1st September 2022
First day of Spring in the Southern Hemisphere although not yet technically. On this side of the globe, I woke up early hoping to see my TV work money in my account but alas, no sign of it today. I will have to chase it up tomorrow.
My sister and I got on the 9am train to Newcastle for our 10.30am Victorian Tunnel tour. I really like the energy of Newcastle even though I haven't seen much and I hardly understand the accent. We walked briskly along the river front and of course I had to take some pictures. We turned up towards the tunnel and we made it on time.
The two volunteer tour guides were doing their practical aspects, I reckon and they handled the 10 of us down the dark tours fine. The tunnel was built in Victorian times as a means to transport coal from one mine to the boats on the Tyne River but the coal wasn't a great quality and the mine closed.
The next Era where it became useful was for the poorer residents living nearby during the Second World War as a bomb shelter. Because of the shipyards and proximity to the river, it was a target for the enemy and was bombed with many different types of bombs. I think my brain shuts off when it hears all the details about war, it makes no sense to me at all. But the tunnel was interesting and I would certainly recommend a tour to see it when you are next in Newcastle.
We then walked some more into the city shops and visited a couple of the last remaining department stores. After some delicious cake in the Fenwicks tea room we made our way back to the station to people watch while waiting for our delayed train. So much to see, so many kms to walk!
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