Manchester United Vs Tottenham Hotspurs - Old Trafford 30/10/10

Manchester United's first warming up before the match and getting organized.

Manchester United's home ground Old Trafford starting to soak up some atmosphere before the game.

Sir Bobby Charlton and my dad in the Directors lounge.

Sir Bobby Charlton and I in the Manchester United's  director lounge. 

Lady and Sir Bobby Charlton and I after the match in the Directors lounge.

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Me about to walk onto the Manchester United pitch.

At the game between Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspurs I was hosted by Lady and Sir Bobby Charlton. We had brilliant seats in the V.I.P area and we were sitting pretty much next to the Manchester United subs and the England Manager.

Those that watched the game would have seen some players slip in the first half. Thats because a

few minutes before the game started the sprinklers came on across the field. The head groundsman after the game told me it was to give the ball a bit of zing when kicked across the grass and that all big stadiums do it.

After the game Sir Bobby Charlton took Dad I and his other visitors down to walk on the pitch which many people don't get to do, it's mainly the players. As you can see behind us that there mowing the pitch 20 mins after it finished. But there not, they are blow drying it just before putting on the lights to heat it up till the next game.

As I am writing this I am in the airport about to board the plane to come home :( and so I wont be able to do any more blog or take emails for a while.

France Pictures

Dad an I in Paris standing outside the   Eiffel Tower.

Looking up at the Eiffel tower, from underneath.

Dads journey up the Eiffel Tower.

We made to the top what a great view from the Eiffel tower.












A typical picture of the Eiffel tower at night.

 A Paris view of a main street but not as busy as it can get.                                                                

Pics Of Journey in Germany

Sorry followers and friends I have been really busy but having a great time so here are some photos of our journey so far. I can fill you in on the detail when I am home.

 Germany



 Dad and I with our family in Germany. It is my Aunty Liz's house. She is the short one between Dad and I.

Erich and I with the shirt he bought me.

 Dad and I with Inga and Ina. They are Erich's mothers sister and Brother in law. This was taken outside a local restaurant in  Frankfurt.

This is in the Mercedes Benz factory, this car is worth about 1 million new zealand dollars. 












Me standing next to a Mercedes racing car.

Dad and I standing outside the Mercedes Museum

Street mimers in Frankfurt

Busker or Comedian?

Geneva Switzerland - 13 October 2010


This couldn't wait. I have to share this with you.

It is a short video of the town idiot in Geneva Switzerland. We were sitting outside a bar and he came along as the entertainment.

Pity you cant see my cousin Helen but you will hear what she did.

The Falkirk Wheel & Mary Kings Close

Falkirk Wheel, Falkirk, Tuesday 27/09/10

This morning we caught the train to Falkirk then a bus to the Falkirk Wheel. I did not know about this place until Moira, a work colleague of my mum told us about it.

When we arrived I saw a high structure that went back into the hill. Dad said that this was where we were going to go.

We got onto the boat then decided to get off and get the next boat as a large group of school kids got on the first one. Some other people did the same as us. Our boat had older people on it but was okay. We sat at the front of the boat. We motored into a box called an aqueduct was full of water then a small gate closed behind us. It rose up from the water. One of the workers tied the rope to the side of the aqueduct and we waited. The aqueduct then started moving to the side and we moved to the side and were lifted up the 135 metres to the next canal. Our boat never moved, it was our aqueduct that moved. There is a diagram at then end that shows this and I also have it on video.

The captain of the boat said that if we sank all we had to do was lift our feet and we would stay dry as there was only 5 feet of water underneath the boat. 

Looking into top of the Wheel end

There are two aqueboxes and each one has to have the exact same amount of water in each one for the wheel to operate properly. It does not matter how many boats are in each one. The Falkirk wheel uses a gearing system that keeps both aqueboxes level and the trip up or down takes 30 minutes. The captain told us that the old system of canals used to take 8 hours and that the captains used to walk down the hill and sit in the pub until the crew brought the boat down.

