30/5/26 Valencia Silk Exchange

 

     Today we ventured into the old city area for a look around , first stop was the Silk Exchange , where traders have been buying & selling produce for hundreds of years 

                                 Massive doors each end of the building are impressive 

     We admired all of this with all of these other people who had the same idea .

      The spiral columns support the roof structure , with chandeliers hanging down , and marble floors .

          This is a shot of one of the panels in the ceiling of another room - plenty of work in them as well.

    That same room has these window shutter doors - all solid oak , and the 3d effect floor tiling 

    In this room beside the main hall was another amazing piece of work - this is also a ceiling . There are so many different patterns , faces , animals etc - incredible how much detail is in it !

Here's a shot to put it into some perspective , you can get a feeling for size with the people at the bottom  of the photo .

     Here's a closer view of the ceiling.

Some more street art as we wander around - interesting way to camouflage an electrical box .

                           

             Here's some of the streetscapes , with plenty of small restaurants & bars using the space available .

Plenty of buildings have some great feature tiles on them as well .

     Okay time for a map link :- https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1KjrOV7ZhiSgrMGM0CBCIDOFtxAdyoCk&usp=sharing

29/5/26 Valencia Oceanographic

 

   Today Isla was extra excited , we are going to Oceanographic , right beside the science centre , but so much more to see & look at . Here's a photo of them .

    There are millions of fish swimming around in the tanks and exhibits - these are Scorpion Fish - definitely not the prettiest .

     These are Giant Spider Crabs and they can move pretty fast , they're about 400mm across - one would make a decent feed !!!

    Ironically we've travelled half way round the world to check out these King Penguins from Antarctica !!

    One of the highlights for us was the Beluga Whales , unfortunately for you , they didn't photograph very well , so don't get an appearance here Sorry ! , We probably only saw about one third of the Oceanographic displays today , the place is massive . One other exhibit we went to was the shark exhibit , where there were plenty of sharks floating around , with turtles and another surprise - there were several swordfish - over 3m in length !

     Now for a change in scenery , some street art on the way to or from the beach .

    We decided to eat out after another big day out , having tapas down at a restaurant on the esplanade . We left the restaurant feeling a little like cattle going through a feedlot - we were there , ate & paid , but didn't seem to be authentic or have a lot of taste . More to come 😉

28/5/26 Valencia Science Museum

 

   Today we head to the Science Museum and all that magnificent architecture on the sites around it . We had a bus ride that dropped us about 500m walk away , then we wandered across , passed through this fountain which conveniently sprayed above us as we walked through the fountain .

 Beside the Science Center , was this large blue shell?? , which is the L'Agora - a museum , beside it was this giant curved mast with cables coming off it - it's actually the support for a 6 lane road bridge over the parkland below .

       Science Center is straight ahead , on the left is an arched garden which hides the carpark below .

     This is looking toward Hemispheric , then the larger building behind is Palau de Le Arts - performing arts centre . Both very imposing buildings !!

Here's that garden over the carpark.

The Hemispheric , performing arts centre and science centre are all surrounding by massive ponds about 1m deep 

    Inside the science centre was a drawcard for Isla and Justin , we walked around and looked at lots of different exhibits from the human genome right up to the International Space Station . The inside has 5 of these trees , which support all of the roof , amazing stuff .

    With the day taken up with wandering through here , we caught another bus home & had some dinner before heading down to the beach again . That's the joy of sunset at 9:20pm . Temperatures are generally up to 30-32 in the city , and about 5 degrees cooler at the beach . Even at 9pm it was still a pleasant 27 degrees . Stay tuned for more .

26/5/26 Valencia

 

    Monday was spent getting ourselves organised for the next part of our trip , this time we are headed to Valencia , Spain for 10 days with Justin & Isla , while she is on a 2 week mid term break from school .            So Tuesday , away we go to the train station and off to Gatwick airport for our next flight to Valencia . Flying Wizz , we were shuttled to the plane in buses . We appeared to be a distance from the airport buildings and we were being kept in the bus until everything was good to load - it's a busy airport , with lots of vehicle movements around the place .

    After an uneventful flight , we arrived in Valencia , customs & immigration negotiated , we headed out to the train station to take us into the city , about 11 stops away , then a change to a tram for the next segment , finally arriving near our accomodation about 600m away . Jacaranda's are out in flower here at the moment and make for pretty street scenery .

