2023 – The East Lancashire Railway and Bury Transport Museum

There are several vintage steam railways around the UK. One not too far from us is the East Lancashire Railway, Bury – just north of Manchester. In fact, Bury is at the northern end of the Manchester tram line. We rode the tram about an hour and a half up to Bury to ride behind the Lady of Legend coal-fired steam locomotive. The line runs along the River Irwell about 8 miles to the town of Rawtenstall. The weather started off cool, but nice. As we rode the train it began to rain followed by small hail! The weather didn’t delay our trip any, but it did dampen our desire to do much exploring! We opted for a coffee shop break followed by a return ride on a vintage diesel train, with a break for lunch and then another ride behind the steam locomotive.

The other half of our adventure was a visit to the Bury Transport Museum. It was fun checking out a wide variety of antique vehicles there – ranging from an old tractor to double decker busses to another beautiful steam locomotive.

It was a nice day trip for us, and we recommend it to anyone who likes the old trains.

2023 – Galway and the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland

Part two of our quick trip to Ireland began with a Sunday afternoon high speed train trip from Dublin to Galway.  We really enjoy train travel (evidenced by our big train trip to Italy and the Swiss Alps).  The trains are fast and reasonably quiet.  They are also reasonably priced.  We enjoyed the two-hour trip across the country as the train reached speeds of up to 100 mph at times.

I picked our hotel in Galway specifically because of it being practically next door to the train/bus station and being only a five-minute walk to the Spanish Quarter, a lively area featuring many shops and restaurants.  Our hotel was actually part of the 13 on the Green Pub.  As it turned out, our small, but serviceable, room was directly above the pub!  As far as I could tell, we never heard anything from down below.  However, out our window we looked down on the pedestrian crossing of a narrow city street.  Every time the crossing went to green we heard the “beep, beep, beep” pedestrian signal.  After 11:00 or so at night traffic calmed down and people stopped pushing the “wait to cross” button.  Still, it was a rather noisy place to stay and we didn’t sleep well either night that we were there.

After arriving in Galway we headed across Eyre Square and into the Latin Quarter.  We window shopped and people watched, stretching our legs after the train ride.  There were buskers playing and singing to the crowds.  Nearby we found the Spanish Arch and Wall, which are hundreds of years old.  Later on we went into a shopping mall and saw that part of that wall has been preserved inside the mall!

The next morning we walked just a few minutes to the pickup point for our bus tour.  This is an all day tour that features the Cliffs of Moher and other destinations to the south of Galway along the coast.  There are other tours and I wish we had had the time to take them, but I think this one is considered the major one and I’m glad we took it.  Highlights included a look at Dunguarie Castle, Aillwee Cave (with a nice underground waterfall), a rocky area called the Burren, and the Cliffs of Moher.  The route follows part of the Wild Atlantic Way – a scenic drive along the ocean.  This area is very popular with both locals and tourists.  Many festivals take place in the small towns along the way and during the summer the area is packed with visitors.

The main draw for us was the Cliffs of Moher.  There are wide, paved trails up onto the cliffs.  However, you can also ask for a lift on a golf cart (called the “Lifts of Moher”).  We opted for that and a driver cheerfully took us up to two different overlooks.  I have to say that we stayed a shorter time than we would have liked because of the cold, strong wind!  As I understand it, it is quite common so if you make the trip, check the weather conditions on the Cliffs.

We hopped a national bus the next morning for a two hour trip to Shannon Airport.  That airport was the exact opposite of Manchester Airport.  Shannon was quiet and laid back.  Our trip through security was just a formality and our plane left pretty much on time.

I’d say our visit to Ireland give us just a taste of the island.  It is interesting to consider that if we were coming to Ireland from the states the airfare would be hundreds of dollars more than what we spent for the short hop across the Irish Sea.  When you spend more you want to stay long enough to feel you have received value for the cost.  In our case, we just did a long weekend.  We saw less, but then again we spent considerably less.  I guess everything in life has its tradeoffs.  Long stay or short, we do recommend Ireland as an interesting and beautiful destination.

2023 – Dublin, Ireland

It’s only 165 miles from Manchester to Dublin, but most of that distance is over the Irish Sea so the only two ways to get there are by air or by ferry. Air travel is less expensive and should be much faster. Any way you do it from Manchester is much less expensive than flying from the States.