View from top to where we started from

After our visit to the wheel was finished we returned to our hotel in Edinburgh but this was not the last thing we did.


Later we went to Mary Kings Close, Queens Mile, Edinburgh Tuesday 27/09/10

During our time in Scotland a number of people told us that we should visit Mary Kings Close. Check out this link: http://www.realmarykingsclose.com/ It is off the Queens Mile and the tour takes us underground to look at the way people lived in the 16th century before and after the bubonic plague that killed lots of people in Europe. People didnt really live underground although some of their houses were below street level. A close is a narrow pathway between two buildings and is open to the sky so technically not below ground even though once inside you do go down.

This part of Edinburgh is built on top of the old buildings and streets. The bottom level of the current buildings uses the top level of the old buildings as foundations. Most rooms were smaller than some of our bedrooms back home but these rooms are the lounge, kitchen, sleeping room and the toilet - Yuck.  The toilet in those days was a bucket that was then emptied into the street outside. The 16th century tour guide we had said that usually there was 2 inches of urine and poo on the street.

She also told us that those people who caught the plague were taken away to be confined in a place similar to a hospital but only if the plague doctor thought you had a chance of survival otherwise you had to stay in your home and put a white flag outside that meant only two people could enter. They were the plague doctor and the plague cleaners who cleaned up after you died. Sorry no photos, they were not allowed.

After the tour we went back to our hotel and Dad bought us a kebab for dinner - no bread just the fillings in a small container, thats how they sold it.

Edinburgh Castle & The Queens Mile

Edinburgh Castle

Edinburgh Castle - Monday 26/09/10

No trip to Edinburgh would be complete without a trip to Edinburgh Castle. Thats what Dad told me but I suspect it was also because he told me there are things we have to do otherwise he would get into trouble with Mum when we got back to New Zealand.

At entrance to the castle

The day was wet but not cold. We caught a taxi to the castle and got there just in time to hear the 1 O’Clock gun. This is a traditional thing that was started to allow the local people to check the time on their clocks was set correctly. It does not operate on Sundays.

The size of the castle was enormous. Once inside it was like being in a small village with a number of buildings, pathways and roads within the walls. Around the walls there were a lot of black cannons. These were used as a form of protection against the enemy. The height of the rooms we went into is something I have not seen back at home in New Zealand. There were large portraits of the past heroes and Mary Queen of Scots.

In the museum there was lots of war medals and memorabilia. Dad said he had never seen some many Victoria Crosses in one place.

One of the many canons

After leaving the castle we walked down the Queens Mile towards High Street. Dad could not resist going into a shop dedicated to only selling Whiskey. I am sure he would haver liked to have done the Whiskey tour, and no he did not buy any, at least not at this shop.

Later that night we went to my godmothers house in Easter Road. It is really a flat above and in between a set of shops. It was a nice flat and we had dinner there. Kelly cooked us chicken and had stuffed the breast with haggis then wrapped it in bacon. It was nice. Before we left we took some photos, and as you can see I am now much taller than Kelly.

After leaving we went back to our room as we had a trip planned for the next day to see how you get a boat from one canal into another. Sounds easy? Not when the other canal is 135 metres high.

Note the height difference

Last year I was shorter than Kelly!

The sign says where I am

The exit

 

Inside castle grounds

Mitch on Guard

Shots within the Castle Walls.

Celtic vs Hibs Soccer - 25/09/10 Glasgow

Celtics vs Hibernians at Glasgow - Sunday 25/09/10

Benny the Scalper

This morning Benny, his friend Aiden (from Australia) and son plus Dad and I travelled to Glasgow for the Celtics and Hibs (Hibernian) soccer game at the Celtics Park. The crowd was good and getting into the mood with chants. There were people selling scarves and other Celtic memorabilia outside the stadium.  Typical of Bennys character he decided to try and sell a spare ticket he had. He had the ticket raised in the air and was yelling out that he had a ticket for sale. No-one wanted to buy it. As we neared the gates Benny gave the ticket to another scalper to sell. Our seats (just Dad & I) were in a different location to Benny. We had access to a lounge for food and drinks at half time. It is similar to a corporate box but not quite as flash.

