My flight to Helsinki was about 45 minutes later departing, but made up about 30 of those apparently due to a tail wind. I took the train from the airport to Helsinki station. I don’t recall doing this before, but it was fast and inexpensive. I ate a very average burger at the station whilst waiting for my sleeper train since this would allow me to get to sleep quicker than eating on the train. The sleeper train was indeed
Ireland 2023 – Day 4
A trip to Tintern Abbey today. We started with the nearby Colclough Walled Garden which is only a few minutes walk away and can be visited on a combined ticket. The garden is large by the standard of walled gardens and indeed the walls themselves are quite impressive. There were some pleasant sections with streams running through, but the large kitchen garden area was mostly dug up (it wasn’t clear why at this time of year). Overall, we didn’t feel
Ireland 2023 – Day 3
Off to visit nearby Ferne castle. It isn’t particularly big, but entry – including a guided tour – is FREE! When we arrived a school tour was just starting and we were told that the next tour would also be for a school but that we were welcome to join on so we did. The guide was knowledgeable and managed to keep the children reasonably well engaged. She also gave us a few minutes of her time once the school
Ireland 2023 – Day 2
Our first full day in Ireland. When we arrived yesterday we heard from thecottage owners that there was to be a classic car rally today at nearby WellsHouse at which they would be exhibiting their own vintage vehicle. Since it was only a couple of miles down the road we decided to go. We got to the house quite early whilst the classic cars were still arrivingand had a look around. There were actually plenty of other attractionsincluding formal gardens
Mk4 Fiesta hyperflash
I recently blogged about my efforts to replace most of the bulbs in my Fiesta with LEDs. Mostly this has gone well, but one area where there have been difficulties are the indicators. When I installed the first LED I immediately got “hyperflash” where the flash rate increases a great deal to practically produce a flickering effect. My supplier – Classic Car LEDs – had indeed predicted this problem and investigating and solving it taught me a great deal about
LED lamps on the Mk 4 Fiesta
Recently, I’ve been trying to convert most of the lamps on my old Mk4 Fiesta over to LEDs. There are several motivations for this: A better quality of light. Reduced chance of a failed bulb attracting the attention of the Old Bill. Reduced possibility of a flat battery if I manage to leave the lights on. I have exclusively used products from Classic Car LEDs with whom I have no connections other than as a satisfied customer. They appear to
Isle of Wight 2022 Day 1
We had an uneventful crossing on the Wightlink ferry from Lymington to Yarmouth. It was so quick and easy that we really couldn’t understand why we hadn’t done so before. It was a relatively short drive to the cottage near Brighstone (but then everywhere is a short drive on the IoW) and we arrived soon after the check-in time. The cottage was clean and reasonably spacious but was one of these places with mean owners who can’t part with a
Lincolnshire 2022 Day 2
Today we drove over to Skegness to see their seal sanctuary. It is more of a mini zoo with a collection of other animals including penguins, reptiles, butterflies, goats and an aquarium. I will admit to a fondness for seals. Their rotund forms and tendency to laze about waiting for the next meal appeals to me! Overall it was worth the entrance fee and the lunch we had in their cafe was perfectly acceptable for such an establishment. It wasn’t
Lincolnshire 2022 Day 1
The first day of our short break in Baumber, Lincolnshire and we started with a trip to the local town of Horncastle. Sadly, many shops in Horncastle are closed on Mondays, but we managed to sample a number of charity shops. One had a nice selection of copies of Railway Modeller, mostly from the 1990s, so I bought a couple for 50p each. We then wandered into a junk shop in the old Coop building. The first room was as
2022 Trip – Day 7
Distance Average Speed Max Speed 31 km 11.7 km/h 51.2 km/h After a reasonable night at Janisvaara I was expecting that I would drive across the northern swamps once Timo had opened a trail. By 1000 there was no sign of Timo so I sent him a text asking what was happening. Unfortunately, I misunderstood the reply. Timo wanted to indicate that he would be along later to open the trails, but I understood him to be saying that he was