You will note that I said air travel should be “much faster.” In our case, the trip took longer than it should have. Our original flight was canceled due to technical difficulties. No complaint about that; I have no interest in flying in a plane that is in questionable condition! However, our Ryanair flight kept being delayed as we were bumped from one plane to another as they searched for a spare aircraft for the short hop. When all was said and done we arrived in Dublin in a plane full of drunks (you can guess how they passed their time during the delay). All’s well that ends well, and we arrived in Dublin without further issue.

We were booked into the Metro Airport Hotel and appreciated their free airport shuttle. Upon checking in they told us we were being upgraded to a suite! It was as nice a hotel accommodation as we’ve ever had – a three room unit! One wall of the bedroom was filled with windows. Our only complaint was that just below us was a major highway intersection. I think we managed to arrive on an especially busy night as we heard sirens off and on throughout the night. Since the intersection is a major one the emergency vehicles turn their sirens on as they approach the intersection and then turn them off once they are through. Happily, things were much calmer the second night.

The city bus passes right through that intersection, making it easy to hop a bus and ride directly to the heart of Dublin. You might want to know that Dublin buses don’t accept credit cards. Upon arrival at the airport I stopped off and bought a one day “Leap” transport ticket, so we just held it against the card reader as we got on the bus and on other trips that day.

One thing we wanted to see was Dublin Castle. It was different than we expected, more of a palace than castle. There’s lots of artwork by famous artists plus rooms of fancy furniture and such.

From there we walked along the River Liffey where we happened on a college rowing event. It is amazing how fast the teams can get their boats going! We walked on the famous Ha-penny Bridge and then checked out O’Connell Street in the heart of the city.

From there we hopped a bus for a short ride to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells. This is a surviving copy of the Gospels dating from the 800s – a beautifully handwritten and illustrated portion of the Bible. It was impressive to see it, but unfortunately for us, no photography is allowed. However, the Book of Kells is adjacent to the “Old Library” which dates back to the 18th Century. We took lots of photos there. There is a harp on display there that is several hundred years older than the Library itself. It is called the “Brian Boru’s harp.” Since the harp is considered to be a symbol of Ireland, seeing this ancient one there in Dublin is pretty cool.

A bus ride back out to the hotel with a stop for fish and chips finished our day in Dublin.

2023 – Italy-Switzerland wrapup

2023 – Zermatt, Switzerland – the Matterhorn – Scott and Jackie

We arrived back “home” in Manchester a bit weary but more than satisfied with our trip to Italy and Switzerland.  Here are some random thoughts as we wrap up our trip.

It was an all-public transportation trip.  Over the last 10 days we traveled by bus, plane, subway, trolley, boat, Uber, and, of course, train.  It is quite an experience for Americans who are fully immersed in the car culture to travel totally as passengers on public transport.  It certainly is nice to look out the window or read a book while someone else handles the trip!

This journey was, of course, all about the trains.  Jackie and I enjoyed the Italian high-speed trains.  They are big and roomy; smooth and quiet.  Our Swiss trains, of course were all about the view.

The trains we traveled on in Switzerland were all narrow gauge.  That means the tracks and, therefore, the cars are narrower.   Most of the time it didn’t make much difference but, on the Bernina Express it did.  We were in second class where the seats face one another in groups of four.  Jackie and I decided it would be better to spend the four-hour trip looking at one another (and with both of us having window seats).  That meant two other passengers on the full train sat beside of us.  They were nice people, but they didn’t speak much English, so we spent those hours listening to them speaking French to one another and to several other family members on the other side of the train car.  While traveling in second class worked great on all the other journeys we took, I think we’d opt spend the extra money and go for first class if we were ever to take that excursion again.  The first-class cars have two seats on one side and one seat on the other.  Much more room.

I confess that photography on the train was a challenge.  The train keeps moving and there are reflections in the windows.  I just took lots of photos and then deleted most of them, leaving only the ones I thought looked best.

If you ever plan on traveling by train in Europe, check out this web site – I got tons of great information there: https://www.seat61.com/ is a great resource.

Jackie and I were really blessed with the weather.  Not only was it unseasonably warm, but it also didn’t rain or snow on us the entire trip.  We couldn’t have ordered better weather for a January in the Alps!