Approach to Celtic Park in Glasgow

Some scarves and a ticket for sale

The Celtic team is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the 2007/08 season, and the Scottish Cup 34 times. Celtic's home stadium is Celtic Park, the biggest football stadium in Scotland, with a capacity of 60,832. 




Together with their Glasgow rivals, Rangers, they form the Old Firm, one of the most famous and fierce rivalries in sport. The club's traditional playing colours are green and white hooped shirts with white shorts and white socks.


Our seats were behind the goal and gave us a great view. The crowd were passionate with chanting, yelling and singing as the atmosphere built for the game. The Celtic Club fans were in one corner on the opposite side of the park. What was interesting 

Some the crowd

about them was that you could hear them singing over 100 metres away, not to mention dancing throughout the match. In front of them they had two guys banging away on drums that echoed throughout the stadium. These fans danced side to side, almost like a mexican wave but side to side and from where I sat was quite cool.

Although the stadium was almost full, it did not have the same atmosphere as the Manchester United game against Liverpool at Old Trafford the previous week.

The game itself was great to watch, there were some good passes and inter plays but it was obvious the Celtics team was the better.

Testing the Keeper

Just before half time Dad and I went to the lounge that our tickets gave us access to. We got some food to eat about 2 minutes before half time. When other people came in after the half time whistle the food was gone very quickly. People just grabbed what they wanted, some had 3 or 4 pies! 

A near miss

The second half was good to watch and the Celtics won 2-1. Dad was happy because of his Scottish ancestry and the Celtic Club being close to where is family came from.

After the game we drove to Uddingston to see if we could see Dad’s Grandmothers house at 17 Church Street. It is no longer there and probably demolished to make way for the flats that are now on the corner. Dad took some photos of the area and of a cottage across the road that would probably be the same type as where my great grandmother lived in the very early 1900’s. In fact Nana told me her mother was actually born in the house at Uddingston.

Church St from number 17

Where 17 Church was

Similar cottage to my great grandmothers (opposite)

After arriving back at Bathgate we had dinner at the Balbairdie Pub. This is when Dad and I got to try a traditional Scottish dish. Do you know what it was? If you guessed Haggis then you would be right. It is a difficult flavour to describe, it has it’s own taste but despite being sheep’s guts was very  nice. 












We had it a few times, twice at the pub and again at my godmother Kelly’s home in Edinburgh when she stuffed chicken breasts with it. I think Katie should try it, after all it is vegetarian.

Edinburgh Vaults - Friday 24 September

Edinburgh Vaults 24/09/10

View towards High St/Queens Mile & Edinburgh Castle

After checking into our pub Dad and I got the train to Edinburgh - about 30 minutes away. We had lunch then went on a tour of the Edinburgh Vaults. Our tour started with some history of Edinburgh by our guide. He showed us where they did the hangings. There is a platform in the street that still exists today where this happened. He told us that if the crime was bad they would lay you on a table and tie ropes to your arms and legs then stretch you until your joints popped then you would be hung.

On North Bridge

Hanging Platform on High St

However if it was a really serious crime then they thought that this way was not suitable. So they lay you face down on the table and tied you down. They got a sledge hammer and smashed your ankles, knees, elbows and shoulders which left you like a rag doll unable to move. In pain they would drag you back into the cell and leave you on the floor unable to move for a couple of days. The only company in the cell were the rats who would start eating away at your skin and opening up your flesh. This must have been very painful - remember you could not move.

After that they would drag you by the platform in the main street to die, not by hanging as that as considered too cruel after the smashing of the joints. They instead tied you to the platform and left you there to die.

