Last year I picked the word 'Antarctica' to describe the most significant experience of the year. This year, the word has to be 'Burma'. Yes, I know we're supposed to call the country 'The Union of Myanmar' but somehow 'Burma' seems to fit better. My first visit to Burma was the first stage of 'Round the world Five' in March 2008. That one trip gave me a lifetime's worth of experiences.
After visiting Rangoon (and a trip on the 'Circle Line' railway), I headed north for a river trip on the Irrawaddy. Rudyard Kipling wrote "Burma is like nowhere you have ever seen" and I found that's still true (My picture shows the massive golden pagoda of the Shwedagon in Yangon).Leaving Burma with its friendly people and the 2,000 ancient temples of the Bagan Plain, my next stop was Las Vegas which provided something of a contrast, to say the least. I didn't take to the city but I loved the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam and spent some time at the State Railway Museum at Boulder City.
Then, on to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, where I looked at the Mayan city at Chichen Itza. The next country was Cuba. Havana and Trinidad were both quite special. I found a surprising number of deteriorating steam locomotives in two Havana 'museums' but the working steam trip on the Valle de los Ingenios line was cancelled because of locomotive failure. Instead, I did the trip on a diesel railcar (and got a short drive at the end!). Finally, I went to Panama. I enjoyed looking at the history, travelling on the newly-rebuilt Panama Canal Railway and, particularly, studying the operation of the Panama Canal. All the places on that trip were interesting, but it's my impressions of Burma that stay with me.
On my return, I booked to return to Burma in August 2008 for a different river trip but, as so often happens, Fate intervened. On 2nd May 2008, Cyclone Nargis hit Myanmar, causing terrible damage and loss of life. The ship I'd booked on was severely damaged and was taken out of service for repairs and a major refit.
Back in England, weekend footplate work at Peak Rail, the Battlefield Line and the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester kept me busy. I've posted various write-ups, including a typical 'Driving Turn at Peak Rail'. I visited Tyseley Railway Museum at the end of June for the 'Tyseley 100' celebrations, meeting many old friends.
July was quite busy, with a visit to RSC Stratford to see 'Hamlet' with David Tennant, 'Day out with Thomas' events at the Battlefield Line and an Old Locomotive Committee (OLCO) meeting. Now 'Lion' has returned to Liverpool, OLCO activities are restricted, but I was observer, once again, at 'Lionsmeet 2008' which was held at Butterley.
I was involved in Peak Rail's 'Warring Forties' weekend in August (my picture shows me sporting a 'tin helmet') and attended my first 'Organathon' at Brewood Parish Church, then back to the Battlefield Line for a visit by 'Ivor the Engine'.Although my August river trip had been cancelled, I went back to Burma at the beginning of September to meet my new friends and find out more from them about the ongoing relief work. My own journey continued to Mandalay and then to fascinating Inle Lake. Lots of temples to explore, culminating in a trip to Shan State and the 2,000 temples at mysterious Kakku. I returned to Yangon, said goodbye to my friends and flew to Chiang Rai in Thailand where I stopped at the Anantara Resort located at the 'Golden Triangle'. A day learning about elephants at the 'Elephant Camp' proved a moving (and occasionally wet) experience. Next, I made a rather undignified entrance into Laos on a small ferry in the pouring rain and joined a two-day cruise on the Mekong River. This proved totally absorbing and participating in the 'Big Brother Mouse Book Party' at a remote village school was quite emotional. Like most visitors, I was charmed by the old capital, Luang Prabang, before flying on to the more Western, but still distinctly Laotian, modern capital of Vientiane. Then, back home via Bangkok, pausing in Dubai. The city of Dubai didn't appeal, I'm afraid, but two nights at a resort out in the desert gave me a new experience.
In October, I was involved in three of the 'Day out with Thomas' events at the Battlefield Line in October (my picture shows 'Thomas' in one of his many 'incarnations'). We were very lucky with the weather for these 'Thomas' events. In December, I was rostered for a couple of days on the footplate with the 'Santa Specials' at Peak Rail and, again, the weather was fairly kind.
In the run-up to Christmas, over 80 members of Brewood Civic Society visited Brewood Hall and, a few days later, Warwickshire Baroque performed a Christmas Concert at the Hall (my picture shows the concert in progress and the 'Christmas Concert' report includes a video of part of the performance). Both events helped to raise funds for the relief work in Myanmar.Well, these are some of the highlights of the year but there was lots more, too. When I'm at Brewood, my dog, Tai, and I are inseparable. In amongst everything else, I managed to work more-or-less full time during the year. In view of the fact that the world's financial systems appear to be in meltdown, I'd better plan to carry on working in 2009! It's a good thing I (mostly) enjoy work.
Finally, thanks and best wishes for the New Year to all my friends.