My biggest budget miss was the cost of food.  Switzerland, in particular, was very expensive.  Just a hamburger and fries were over $20 a person.  When traveling, we generally try to eat one nicer meal each day, and then, in the evening, eat a sandwich, etc.   Even that approach was a challenge.  We often went to a grocery store and bought ready-made sandwiches with chips to take back to the hotel for supper.  Those sandwiches usually ran $7-8 each.  Two of the “best” deals were German Doner Kebab restaurants (lots of meat!) and many pizzerias.  I do like pizza, but not as a daily staple!

I researched hotels on Google, trying to find highly rated ones, for reasonable prices, that were close to train stations.  We were satisfied with all of them.  All but one offered breakfast with the stay.  The breakfasts were pretty good.

I’ll close out my writing with this.  Thanks to all who have read along.  Comments are always welcome and encourage me to keep writing.  All of the posts in this series can be easily found in our travel blog: http://localhost/pastorscott/travel/tag/italy-switzerland/

2023 – On the Bernina Express, Switzerland to Colico, Italy

Our ride on the Bernina Express took us high up into the Swiss Alps and then down to Torino, Italy.  The views from the train are exceptional and the route includes features like the 213 feet high Landwasser Viaduct and the Brusio spiral viaduct.  Gaining and losing as much altitude as the train does means there are lots of switchbacks, loops, and tunnels.  I took many photos and then, once the trip was over, I tried to pick only the best to save.  Admittedly, it was a challenge.

The ticketing situation for both Bernina and Glacier Express is a bit confusing.  There are two separate transactions.  First, you need to reserve a seat on the train.  The price for that is about $20.  You can reserve fairly early and you really need to because the train sells out well in advance.  Then, when you get closer to your reserved time, you have to buy the actual train ticket.  You can get a point to point ticket, a “super saver” if you book early, or a Saver Day pass which is good anywhere in Switzerland on trains and buses.  There are a limited number of these, so, again, committing early saves money.

I used the Trainline app for most of my train tickets.  It works in most of Europe, including the UK.  However, I used the Swiss rail app, SSB to get my Saver Day passes – that is the only place to get them.  I like using the apps because they let me work in English and not have to guess the meaning of German, Italian, etc. phrases.  Also, Trainline lets you pick your currency.  By picking US dollars I have a better idea of what, exactly, I am spending.  Having said all that, let me add that train travel on this trip has been among the least of our expenditures.  I’ve been constantly surprised at how low train prices are across Europe.

The train crosses into Italy at Torino.  We switched to an Italian train to take us to a beautiful lakeside town, Colico.  The town is on the shore of Lake Como, a 40 mile long, very deep glacial lake which is surrounded by snowcapped mountains.  This has been a popular vacation destination for hundreds of years.  Right now, of course, is off season but there was still a lot of activity in the town.

Tomorrow, we will continue our train journey along the shore of Lake Como back to Milan and to the airport for our flight back to Manchester.

2023 – Chur, Switzerland

Our Switzerland train journey continued with a ride through the high country between Brig and Chur.  Once again we climbed up above the snow line.  Rather than traveling on an express train we journeyed on local trains, needing to transfer to other trains a couple of times as we continued our trip.  Our train was full of skiers out for a day on the slopes.  A few stops were high in the mountains right at ski resorts with no town close by.  We lost count of all the cable lifts we saw.  We passed miles of cross-country skiers following a route through a valley and along the train tracks.  As we looked out at the mountains we could see people off in the distance skiing down.  Some train riders had snow sleds for their kids.  Honestly, if I headed out to the slopes, that would be about my speed!

We took lots of photos and I confess that, after a while, they start to look alike.  After all, when you’ve seen one amazing, beautiful, snowy mountain you’ve seen them all, right?

We arrived in Chur (pronounced “Coor”) and found our hotel a short distance from the big train station.  Chur has a very long history, dating back 3500 years before Christ.  This makes it one of the oldest settlements in all of Switzerland.

Our hotel is in a vehicle-free portion of the city, adjacent to the old town section of the city which is filled with narrow cobblestone walkways lined with shops and housing.  We explored the area and took photos but took full advantage of our planned off day in which we had no major sightseeing planned.

One nice thing we have found about the hotels in this part of the world is that most have electric plug adapters available if you ask for them.  Apparently, Switzerland uses a plug that is a bit different than other European countries.  The voltage is the same, just the plug is different.  Because of that, hotels keep adapters available.