High St/Queens Mile intersection

He told us that this would generally take up to a week. But remember you could not move because of your smashed joints. The public would through things at you like fruit and vegetables, stones or whatever else they had when they walked past. Plus the local birds like the crow would have a feed on you.

Entry to Vaults

As our tour continued we walked down a steep cobbled street called Niddry Street. Going down the cobbles were slightly raised giving grip to our shoes. At the bottom of Niddry street we entered the Cowgate. Its a road running along the bottom of the hill. The guide advised us not to be here at night unless we liked fisty cuffs. Its a smelly area and it also has some bars that dad says men go to.

Off the Cowgate we entered a door that took us into the side of the hill. It was dark and damp. The rock above us showed signs of weeping water from the road above. The guide says after very heavy rain the vaults we are in start raining about 4 hours later because the water from above permeates (seeps through) through the volcanic rock.

Group shot in Vault 1

They claim that the ghosts of the vault are real and in fact 90-95% of physical attacks occur with our guide. Attacks are not physical but feeling cold, tingling in the feet, feeling a small child's hand in your own, feeling the need to move involuntarily. I think it is all a story.

Watching my Back

In the last vault we entered it was the darkest and in one corner once a torch came on there was a skeleton in a stock to represent the nature of the times.

Victoria Beckham according to the guide

The history of the vaults is that they were built to house stallholders supplies such as cotton, silk, tobacco, alcohol and fruit and veggies so that stall owners did not have to travel for miles to their warehouses. However within 10 years of building the vaults under the bridge the stallholders were moving out of them and returning to the warehouses some distance away. The reason is obvious - the rain that seeped through continually damaged the stock in the vaults.

In Edinburgh at the time there was an influx of immigrants that put pressure on the housing. The guide said that a lot of buildings had flat roof lines. Because they built them so high when the strong winds came through it toppled them. But alas, they just rebuilt them exactly the same. Eventually the local council made it an offence to be homeless on the street in Edinburgh. If you were caught by the local police without an address you were taken away and given one lashing across your back.

If you had the pleasure of being caught a second time then you got a lashing across the chest.

Bearing in mind the time and the disease possibility from these lashings with your skin cut open, you were now marked as having been caught twice. If you did not pick up an infection and die and and were unfortunate enough to get caught for a third time you would never be given the chance to get caught for a fourth time. The reason is that you were taken away and hung until you died. In a Jeckel and Hyde style once you were dead a local would drag you 150 metres along an alley and tunnels where the local hospital would buy your body for body parts.  That is if the police didn't catch you first.

Because of the fear of being caught homeless this drove them into the vaults around the time the 

stall holders moved out. A vault typically contained 180 people and were 3 stories high. Platforms were constructed across the walls and each tier had 60 people. This swelled sometimes to 120 people on each level when it rained or there was an influx of immigrants or peoples house collapsed.

During the great fires of Edinburgh things were relatively under control but as a precaution 60 woman and children were put into each of the 19 vaults (1,140 people) that span across the South Bridge that runs between High Street and Nicolson Street above the area known as the Cowgate. Gate being an entrance and Cow being a beast and this is why this area is unsafe - it is beastly at night with crime, fights, prostitution and drugs.

The people in the vaults were fine. The vaults were boarded up and they were safe. That is until the winds changed to the North and fueled the fire driving it across the bridge. Being volcanic rock and  permeable what happened? Each vault became an oven as they heated up. Mothers watched their children cook and die. Children watched their mothers do the same. What an experience that must have been, NOT.

After the vault tour Dad and I met up with my Godmother Kelly who is living and working in Edinburgh. We had a couple of drinks in a bar, followed by dinner then caught the train back to Bathgate.

Kelly & I

Overall I found the vaults interesting but wondered about the truth of some of the stories regarding attacks.

Watch for more photos in the next chapter.