Now for part 2.. we had 11 days rest after coming back from Scotland… then we were picked up by Brenda on the 27^th August , off to Norwich airport and headed south to Malta… we landed there just after 11pm and were transferred to the Qawara Palace hotel in the north-eastern corner of the island.. we had a lot to cram in to our week in Malta..it is a very historic island and there’s lots to see and do… we spent our days doing this and our evenings relaxing either at the hotel entertainment or just round the corner at Murphy’s Irish bar… they had some good acts and they also served Kilkenny…we had an evening trip around, finishing in Valletta watching a 5D film of the history of the island.. excellent stuff.. next day we went on the ordinary bus into Valletta and wandered about looking at the St John Co-cathedral and seeing the firing of the noon cannon at the Saluting Battery… we went to the Mosta Dome, where, in 1942, a bomb came through the roof of the Dome, where 300 people were taking shelter, and it didn’t explode…they took this to be a miracle.. we visited St Julian’s, Mdina, Bugiba and other places, we went on a trip to see the Blue Grotto and the Sunday market , then we had a very tiring, whole day trip to Gozo, the island to the north of Malta…we were shattered… it was well up in the 40 degrees… we enjoyed our holiday in Malta very much and came home on the 3^rd of September.. we had a day of rest on the Wednesday and I was back to work on Thursday when the schools went back…

Schools broke up on July 24^th… that gave us the weekend to get tidied up and packed.. then we were off…we spent a couple of days with Donnie, Mags and Andy, in Lincoln… had an hour with Les and Carol in their new house before heading north on the 1^st August to Jedburgh, in the Scottish borders….we had a night in the Glenbank Hotel, excellent.. met up with my cousin, Maggie, and her husband, Ian…had a good evenings ‘blether’.. catching up with the old days, etc.. before heading up to Aberdeen, via Edinburgh, and Dundee, to spend a lovely, long weekend with my brother James and his wife Pat,….we had Saturday lunch with a nice couple, Eddie and Yvonne, who we met on our cruise on the Island Escape, a few years ago.. we had kept in touch… we took a run out to the Woodend Bar, in Stoneywood, Aberdeen, to visit Liz’s cousin, Gail… James took us out to try the new Jamie Oliver Italian restaurant in Aberdeen.. we had a great night with James, Pat and our neice, Sonya, and Mark with their girls…then on the Tuesday, we headed off to Inverness, to spend a lovely couple of nights getting to visit the city… we met up with an old school pal, George Maclean, who had played in the band at our wedding 48 years ago, and had done very well for himself and now owns the Castle Tavern in Castle Street… we then visited Gail’s mum, Joyce, on the Black Isle, spending a couple of hours catching up again.. before heading away up north to Wick, where we spent another excellent weekend, staying with my brother Sandy, and his wife Irene, trying to catch up with all our old friends and acquaintances in the Francis Street Club, the Queens’ Hotel and various other places of interest… we then went off to Lyth, to spend a night where we stayed with my sister Margaret and her partner Don.. excellent, as well, at least til the band turned up and things got a bit hazy after that…then we were off up to Tongue, in Sutherland-shire, to spend a day with our old mate, Alan, who has retired up there… we had a good day there, with Alan taking us for a run about and out for a meal in the Ben Loyal Hotel… we then headed back home on the scenic route through the north Highlands before breaking our journey in Auchterarder in Perthshire… we stayed in the Allendale Hotel before heading south to spend a night with Donnie and Mags and got back home in North Walsham on the 16^th August…. We put about 2500 miles on the clock… so not too bad… (second half to follow later)