In case you don’t know it, our US electric is different than that in most of the world.  Because of that, you can’t use any device with a motor in it, like a hair dryer.  However, almost any electronic device like a cell phone or laptop will charge up just fine if you have the right plug adapter.  To be sure, just look at the charger that plugs into the wall.  On the small print it will have something like: “input 100-240v.”  That means the charger will work fine on US voltage of 110 and European voltage of 220.  All you need is a plug adapter.  Also, our phones and IPad can be charged from the USB ports built into many electric plugins here.

By early afternoon we settled into our hotel room to relax and prepare for tomorrow’s train trip on a major excursion train higher up into the Alps than we have gone yet.

2023 – Brig and Zermatt, Switzerland

The primary theme of our Italy-Switzerland Adventure is train trips.  We rode the train *under* the Alps from Milan to Lucerne, and now, we are traveling the amazing train routes up into the Alps.  Our trip from Lucerne to Brig, Switzerland included time in a famous tunnel that has a double spiral (like a figure-eight.)  The funny thing is, aside from being in the dark for more than 20 miles, there was no sensation of going round and round.  The spirals allow the train to gain altitude in a short distance and as far as I could tell the train never slowed down through the entire trip.

We arrived in Brig and, after finding our hotel, we looked around the pretty city, surrounded by snow caped mountains.  The weather has been unseasonably warm here (mostly in the 40s).  Because of that the snow level is confined to the mountains around us.  We think that is just right!  The hotel is adjacent to Stockalper Castle.  It is impressive to look at, but doesn’t offer tours in the winter time.  The other thing Brig is famous for is that the train station here serves as a major interchange for some important rail lines.

There are two famous rail excursions in this part of Switzerland.  The Glacier Express travels between two major ski areas.  However, it travels on the regular tracks and the regular trains that offer service to the same places have nice big windows.  I say that to explain that over the next two days we are traveling trains on the Glacier Express route, but not on that particular excursion.  The nice thing for us is that we can hop on and off the trains wherever we like rather than needing to stay with a tour.

This morning we left Brig and headed up deeper into the mountains to a world class winter playground: Zermatt, Switzerland.  The train climbed up above the snow line.  The scenery is amazing.  For many people Zermatt is all about skiing.  There are thousands of hotel rooms and chalet rentals.  Only electric powered, small taxis and a couple of small, free, electric busses are allowed on the streets.  There are several ski lifts and a cog railway offering access on up to the ski areas high above the town.

And, from most anywhere the Matterhorn, which towers over 14,000 feet can be seen.  It is beautiful beyond words.  We looked around, took photos, checked out an area where buildings dating back over 400 years have been preserved.  After having lunch we returned to Brig.  Due to the time difference, we got back to our room just in time to catch Sunday School and church in Texas!

Here are a couple of travel tips that might be helpful to some.  First, there’s a free app called “Google Lens.”  It has other uses, but it’s translate function is great for people traveling.  Using Lens you turn on translate.  Your phone camera comes on and you can aim it at any text.  The app translates the text to English and on the screen the words actually morph from whatever language you are looking at into English!  Tonight we were buying sandwiches to bring back to our room.  The labels were in German, but when I looked at them through Lens I could see that they were turkey.  We don’t speak hardly any German, but we were able to navigate our way through the store and get what we wanted.  Really cool!

Another thing: on the train and many other places, announcements in Switzerland are repeated in German, then French, and then English.  That makes it easy to get around.  Aside from that, since we are in a major tourist area, we hear English spoken most everywhere.

Tomorrow, we continue the Glacier Express route.  What a way to start a New Year!

2022 – Milan, Italy

The day after Christmas we boarded an EasyJet flight from Manchester to Milan, Italy for our first visit to Italy and then Switzerland.  Air fares are quite good around Europe, and we didn’t want to miss the chance to do some exploring.  As we approached Milan we could see the Alps (Italian or Swiss?) down below us.  That marked the beginning of our Adventure.

Milan is a big city, filled with activity everywhere.  We got around using public transportation, mostly the subway.  I specifically picked our hotel based on its easy subway and train access – right across from the Milan Central Train Station.

Since we don’t speak Italian we were concerned about the language barrier.  We learned just a few phrases, but before long we realized that everyone seems to speak English.  Some people just looked at us and switched to English (apparently, we “look” like tourists).  I tried my few Italian words out, but, apparently, even my Italian sounds like American English because they would usually answer me in English anyway.

