Roofrack/Bumper/Dive Cam

We have a new green toy.  One thing that we are very keen to do when travelling through interesting places is to get “over the bumper” footage (we intend to make a few videos to slap up on YouTube).  There are lots (LOTS) of options for actioncams that will do the job, ranging from around £20 for a crap one through to around £400 for the latest GoPro. Given the environments we will be travelling through, and the abuse the unit will suffer, we ended up selecting the unit that based on many independant reviews ranks highest on the Chuck Norris scale of invincibilty.  Footage quality was also a consideration, but survivability is paramount.

Enter the Olympus TG-Tracker.  This thing has even got “Tough” written on it. It is by no means the latest in video quality tech, but happily does 4K at 30fps (1080p at 60fps for slo-mo if we can be bothered with that). It’s Tough. It has lots of sensors.  Its Tough. It’s very water/dust/child proof.  Tough.  Much cheaper than a Go-Pro, and much tougher. I look forward to flexing my digital muscles. Tough.

0

Stupid Fridge

OK…  one fridge duly repaired.  Looks like the thermostat (a very simple device that gets stuffed into a little hole and plugged into the circuitboard) had fried itself.

The little silver metal thing on the end can rotate all the way round, like a child’s head in a horror movie.  The new one has more backbone, and cannot rotate at all – I assume this is a “good thing”.  All in all, a simple (if disappointing in the first place) fix.  The fridge is currently in testing with a load of beer, but things are looking good (its down to 5 degrees, from close to 30 when we began…).

It is still going home to NZ in the other car, where my brother has kindly volunteered to keep it gainfully employed and full of beverages.

0

The Ten Pieces

Yesterday I went to the Ten Pieces.  To get there we went on a train from Slough to Paddington then we walked across Hyde Park to the Royal Albert Hall.  At the front there were five statues one of Africa one of Asia and one of Prince Albert with two more that I can’t remember.

When we went inside we had to show our bags.  As soon as we sat down someone told us the Orchestra was missing so we all had to clap our hands to get the Orchestra to come out.  Last a spellcaster with a big stick and feather said the music will summon the Firebird back so the feather will be magic again.

My favourite was O Fortuna.  After that we walked back through Hyde Park and then to Paddington then we jumped on a train to Slough.  We all loved it.

4

Isle of Man

Yesterday I went on a ferry to the Isle of Man.  This is an island between England and Ireland.  It has a red flag with three legs on it.

First we went to a big red waterwheel.  It was called Lady Isabella. It was huge and I got wet when we were climbing to the top.

Then we went to a Victorian house.  There was an activity trail and I got a ladybird backpack with a skipping rope, a magnifying glass and a kaleidoscope in it.  We had to go around the garden and find different animal pictures. There were also real sheep that were brown and had lots of horns (Devil Sheep! – Ed.).

IMG_1913

Today I went to a beach and Peel Castle.  On the way we had an ice cream and a magician served it.  He did two magic tricks. He made a pen lid appear in his ear, and a rubber band pass through another rubber band!  Peel Castle was very old.

Then we went to the Sound where we saw the Calf of Man (a little island) and we saw seals in the water!

Then we went to Castletown and saw Castle Rushen. The castle had lots of fake people set up from the past.  In the Medieval room there were lots of tapestrys on the wall and we saw people eating a peacock.   They used their fingers and stale bread for plates.

Tomorrow we go back to England.

 

2

Ballygally

Yesterday the car was broken (a mere flesh wound, Ed.), so we had to take it to a Landrover Spares place.  After it was fixed we went to the DARK HEDGES. (scary voice).

The trees were all shaped differently and were funny.  The sign said it was the 5th best, beautiful tree tunnel in the world. They were beech trees and are about 200 years old.

After this we went to the Giant’s Causeway.  The stones had 5 or 6 edges and are made of basalt, which is heavier than a cube of chalk.  We walked to the causeway and could climb on the stones.  It was fun.

We had a pirate lunch at The Smugglers Inn. I had sausages, beans and mash, and it was called the ScoobyDoo.

IMG_20180716_133239

Then we went to Ballygally and stayed at our friend Rob’s house.  His house was amazing. It had a stream running through it, a trampoline, 3 different swings and a mud kitchen.  My favourite was the bucket swing, and I liked the mud kitchen.

 

1