One of the attractions at Blenheim Palace is a miniature railway which every half hour does a trip from near the car park to a play area, maze and garden centre type thingy.

This is the railway’s station:-

I photographed the train on its return journey to the car park:-

This handsome gentleman was walking along by the side of the station when the train had pulled up:-

This year we returned to Blenheim (the ticket gives free re-entry within a year) and had time to make a trip on the train:-

The locomotive is named after one of Blenheim’s most famous sons:-

This summer we replaced one of the sinks in our house. The old one was then pressed into service as a makeshift pond for the garden.

Within 24 hours of filling it with water the “pond” had a visitor:-

By this one the frog (or toad) had climbed out to the side:-

On the path to the Kelpies (see previous post) we saw a family of swans on the other side of the canal. A dog was being walked and had to be wary of the adults.

Closer to the Kelpies a more exotic bird was being exercised. It turned out a man took his parrot there every day. It could fly about a bit on the end of a line. I caught it below when it was on the ground.

Parrot on a stick. Well, on a lead:-

On the walk back to the car the swans had moved over to the near side of the canal and settled down by the side of the path. A wide berth was given and warnings shouted to kids on bikes not to get close:-

I was in Beveridge Park, Kirkcaldy last month and the swans have seven cygnets this year.

While in Surhuisterveen we spotted a house with a viking ship for a weathervane. The house itself has a distinctive style. I like the railings on the balcony.

While manoeuvering to get a better shot of the weathervane than we had originally we saw a jay on the roof. My second jay! It’s perched on the thatch just above the window.

It moved to the edge of the roof and I got this shot.

Here’s a close-up of the weathervane.

What a great thing to have on your roof.

We made a further stop on the first day on the way down to the Holland ferry. At Wetherby.

There’s a nicely situated car park hard by the River Wharfe.

There were geese on the river.

Until this perched on my fence I had never seen a jay before. They’re not very common around here. Before I could photograph it it flew off to my next door neighbour’s fence so it’s a bit blurry.

Three photos taken from our back bedroom window.

Again the good lady nicked two of them first.

By the time of the third I’d opened the window and the hind was well aware we were watching her.

After our move to pastures new on April 4^th the good lady and I finally made it back for a look at Beveridge Park in Kirkcaldy on June 1^st.

The swans look to have four cygnets this year. (They may have had more and lost some but it was almost two months since we’d been at the park so wouldn’t know about that.)

Photographed on Tuesday from a back window in my new house in a part of Balbirnie Woods adjacent to the golf course (Balbirnie Golf Club.)

This one looks like a stag.

The good lady nicked the cropped photo:-

This one may be a hind but it was twisting round so it was difficult to tell.