We bought 3 day transit tickets, so we could hop on and off of the subway or trolley where ever we wanted.  That set us free to explore the main sights of the city.  The subway, by the way, is very popular and more often than not it offered standing room only.  Most of our trips were 3-5 stops, so that wasn’t a real big deal except for the afternoons when we were getting leg weary.  We never rode the subway during rush hour.  I can’t imagine the cars being more crowded than they were.

One of the highlights of the city is Leonardo da Vinci’s famous mural, The Last Supper, which was painted in the late 15th century.  We had to buy tickets early to see it, but we felt it was well worth the effort.  The painting is on the wall of the church.  Amazingly, it survived Allied bombs that hit the church during WWII.  It was humbling to see the famous art in person.

In route to see the painting we walked around the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.  This is a very upscale shopping area, filled with luxury stores.  The entire area was crowed to the point that it was hard to walk around. I think everyone was touring like us, although a few people had shopping bags, so some people were there to actually shop!

The heart of Milan is the huge Duomo Cathedral. The church dates back to the 1300’s and construction continued on the building over 600 years!  One feature not to be missed is the rooftop tour!  By going up on top you get a more close up view of the amazing architecture of the building.  There are statues, latticework, and spires everywhere.  It is amazing to me that statues would be placed in areas that could never be seen from the ground.  We took the elevator up but ended up climbing up and down many stairs as we followed the route up higher and higher.  Of course, the views of the city are magnificent.  Then, even from the roof top there are still more spires towering high above.  The inside of the building is amazing too.  This ancient church seats 40,000 worshippers!  It seems that every square inch of the interior is carved, decorated, etc.  There are stained glass windows everywhere, including some huge windows made up of smaller windows that tell the story of the Bible.

After finishing up our tour of the church we hopped on the subway to visit the Piazza Gae Aulenti.  Visiting this ultra-modern shopping area after exploring the Cathedral nearly gave us “architectural whiplash!”  From an ancient building we found ourselves surrounded by the latest, most modern buildings you can imagine.  The Christmas market was still in operation, and there was a giant “tree” constructed of snow sleds.  It was very interesting.   In the near distance there are two “forest” sky scrapers.  These big apartment buildings are covered with trees!

For meals we had mostly pasta.  One night I had a pizza that was quite good.  The next night I had lasagna that was even better.  Jackie loved the Alfredo with mushrooms she had one meal.  I enjoyed a coffee they have called a macchiato.  It is similar to a latte but somehow better.  It seems that there are coffee shops and pizzerias on every corner.

I think we could have continued sightseeing Milan a few more days.  It is an interesting and fun place to visit.  If you come, don’t miss the Cathedral rooftop or the “Last Supper.”

2022 – York, UK Christmas Market

York, England is about 70 miles from where we are staying in southern Manchester. The train trip, including the journey from our flat to the train station, is about 2 hours. York, which was founded in 71 A.D. has Roman walls, a huge and famous church, an ancient and still-operating shopping district, a castle, and is the home of the National Rail Museum. Honestly, there’s more than anyone can hope to see in one day.

This time of the year, famous Shambles Street is the epicenter of a huge Christmas market. We checked out the wall, which is easily reached from the rail station and then headed to the Christmas market. Our plan was to look it over and then visit York Minister – the world-famous church.

Our plans didn’t work out because the Christmas Market was absolutely amazing. Every time we thought we were coming to the end of the market we would look down a street and see another street filled with stalls of food and gifts.

By the time we finished, we were running out of energy and time. We may well return to York in a few months just to see some of the above-mentioned sights. At least we have a better idea of what to expect on a future adventure there.

2022 – Stockport Air Raid Shelters

2022 – Stockport Air Raid Shelter

Just a few minutes from the campus of Nazarene Theological College where we are volunteering is Stockport, still within the confines of the Manchester metro area.  We’ve visited the shopping mall there several times.  Today, we visited a historical site just steps from the mall.  The Stockport Air Raid Shelters are tunnels dug out of limestone to provide protection for the citizens of the area.  Today, this site serves as a reminder of what life was like for the people of this area during World War II. Because Manchester was a major manufacturing hub of England it came under German fire many times, including a major attack over Christmas of 1940.  Hundreds died and thousands were injured during the Manchester Blitz.  During that raid, and others, people in the Stockport area found shelter in these tunnels.  It was sobering to imagine women and children hurrying into these tunnels as air raid sirens sounded the warning.