I'm bound back for Newcastle it's been quite a while since here I have travelled but now with a smile I'm back to the city through which flows the Tyne for work, yes but seeing some good friends of mine so I know we will share some pints at a Tap before in a couple of days I head back
Newcastle II
Liverpool again
Today I'm travelling further since the pandemic started than I have travelled recently that pleasure long departed But later Liverpool I'll see again and better still two good friends I have sorely missed again to see I will It'll take me six hours on the train but I have all I need good music to look forward to and several books to read
Three Days
With darkness outside at the end of the night I am tired and stifle a yawn it is quiet and yet still I'm up with the lark at this early hour shy of the dawn And I have to say pleased it is only three days each week that this I must do as today I am feeling my sixty plus years and would gladly these long days eschew Just one more to master and then some respite four days of a weekend in store to chill and relax and slumber enjoy before heading back for three more
Stations
With its long reach this station clad with many journeys I have had Over the years to different places some with airs and some with graces Quiet, it exudes a charm which here has never done me harm
Normality
It's a first for me today no trains for quite time not since the first lockdown have I braved the ridden line And yet today to Worthing I must venture yet again for my first day in an office and a journey on a train
Of this world…
A face lay there in eternal sleep,
No smile.
No frown.
I wonder,
“After all, smiles and frowns are of this world”.
A Coddiwompling Limerick
The whimsy of a long moment
This time last year II
The Bridge Hotel
Passing through
Cold in Manchester
Raining
In was raining down in Shoreham
and in Sussex as we passed
with rain up into Surrey
by its leave but never asked
It was pouring down in London
with umbrellas everywhere
and as we headed northward
there was no let up there
There was rain in the Home Counties
and very wet outside
and rain into Northamptonshire
as if the world had cried
Miles Melting
Split II
12 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
Sitting on deck six
with Split across the way
Picturing all the things
that have made this holiday
It has been all we hoped for
and though we fly home on the morrow
It is with happiness we’re leaving
and not one tinged with sorrow
For we’ve criss-crossed the Adriatic
seen sunshine and some rain
Visited new places and
been back to some again
Rijeka
10 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
In Rijeka in the market
whilst making little fuss
a lovely lady sold us socks
hand-knitted just for us
Yellow painted buildings
suggested that this city
once held a lot more grandeur
now faded more’s the pity
Still, we had a little walkabout
soaked up the local flair
celebrating somewhere different
and simply being there
Venice II
Venice (touch n go)
8 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
The fog came down, it was quite thick
and we weren’t moving far
and dropping anchor out at sea
was unspectacular
Then the captain on the tannoy said
Venice was closed today
which as you might imagine
was met with some dismay
But then out there to starboard
a pale sun made a show
and as the pea soup dissipated
the ship prepared to go
Koper
Ancona II
6 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
I sat on the sun deck with a cold beer
in the hot Ancona sun
watching the Superfast ferry unload
until the unloading was done
Hundreds of lorries off on their way
into Italy with cargoes intact
Like a well-oiled machine, facinating to see
from my lofty position, relaxed
So I watched as I waited for an hour or two
as all the time in the world here have I
Before Slovenia bound we disembark
which I think kicks off around five
Ancona Encore
5 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
Ancona encore
with a climb up the hill
to cathedral and Roman remains
The sun shone down bright
on this lovely sight
that Ancona in Italy claims
Ancona encore
for the Trajan gate
viewed from high over the sea
This Italian port
in October sun caught
A highlight for Sally and me
Hoorah for Hvar
Hvar
Dubrovnik Divine
2 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
A really fitting ending
to what has been a perfect day
and as golden sun sinks in the west
Dubrovnik has its say
We wandered ‘neath the city walls
enjoying lovely heat
had cold beers and lovely
giant ice-creams in the street
We discovered lovely places
we had not found before
and took photos to remember
all the wonders that we saw
Finding Summer
1 of 12 in ‘The Adriatic Affair’ series from Jemverse
We’re off to find the summer
for a little while at least
and from now til mid-November
all working has now ceased
Yet we shiver in our shirtsleeves
beneath cold English skies
before towards the summer
our big jet plane it flies
Dubrovnik in Croatia
awaits us basking in the sun
beginning here our autumn break
with eight more days to come
Yorkshire
So I’m back up in West Yorkshire
God’s own country so they say
But my preference is for Sussex
which I prefer ‘most any day
Yes, here there are attractions
unique to Yorkshire and the north
But home’s still where the heart is
when one travels back and forth
So I’ll gladly come for business
or to visit for a while
But take me back to Sussex
as it always brings a smile