Lancashire 5 - Southport again and a lack of sea/a half empty caravan park/the searches are finally back and the word idemnity is being bandied about/The Fishermans Rest

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Yogi Bhajan said "A failure is only a step on the way to your success" Ok then blog here we are again. On the road in Gabby for yet another night in Southport. Why are we here I hear you ask? Well it all stems from our house move. The house we are buying is being sold "sold as seen" which means it is full of rubbish which will require moving, there is no information on the suppliers of services and more importantly it has no phone nor internet connection. As we will be living in Gabby for the best part of six months we need WiFi in some form. We have decided to bite the bullet and pay for a mobile system which will work wherever we are . Or at least that is the theory. Will it work in practice? That is another story.

It is Springlike as we travel to Southport for our overnight stay. The sun is shining it feels rather inviting to be in Gabby after Winter. Although it has been a mild winter it is still good to be out on the road. We have had a few days of snow but nothing like the snow of 2017/2018 and I can count on one hand the number of times I have had to scrape ice off our windows. There are waves of crocus growing in gardens and cemeteries . Their pretty mauve and white delicate flowers are welcome. As we drive we notice the odd daffodil blooming in a shaded corner of a garden. We talk incessantly as we drive along. Brexit - still a mess . Who knows where that is going? Holidays - am I retiring and we are going early April or am I continuing with work? A hard choice given that our buyers are now arguing with their buyers and have had to offer an indemnity to cover some problem with their leasehold contract. We are tiring of them and wish they would sort something out instead of stringing us along. We got our searches back for the new property and talked about the Radon found. That is everywhere where there is or was mining. Are we bothered? No not at all . Would the sellers put a radon bond in? Highly unlikely. Fracking - there is a bit of that licensed . Not a problem - the damned government are giving licences to all and sundry at the moment and it is only the earth tremors caused by the fracking that is slowing the process down. We struggle on and chat about it all the way to Southport.

Arriving at the site we are greeted by the smiling receptionist . Must be a good day as occaisionally the staff are a bit cold and miserable if they have had a bad day at the office. She completes our details and tells us half the site is closed . I guess that is something to do with staffing or the lack of them and/or rates that would have to be paid to the council. It is cold as we park up and set up. We fall into conversation with an elderly couple who are taking a short cut through the site . They have a van similar to ours. They like our Mirrorguards and tell us they want to buy some for their van. They warn us about losing our wheel trims and that we need ties to hold them on. They talk about their old house in Bolton and how they have spent a year doing up a bungalow in Southport . They travel just in the UK - Cornwall is their destination of choice .

We don't walk to the sea . No point it is miles out and impossible to see . Instead we walk up the town past the model railway line and the boating lake . The town has a faded grandeur . Once B & M Bargains and the pound shops come to town the independents leave and the character goes . We head for the Fishermans Rest . It is heaving with people . No room at the inn for these hungry travellers . We ask if they can find us a table and are ushered to a small one available for an hour. Glenn chooses the Hunters Chicken - he finds little to tempt him. As I don't eat meat - a decision not taken lightly a few months ago I scoured the menu for something veggie. Even less choice . Fish and chips it was then. We ate the meal in the relative warmth . The pub was noisy and full . The walls crammed with photographs of the local lifeboats and the story told of the disaster and loss of life during a rescue attempt . Even Queen Victoria wrote in her journal about the loss of life saying that a dreadful misfortune has happened on the Lancashire coast with the loss of lifeboats and many lives . It was on the 9 December 1886, the Mexico which had set sail from Liverpool went aground near Southport . The lifeboat the Eliza Fernley was launched from the town after seeing the distress signals . When she reached the Mexico she was struck by heavy seas and capsized with fourteen out of the sixteen crew members lost at sea.

Walking back to Gabby we talked about how lucky we are that men and women are prepared to face the dangers of the sea for us without any thought of pay or reward. It was a cold old night . We watched the Darkest Hour a film about Winston Churchill and the dark days of World War 2. We both agreed we need a tv that works and we ought to think about it.

The next day we had our WiFi fitted and fell into conversation about satellite dishes . We didn't want a Kathrein again. Too expensive and poor coverage now in Europe. We had very little space on Gabbys roof . We didn't like the white dome dish. Not a problem said our fitter - I have the last demonstration grey one. Shall I try it on the roof? Not a good move . He climbed the ladder placed it on the top. We were hooked - we go on Friday to have it fitted .

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