    After Justin and I went to the supermarket and got the required provisions , we sat and enjoyed a beer together back at the apartment , before tea was prepared . After our meal we wandered down to the beachfront for a look - it was about 800m away. There's a promenade that's about 10m wide , lined with palms , then a garden and another footpath in front of all the restaurants & shops - there were people everywhere and that was 9pm . The beach started on the other side of the promenade , where there were timber pathways going out towards the water - the beach here is over 200m of sand before you get to the waters of the Mediterranean . The timber boardwalks certainly come in handy on the hot days when you can't walk on the sand because it's too hot , but they end about 50 m from the waters edge , so there's still some hot footing it to be done !! There's plenty of people on the promenade , but equally the same still out at the beach , enjoying the water and kicking soccer balls around . The beach goes for 4 or 5klms into the distance !!

 

This gives you an idea of the amount of sand before the water .

   Next day we head into the city for a look around . We got of the tram , then train and popped up to the surface right next to the Bullring on the left and another train station on the right .

    The bullring hasn't been used for bull fighting for some time now , but it was interesting to see it - would have been even better if we could have gone inside the gates for a better look !! This is as close as I could get .

Many buildings are adorned with sculptures etc .

On our walk around the bullring , we found this street art depicting the slave trade in the fashion industry.

Across from it was this one on the walls of a coffee shop .

   There are multicoloured terracotta roofs on various buildings and domes in the city .

    Flags flying outside the city council building  .

     As well as the flags , there was also this fountain in a square nearby . We continued on through some of the city to the Central Market , and had some Empanadas for lunch . We also purchased some dried pineapple , strawberries and mango , as well as some macadamia's to snack on in the following days . It is an interesting walk through the markets , seeing all the fruit & vegetables , fresh fish & seafood , bakery items and lots more we didn't get to see .

    The bus stop was right beside the fountain , so we grabbed a bus and headed back to the apartment for a well earned rest and refreshment . Cheers , here's a map link :- https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1h2hRGdsulkJgaFRbPeA4A6zi5qfQvpg&usp=sharing

23/5/26 Woking UK

 

     After leaving Singapore and a twelve & a half hour flight , we arrived at Heathrow Airport and made our way through immigration and customs halls to the arrival hall and arrived just as Justin and Isla arrived to greet us and take us home . It was big hugs from both of them and we were happy to be there with them . Isla chatted non stop on the way home & we finally got to bed about 11pm London time . 

  Next day we decided to go to cricket with Justin and Isla , it was good to see some of his cricket team mates again , and were warmly welcomed again . Lyn and Isla decided to go back home , so i dropped them off and went back to the cricket . It was a beautiful afternoon , getting up to 30 degrees later in the afternoon , but there was also a nice breeze blowing , a very pleasant afternoon to help adjust time zones . The cricket was a loss for Justins side however , courtesy of some very dubious umpiring !! Here's a picture of the field with the clubhouse off to the right 

    Next day was also another warm one , again up to 30 degrees , so we headed out to Gomshall Mill and the Compasses Inn . As it was Sunday and a corker of a day , everyone was out & about , it was busy . You can sit and have a meal & a drink whilst the kids play in the shallow creek that runs underneath the flour mill and the Inn . It was pleasant to cool your feet off , some kids were fully soaked - it was very cool water flowing down .

   In between the Inn and Flour Mill was an old phone box , with a vintage sign and lightpost , even had a vintage motorbike - would be at least from the mid 70's ?

    This is the Flour Mill , which is also a pub and restaurant .

    That capped our weekend off nicely , we then ventured off home to more conversation and games with Isla . Time to prepare for the next journey . Here's a map link :- https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=1nAkzHfbxK1XEjwNOcxZzke8uAmpjneM&usp=sharing

The next chapter is starting . A rocky start .

 

     All prepared for our next journey , we woke to find my throat was sore and head congested - not ideal when you're about to jump on a train , a jet , and a taxi for the best part of today . Emma dropped us at the train station and we patiently waited for the next train and 9:10am - The Pensioner Express . Every older person travelling was waiting for the clock to tick over to 9am before swiping there cards to enable free travel 😉😎 - yes we did as well 🤣. After a platform change and about an hour 20 , we arrived at the airport , checked in , luggage checked in , we were ready to go . As with all international flights , there is the required waiting time , and in my current health , I was waiting for them to say you're not boarding like that , so I took some more paracetamol and sat patiently . I grabbed some gold laced food - bacon & egg bagel and a bottle of water for $24 , so we had something before we boarded the plane . Despite the price , it was nice ,  and filled the hole temporarily before the meal on board in an hour or 2 . 

  Before long we boarded the plane , and away we go - our usual stop at Singapore . The flight was uneventful , our backsides weren't enjoying that much down time however .  Arrived at Singapore and met our taxi ride out the front of  the terminal 3 building at Changi airport , he wisked us away to our accomodation . The humidity and temperature was a bit overwhelming , the weather for our stay was going from a low of 28 to a max of 33 each day , and the humidity was constant between 85 and 100% !!

   After a very average nights sleep - blocked head , running nose and a throaty cough - we headed for a shower then down to breakfast . A continental breakfast with a variety of asian dishes , as well as all the usual suspects , was being enjoyed by the hordes of clients staying at the Holiday Inn Express . First job , find a pharmacy to get something for this head cold . Chinatown was only about 800m away according to Dr google , so away we went . Fortunately we got to walk mostly in the shade , but it was still up there in comfort level . This is Church St Singapore , we love this building with the section of carpark and garden below the tower . Singapore has landscaped the city so well .

   Okay pharmacy found , said nasal spray wouldn't interact with my assorted pills , so we headed back to the hotel - it was too humid & hot to continue wandering around - besides there was a pool on the roof to swim in . Only a metre deep and glass wall on the rhs , but it was good to remove some of the heat .

     After the swim we sat & chatted to some kiwis , their luggage hadn't made it to Singapore with them , it was still in Melbourne where they changed flights yesterday , but did arrive today .

  Back to our room and another go on this new nasal spray , and Lyn reads the instructions , which clearly states - Not to be used if you have high blood pressure medication  - I specifically asked the pharmacist 3 times , are you sure this is okay for me , of which she said , Yes , this is specifically for that scenario . Well my Bp was 115/62 in the morning , but spiked to 157/82 in the afternoon - guess I won't use that one again!!

  From our rooftop pool , I noticed a chinese temple down below , starting to be swallowed up by high rises .

    Here's the view from ground level , ornately decorated roof with green terracotta tiles .

 

    Continuing down to Riverside Point for a meal , then to Clarke Quay for a stroll around in the slightly cooler evening air . Well the meal we had wasn't the best, we went to the brewery , didn't enjoy the meal or the beer to be honest . But the walk around , without the sun turning you into a baked potato was nice . There's plenty of eateries down at Clarke Quay , maybe we should have gone there instead ! Each of the canopies have a large fan to move the air around , which it needs !!

   The city does look great at night , and the Singapore River only adds to it . Bumboats take tourists for a ride up & down the river and down to Marina Bay Sands for the light show over the water - we'll do that on our return trip back home .

   The weather and our health doesn't work at the moment , so small walks and a trip to the supermarket at Clarke quay was our next option , more paracetamol and a nasal spray of salt water purchased . The walk took us past the Chinese temple again , so got some better photos of some it .

    Over to Clarke Quay and a look at some of the old warehouse buildings , all colourful and busting with life in the evenings . There's a variety of bars & restaurants using the space these days , whereas they were used as warehouses for all the goods that came up & down the river on the bumboats .

    Clarke Quay is covered in large umbrella like structures , each of the stands has a large stainless steel section , that works as a fan to blow air around , also to humidify it if required ???? , hence keeping you dry and slightly cooler than the outside areas .

     What Singapore makes up for in its minimal size , is the amount of skyscrapers , housing people & business's . This is the business area .

This large building attracted my attention . It's a colonial style building , 6 stories high and colourful shuttered windows everywhere . It is Mill St Police Station and a few government departments as well .

   There you have our first few days in Singapore , big day tomorrow , nearly 14 hours flying to Heathrow.

Catch up time

 

   Well he we are again , we did make it back to Emma's . The Nullabor crossing was uneventful till we got 10 kms or so away from Norseman . The skies opened up and deposited a large amount of rain in next to no time . This was the remnants of the well travelled Cyclone Narelle . Stopping in Norseman for some fuel - we had 2 choices BP or Ampol - Ampol won as it was 20cents a litre cheaper !! After fuelling we went down the road a little further to wait for the rain to stop , water was running across the roads , felt like we were driving through a creek crossing , it was about 5cm deep all over the roadway - and that's in a very dry place normally . 

 We continued on , stopping near Lake Cowan for some lunch , and to let the rain ease or stop , which it did . On to Kambalda for the night , then Kalgoorlie to restock and regroup after a lot of driving . The SuperPit Lookout has been moved further south , so we went for a look , same building , but further down.

   It has been moved to allow further expansion of the pit , and must admit we both enjoy seeing how it all works & moves . 

  We spent 3 days at the free camp before continuing to Perth in a couple of days .

  Our stats fro the crossing were interesting -

4,618.8klms to Byford from Moss Vale , 944.4 litres of diesel , which averaged out at 20.46lt/100klms usage , and the cost averaged out at $2.99/litre - yes an expensive trip , but we did need to get back for our next adventure .