Redhill Aerodrome

I went cycling on Sunday and our lunchtime destination was Redhill aerodrome so here are a few photos to share. A plane taxiing past the cafe whch overlooks the airfield.

Three of the BBC helicopters parked in a line.

The local air ambulance which is also based here about to take off.

A Russian plane but no idea what type so if anyone can identify it, I would be grateful.

Inside one of the hangars at the airfield showing the only Spartan still in existence.

And a better view of the working model of a Comet seen in the foreground of the photo of the Spartan.

A colourful paint job on this plane.

After the aerodrome we cycled through Outwood. I guessed that St John the Baptist church was built in the nineteenth century. It is only open for occasional Sunday services and Saturday mornings 11am - 5pm so I was not able to check the date of construction. However looking around the headstones in the surrounding graveyard, none were older than the 1880's so I guess I was right.

A view of the east end of the church.

A view of the porch.

A close up of the statue above the entrance.

The church tower which houses a tenor bell plus the staircase leading to the upper level.

An unusual gravestone or memorial to several members of the same family.

The village sign on the common at Outwood.

The beacon post standing on the common.

The village sign has a windmill prominently displayed and here is the windmill itself.

And a picture of some of the group in front of the windmill taken by John Clark and I am on the far left.

Crossing Russia on the Trans Siberian

Another milestone achieved! I have just signed the approval for the cover of my fifth book due out this autumn.

The text on the back cover on the right of the photo reads...

'A wonderful account of a trip through Russia that will intrigue and delight, history fanatics, Russophiles, travellers and adventurers alike. Norman Handy traces his journey by ship and the railway from Saint Petersburg to Vladivostok, taking the reader on a tour through Russian history by starting off in St Petersburg with its spectacular palaces and museums. From the interesting people, the railway journeys, the Kremlin, executions, to murder, and mayhem are all part of this trip and will offer fascinating reading.
 There are stops at Yekaterinburg and other fascinating places along the way, horse riding in the Altai mountains to reach Mount Belukha, Siberia's highest mountain before finally he reaches his destination in Vladisvostok.'

And here is a better 'true to life' photo of the cover of my fourth book also due out in the autumn. And the text on the back cover, on the left of the photo reads...

'Apart from being a travelholic, Norman Handy has given us an adventure filled description of a trip from Anchorage in Alaska to Panama in Central America. The more adventurous traveller will experience many fascinating places with stunning scenic vistas and tips on how things work in border crossings through many countries. If you want to know more about; life in different communities, how to deal with a curious caribou or bison without being trampled, or to view a sloth in its habitat  and why there is a worm at the bottom of your glass of Tequila glass then this is for you!

There is even a dash of romance with the author falling for the pretty tour guide and having to hide this liaison with her from his fellow travellers and to their having to go their separate ways at the end of the journey.'

London haunts

 I had a day in London recently and I looked up some old haunts such as the view of Tower Bridge from London Bridge that I used to pass twice a day to get to work. Plus to the right HMS Belfast which is a permanent museum and another temporary visitor of a destroyer tied up alongside.

 And a view back across London Bridge with a view of the Shard, which is Europe's second tallest building after the OKO Tower in Moscow which beats it convincingly at 353.6m.

A view of St Magnus the Martyr, a fine church builr by Sir Christopher wren and his most expensive. It used to be aligned with the original approach to London Bridge with traffic passing under the clock and pedestrians walking through the arch. The current bridge was built alongside previous alignments and opened to traffic in 1973 so the old approaches are now just a quiet backwater.

 The Monument which marks the place where Farriner's bakery was located whose oven's started the fire of London in 1666.

 A Victorian Gothic building on the corner of Philpot Lane...

 ...and a detail of plaster work of two mice eating some cheese.

 A couple of photos of Leadenhall Market, which has also appeared in Laura Croft, Tomb Raider and Diagonal Alley in Harry Potter.

 The Duke of Wellington outside the Bank of England

The entrance to Chinatown just off Leicester Square. 

A couple of photos of Buckingham Palace.

 I also took in the Science Museum and given the number of photos that I took of VW beetles in Central and Southern America, I couldn't let this one escape which was on show in the central foyer.

 And this was a new destination for me, the Victorian Gothic inner courtyard of the V&A which for some reason I have never been to before. It is a wonderful piece of architecture to see as much as the contents are well worth a visit.

 A couple of photos of one of the staircases.

 A detail of the balustrade.

 One of the exhibition halls.

 A detail of one of the columns.

 The library.

 A very ornate rude screen partially obscured by an arch.

Yellow School Bus

I have been very busy writing my next book and catching up with family and friends and still loads to organise.

One time consuming activity has been checking illustrations to make sure that they tell the story as depicted in the text and editing the text.

Also I have just confirmed acceptance of the cover for the next book, 'Yellow School Bus' or to give its longer technical version name of the 'Yellow School Bus, an adventure from Anchorage in Alaska to Panama'. It is scheduled to be published in the autumn but there is no date set yet.

The colours displayed are not quite right but it gives a general impression of the finished article.

Mount Elbrus descent

We had summited the highest mountain in Europe and now we working our way down and back to our hotel in Chebut. The flood had severed the gas pipes so there was no gas so no hot water. Looking south behind the hotel and beyond it is the border with Georgia.

 There was no hot water and no gas due to the floods...but also no traffic on the roads. We were on the evacuation list and we made our way to the nearest military post which was just up the road from the ski station.

We were checked for ID and allowed into the border police base to be evacuated. The helicopter came in over the trees and landed.

 Every inflight brought supplies in for the thousands people stranded in the area. The return flight down the valley took people out. There was a long line of volunteers, soldiers and locals who unloaded the helicopter when it landed.

 And then it was time for us to get aboard.

 A view inside the helicopter.

 And then it was time to take off.

 And rise above the local forest.

 And fly down the valley.

 Past local communities.

 And around a bend in the valley and we were soon able to land at the next military base down the valley.

Some military vehicles lined up near the landing point.

 Some temporary accommodation near the helicopter landing point as we came into land.

 Some of the relief effort mobilised to help those further up the valley.

 Leaving the helicopter.

 Then we were collected by our driver and continued our journey down the valley towards Nalchik, the capital of the Kabardino Balkar Republic and onward by air to Moscow.