots and can make quite a splash when it hits the waves. Arriving in Cherbourg in the rain we headed off South to see my sister Madeleine and her husband for a few days. Ken, my brother in law, is helping us work on the development of Piplin House and this was the main reason to visit them in a little town called Kervalo which is quite a few miles West of Rennes but much closer to a very nice sea side town called Vannes.
Five hours later after a very pleasant country drive and avoiding motorways we arrived to a lovely glass of champagne. A very nice dinner followed with a few glasses of wine accompanied the meal plus some special wine tasting.
As a present we took them gifts to remind them of blighty, a nice bag which I now realise I did not photograph, of a selection of the best of England. Spam, Corned beef, mushy peas,baked beans,Newcastle Brown Ale, Pork pie and of course Salad Cream. It was all well received together with best newsprint we could find, The Daily Star and The Sun, complete with the busty page three beauties.
The following morning we worked on the plans for our house and then headed of to Vannes to visit the shops and look in Castorama, the French division of B&Q. Stuff is so much cheaper here than UK, up the 40 percent less so we may purchase our bathroom furniture here.

The next day we did a tour by the coast to Port De Navalo and also Port de Crousty, both extremely nice places with tons of boats. Here we had a nice lunch before heading of the see a beautiful Château which was under historic repair.

A lovely day and the weather was great and the country side was rolling and extremely nice
In the evening a few friends of Madeleine and Ken stopped by for an early drink. One of the couples we met were good friends with a Doctor friend we had known in our Hong Kong years. Small world isn't it

We left the following morning and took a quick look at the other house they have purchased which will require quite some work to make it habitable. Then to Courtenay via Rennes and Orleans and a journey of around 350 miles. A very nice day of travelling thro some great countryside before we arrived at our friends Gerard and Mirreille . We have stayed in their house before but know they have finished the building upstairs and added some new bedrooms and bathroom, Gerard did a lot of the work himself.
The next day we met Gerard and Mirreilles daughter and granddaughter. Marjorie who is 18 in August will stay with us for one month whilst undergoing work experience in Godalming.

Here's looking at you kid!!!

The next day we left early for Calais and the boat home. As the following day May 1st was a public holiday the roads around Paris were very quiet and we made good time and arrived in Calais for a 1.30 pm lunch. !20 bottles of wine later we headed to Dunkirk to connect with the Norfolk Line Ferry to Dover. We thought we would try them against P & O and Sea France. These are new ferries and very nice inside and very comfortable although it does take about half an hour longer on this route.
We arrived home at about 8.30 pm a cup of tea and of to bed.
A very useful and successful trip.

To see more photographs of our French trip please go to our Photo Blog on Phanfare. See link on side bar