Newcastle II

Playlist

Hesperion XX – Espana Antigua

Cloudland Blue Quartet – Soundingfall

Up early – the view from the window...

Breakfasted (Full English) and out by 9:30, walking up the road for five minutes to the bus stop and catching the 38 bus into town...

Under sunny, blue skies, our first stop was the Laing Art Gallery...

...where we had a wander around the exhibitions – Anne was particularly taken by a painting of Batman making a snowman...

We walked down towards the quay and visited the old mansion house...

Then, over the Millennium Bridge...

...and along to the Baltic Arts Centre...

...with its views from the lift...

And upper floors...

We went to the top and walked down...

I added this morning’s bus ticket to one work which comprised items sent to the artist...

From the fifth floor viewing area, we saw the Millennium Bridge opening, or rather swinging up, to allow a small boat to pass under – it seems the only time the bridge is used like this is for tourist boats to make their way past it...

The action was watched by art lovers...

Then, back uptown for some shopping, the Exec Producer obtaining a pair of funky new boots - for my own part, I couldn’t understand how the streets were so full of shoppers on a Tuesday afternoon...

Finding ourselves at a loose end, we went to the local multiplex...

...and saw “The Time Traveller’s Wife” – very entertaining and, in places, very moving – a good film unless you start to nitpick re time travel of course...

This excellence could not, however, be granted to our fellow audience members – never have I seen so much food and drink consumed in a cinema, nor so much drink-consequential coming and going to the toilet, nor such blatant during film chatting, laughing and joking as we suffered this afternoon...

I surreptitiously snapped some of the main culprits outside the venue...

Annoying little shits - why pay good money to go to the cinema and then not watch the film? Well of course it probably wasn't their own money...

Of course I said nothing, as is the way these days...

Walked to the Swan Inn for a couple of drinks, enjoying the jukebox choices of this friendly man - including Deep Purple and the mighty Uriah Heep adding some seventies favourites of my own...

...while I coloured in my mum’s birthday card, purchased earlier at the Baltic...

To a nearby chip shop for an impromptu dinner of Fish & Chips before we stumbled upon the very good Forth Bar...

...where more drinks were enjoyed, including Fruli Strawberry Beer for your correspondent...

Took the bus home where we found, via teletext, that Queen of the South had dismissed another Glasgow team, Partick Thistle, from the CIS Cup, beating them 2-1 (an injury time winner) away from home...

A good end to the day...

Highlight of the Day : The Baltic...