T-4 – Traveling south, with a twist

Today, I was awake at 6am (the alarm was due to start from 7am), but I was out and up texting Caroline from 6.40am. Shower, out for breakfast, and also stocked up on some batteries, and other essentials that I’ve not yet managed to get, as well as some rather nice Honduras from Braithwaite's (Coffee Of The Month) as well as some d*caf.

This is a fairly recent arrival for Stagecoach Strathtay – some two year old ex-Manchester Trident’s are arriving. Four for Service 39 (Montrose – Invergowrie), and also two for Services 20/22 (Dundee – Forfar/Kirriemuir), which will be joined later in the year by some all-new MAN/East Lancs Kinetic single deckers, when the 20 is increased to a 20-minute daytime service (currently 30 min) between Dundee and Forfar, with BRDG funding. This will mean the entire service is low-floor operated. Anyway, 18389 is seen in the Seagate.


I was planning to take the train south, so after my round of shopping, I called for a taxi to the station (had six bags, I might have managed but for the time sake!), and the driver said "Now, going anywhere nice?" He went quiet after I told him... my first TMI of the day... and I didn't go much detail at all... maybe he wondered why I was smiling when I was going for surgery... anyway, never mind. The Royal Scotsman had been stabled in Dundee overnight on a rail tour.


I travelled south on GNER – perhaps the last time I will before the change of franchise next month. The train from Dundee left on time, but we got stuck on the Fife side of the Forth Bridge. We also lost time on the way around Morpeth, apparently due to trespassers, for which a customer charter refund is not paid – and also because it was just under 20 minutes. It’s those little delays that force you to reschedule and revise your connections (for the second time in seven days), but not late enough to qualify for anything repaid to cover the inconvenience. Not a problem, both my connections were at least twice an hour!

I actually enjoyed the journey. I was sat back-facing in a 125, with an aisle seat at a table. The journey was relaxing enough, with an entire pass of the 1gb MP3 player card, lots of tunes! There was also plenty of opportunity to check my emails on my mobile phone, texts in and out to lots of people, coffee and lunch at one point. Did you know sweet chillies are grown in Biggleswade?

When we got into Peterborough, I walked across the bridge to Platform 3A for the "KX Via Huntingdon/St Neots" train (i.e. the stopper) to Hitchin, before changing for a train to Royston, where Caroline was there to pick me up.

Good to see everyone again, for one final time - for now. I'll be back again soon enough, but there's something else in the way!

(Oh, and I noticed when I got home… most of my chest has disappeared since stopping the hormones, but I managed an extra thumbnail of depth back after yesterday’s late lunch. Didn’t realise deep fried pizza acts as an estrogen amplifier…)

By the way, from yesterday’s showbag… these individual Dundee cakes came as part of the Travelwise Scotland Showcase showbag. This event also commemorated two organisations joining together, hence ‘wedding’ cake…


… which came with an apt warning… (for now at least!)…


… two name badges in six days!...