Manchester

A couple of photos of buses in Manchester.


First a FirstBus, a bendy bus carries 145 passengers between Manchester and Bury. In the past I have used this service a lot and have had to pay but now all I have to do is flash the concessionary pass and go and sit down. No bother about telling the driver where I am going or getting a ticket like passengers do down here. Runs every ten minutes even on a Sunday and was, well if not exactly full, wasn't empty either. I did get 3 photos of bendybuses, all from behind. By the time I had seen them coming and got the camera to my eye they had gone past.

These two Enviro 400s seen here in Picadilly Bus Station, the 255 and the 256 heading for Partinton and Flixton on the south side of Manchester.

The journey home was much easier than the trip down but given the cost of fuel and the hire car next trip will be by bus, National Express. I suppose I could use my bus pass and go by local transport but that would take a bit too long.

The Drive North

Seven and a half hours to go 300 miles. I don't often get out of Devon and haven't driven a car up what is laughingly called our motorway system for several years and was very surprised at the traffic on the motorways these days. The section up from Exeter on the M5 as far as Bristol went by at 70 mph and I though I would make good time to Llandudno. Then the doubts started as the traffic slowed to a 1 mph crawl. An accident thought I. No, just volume of traffic. I took this photo after sitting still for 5 minutes and I have a similar photo taken two hours and 20 miles later. Never again will I moan about the road through Kingskerwell. At least that is only 4 miles.

This happened several times and I was glad to reach Chester and head along the A55 where the traffic moved at a steady 70 mph. It rained quiet a lot as well but then it always does up north.

Coolangatta Sands

What a difference 18 Months can make. The above photo was taken April 06 and the one below today. It's changed inside as well. It used to be, to quote a customer, a real pub. There were Rugby League Shirts and photos of teams going back to the 1950s that had gone on tour to the UK and the furniture was old but comfortable.

Now it's all chrome and concrete and reminds me of a train station waiting room with a TAB in it. Sorry Coolangatta Sands but you are no longer in my top ten favorite pubs. I am also sorry to say the a couple of pubs in Sydney have dropped out of the top ten for the same reason. Please some one, save the Aussie Pub before it is too late and they all turn into Train Station waiting rooms.

By the way, the last photo was taken from Coolangatta at Point Danger. Sorry Jeff, I was at least 2 feet away from Twead Heads.

Still On Holiday

Still on holiday, the usual prize of a free tour round one of our number 12 buses to the first person who can tell me where I was standing when I took this photo.

London Transport in the Blue Mountains

I had a day out in the Blue Mountains yesterday and this bus turned up. London Transport get everywhere. It did have Atlantian on the back.

Stagecoach bus services are wonderful.

Stagecoach bus services are wonderful. I mean on Sunday I got on this 31 at 11 am, the driver asked me where I was going and I told him Sydney and at 9 pm UK time on Monday I was in Sydney.

OK. Ok I did get a National Express to Heathrow and then a Boeing 777 to Singapore and on to Sydney and then a Sydney City train out to Eastwood but the trip started with the 31 seen here. It's warm (24C) and sunny here. I tried to take a photo in the Cactus Garden at Singapore Airport but the humidity was so high the camera lens fogged up.

Andorra

Here I am in Andorra on holiday, I have been here before, 23 years ago and much has changed. If you are an out of work builder this must be the place to be. Every where you look there are new buildings or there are buildings going up. It used to be here that if there was a flat bit of land you grew something on it. Now even if there there isnt a flat piece of land you get a big big bulldoser and make a flat piece of land and cuilt either a wharehouse which you fill with millions of pounds worth of beer, wine spirits, tabbaco and electical goods and sell it all to the French and Spanish. Failing that you build a hotel for the ski trade. car drivers are nicer here than in Spain and the road signs and road markings are clearer too.

Home in a few days so a few pictures and then back to the bus driving on Sunday.