Saxon (Last in Line, and Girlschool) Live at Warsaw Klub Progresja 21st November 2016

Without any of these bands being amongst my favourites, I went along to this concert, as it just looked like a good, old-fashioned Rock gig, and I ended up very much enjoying it.

Much more enjoyed Saxon this time round than the only other time I'd seen them a couple or so years ago at the same venue.  As I inevitably waited for '747' (my favourite Saxon tune by far), I found myself enjoying 'The Eagle Has Landed'; 'Dallas 1pm'; 'Strong Arm of the Law' etc.  Was around during the good old NWOBHM days of the late 1970s/early 1980s in Britain, and saw quite a few NWOBHM bands (usually but not always supporting more established bands) at Manchester Apollo during this time, but never saw Saxon.

Of course, Biff has always been a character and this clearly shines out on stage.

Also really nice to see that the band have a genuine strong affection for playing Poland:

Girlschool, probably the band I was most interested in seeing this evening, opened up the entertainment:

Really enjoyed them, especially 'Race with the Devil', so it was a real pity they weren't on longer.
 

Of course, like with Saxon, I remember Girlschool from the NWOBHM days, but this was the first time I'd seen them.

And Last in Line, of course, it's nice to hear the old Dio classics, especially 'Rainbow in the Dark' and 'Straight through the Heart' being done by ex-Dio band members Vivian Campbell and Vinnie/Vinny Appice:

Can remember seeing Vinnie/Vinny Appice with Black Sabbath on the 'Mob Rules' tour at Stafford Bingley Hall in 1982 (if I remember rightly, he got burnt with the dried ice).  Think I also saw Vivian Campbell with Sweet Savage when they were supporting Thin Lizzy on the 'Renegade' tour in 1981.

Was blessed to have seen the late great Ronnie James Dio three times:  once fronting Black Sabbath as mentioned above, and twice with Dio (at Castle Donington in the late 1980s and Warsaw Stodoła in about 2005 or so).

Warsaw: Space Exhibition Poster

This space exhibition poster caught my eye while walking down near Metro Politechnika in Warsaw.

Warsaw: Early Christmas Decorations

Good to see the Christmas decorations going up early in Warsaw.

Warsaw: A View from an Escalator

A shot from an elevator taken in the Blue City shopping centre in Warsaw yesterday.  Nearly tripped over at the bottom of the elevator through taking this.

Youghal (Cork): St. Mary's Collegiate Church

The real highlight of our short stop off in Youghal was St. Mary's Collegiate church and graveyard.

Have just read a bit about the history of St. Mary's.

Included in this, the church was made a collegiate church in 1464 with the purpose of training seminarians to become Catholic priests.

But following the English Reformation, the church came under the control of the Church of Ireland to which it remains today.

Got these panoramic shots with the water in the background while walking along the castle-type walls at the back of the graveyard:

And after a while, we went inside the church:

Here, I couldn't help but imagine how beautiful and colourful the place may've been as a Catholic church before the Reformation.

But still valued the beauty of the place in the present-day:

Warsaw To Lublin: A Random Shot

This is just a random shot from the car passing through Lublin (I think?), but I guess it captures something.

Warsaw: Registry Office Pictures

Here's some shots from the Warsaw registry office I visited at the weekend:

 The Adam and Eve window above caught my eye, and the unusual but tasteful clock below:

And ended up taking some more shots of things that looked unusual and yet quite tasteful:

The door through which civil weddings take place:

Warsaw: A Mysterious Picture

This mysterious-looking picture is from a Warsaw registry office.

Cork: A Couple of Shots

A couple of mobile shots from the car while being driven quickly through Cork city centre:

Have enjoyed visiting Cork (both the city and county) several times over recent years.

Winchester: Alfred the Great Statue

Couple of shots of Hamo Thornycroft's early 20th century Alfred the Great statue in Winchester:

Have just found out that Thornycroft (1850-1925) also did public statues of Cromwell and Tennyson, and that Alfred the Great was King of Wessex between 871 and 899.

Like many people I guess, the only thing I can remember about Alfred the Great from school was the legend about him burning the cakes.

Warsaw: An Intriguing Poster

Just an intriguing-looking poster I've seen while walking round autumnal Warsaw recently.

Warsaw: Last Days of Autumn

These shots, taken a few days ago, bear all the hallmarks of autumn: (half-) barren-looking trees and old, rotting, brown leaves on the floor.

Love these steps, they look as if they're leading to somewhere interesting:

Youghal (Cork): Just Tasting the Atmosphere

Before visiting St. Mary's Collegiate church, which turned out to be spectacular, we just got a quick taste of Youghal town centre by the waterfront:

And what looked like the High Street:

The first impression we got was that the town must've once been a thriving seaside town, so there had to be some really interesting places to see.

Youghal (Cork): Myrtle Grove

Couple of shots of Myrtle Grove near St. Mary's Collegiate Church in Youghal, famous for having been where Walter Raleigh lived between 1588 and 1589:

Just read that this is the best Tudor house in Ireland.  If it hadn't been for my friends pointing the place out, I would've completely missed it, and I had to peep over a wall and zoom in to get my shots.

Stopping Off at Winchester

On my staggered train journey down  to Dorchester, I took the option of getting off at Winchester for a couple of hours.

Just from the immediate atmosphere and look of the place, I knew this was going to be a couple of hours well spent: