On Monday we left Larry and Lauren and headed down to Bill and Libby's house on Coto de Caza. I had stayed with these folks a couple of years ago. We stopped on the way and had a late breakfast. Found their house no problem. They live in a "gated community" and Libby had informed the guard at the gate we were coming and we got in without difficulty.
Spent the afternoon lazing around the pool and hot tub. Bill got in about 5.30. It was good to see him again.

He's playing a lot of tennis and looks in good shape.

On Saturday we headed down to the Malibu/Zuma Beach area. Beautiful, clean beaches and fabulous facilities here. We started to fry after being on the beach for an hour, so we headed for Santa Monica and took a stroll along the waterfront and pier. We wanted to get back home for about 4.30 because we were meeting the coordinators for the Shepherd's Conference that Grace Community Church holds every year. About 30 of them were coming for a meal at Larry and Lauren's house. I'll tell you more about that over on Lindsay and Lilian's Sabbatical Journey blog.

Well the big family news is that we are grandparents again! Grace Erin Allen was born to Dave and Stacey on Friday 14th September 2007. Mum and baby doing well. Dad doing OK. Grace looks just like her mum to me with red curly hair! Still
a shortage of pictures (until I arrive and then there'll be thousands!!). This is the most suitable one for a blog! How come the three best looking grandchildren in the whole world belong to Lilian and me? It's just gotta be genetic!

Just a quick post to say that we are flying to Los Angeles and so this blog will not be updated for a few days. Thank you for the interest you have taken in us and in our Sabbatical Journey on the other blog. This is Lilia at the William Carey exhibition in the Bible Society of India. She is standing beside a picture of her famous ancestor. (William Carey, not Mother Theresa!) Keep in touch. God bless

Just some more pictures of Goa from the post on "Lindsay & Lilian's Sabbatical Journey".

Interesting to see Indian women and girls taking a swim, fully clothed. There must be an enormous clash of cultures here in the season when Western women take to the sea wearing practically nothing! I used to come down here early and read, and update my journal. In fact Lilian came down one morning and found me standing in the sea finishing off my book.

This is Lilian trying to do a deal with a local lady who makes jewellery and sells it on the beach;-

and Rita in quiet contemplation!

It was a great couple of days. I could send a month here no problem, though I imagine it's pretty busy during the tourist season. The week after Christmas is their peak time. At the height of summer it can reach over 45 degrees here and you can't walk on the sand! It was in the 30's for us and just great.

Had an interesting experience in the early hours of Tuesday morning. I was lying dozing in bed half awake and half asleep when I saw through the far window, what appeared to be a fire starting outside the house. But it seemed to be about 3 or 4 feet off the ground. I then saw the fire approach the window and realise that in fact it was a lighted match or taper. The window had been closed but unlocked and someone outside had pulled it open and was reaching through the bars with this lighted taper. A long black arm stretched into the room holding this lighted match as a torch and moved it back and forwards, obviously peering into the ground floor bedroom in which Lilian and I were sleeping. I stared hard trying to make out the face against the bars but it was too dark and the flame from the taper was making it impossible to see past it.

I lay on for a moment considering what to do.

I assumed whoever it was could see us lying in bed but reckoned we were asleep and I was wondering how I could slip out of bed and grab the arm and hold on to him. However I saw that the flame from the paper he was holding was now quite considerable and in real danger of setting fire to the curtains. So I shouted out at him, (frightened the daylights out of Lilian who was fast asleep!) and he ran off. By he time I unbolted our bedroom door and then the front door of the house and got outside he was well gone and as I was dressed only in a pair of pyjama bottoms and in my bare feet I didn't pursue him!

Arrived at the Red Fort on a blistering hot and humid day, having just left the Taj Mahal (see Lindsay and Lilian's Sabbatical Journey). 75% of the Fort is still used by the Indian Army and is not open to visitors but it is still an amazing place. It was here that Shah Jahan, the builder of the Taj Mahal, was imprisoned by his son, Aurangzeb. From this prison room he could look across at the magnificent Mausoleum he had built for his favourite wife, Mumtaz.

The fort was surrounded by two moats, a wet moat, filled with water, crocodiles and alligators, an a dry moat filled with lions and tigers and other wild animals, so sneaking into the fort, undetected, must have been a tricky business! The drawbridge was raised and lowered by two elephants pulling on chains.

Once inside you are faced with a long steep hill with a high wall on each side. Huge boulders were rolled down this hill, (Indianna Jones style!) at advancing armies. Lots of other neat tricks lay in store if you avoided the drowning, the crocodiles, the man eating tigers and the boulder crushing!

However once inside you found yourself not in a utilitarian military fort of the Carrickfergus Castle variety, but a luxurious palace of red sandstone and white marble inlaid with gold and semi precious stones. There was a large indoor market which only the women could attend, and accommodation for the King's 300 wives, concubines etc! (How could you ever decorate a palace with 300 wives all putting in their tuppence worth!)

This is a picture of Lilian and me sitting on the bench on which the King used to sit to converse with his Prime Minister. It is cracked because during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 a British cannonball ricocheted off it and punched a hole in a nearby marble panel! Typical! If Brits abroad aren't writing graffiti on walls they're shooting cannonballs through them!

On Friday, after a tour of Mount Carmel Christian School, (see the other blog) we were allocated a driver and a car for the day! (When you travel with me you do it in style!).

The first place we went to was a special market which artisans from Kashmir and beyond travel to and sell their wares! All sorts of rugs, shawls carvings and other stuff up for sale and everybody determined to sell you something! Lilian is a great haggler and was in her element!

Next stop was Qutub Minar built in 1199, which was around about the same time as Carrickfergus Castle and at 238 ft high is the tallest brick minaret in the world. Spent some time wandering around these ancient walls and buildings.

Went from there and visited the home of Indira Ghandi and her son Rajiv, two former prime ministers of India. Both were assassinated, Indira, shot by her own bodyguards at her front door in 1984 and Rajiv blown up by a suicide bomber in 1991. It was a beautiful home and seemed far too peaceful a setting to have known so much tragedy. This photograph shows the rippled glass pathway, representing a flowing river, from the front of her house where Indira Ghandi was shot. The clear sheet of glass marks the spot where she fell.

Our driver also took us to Nehru's house, ( he was India's first Prime Minister after Independence) India Gate, (a war memorial) and many other parts of New Delhi, which is beautifully laid out with wide boulevards and so on.

Saw my first snake charmer who wanted 300 rupees from me for taking his picture! I gave him 2!

Got back home to the Williams' house, had some supper and went to bed. Mr Williams didn't join us as he had a 7.30 pm prayer meeting. I was about to offer to join him until I was told the meeting lasted until 3.00am. I had to be up at 4.45am to catch the train to Agra!

Forget what I said about Bangalore being hot and humid! Compared to Delhi, Bangalore is like Carrickfergus on a Spring evening! I have no idea what the temperature is here but when I stepped out of the aeroplane I thought I was stepping into a fan assisted sauna. My glasses immediately steamed up and before I reached the bottom of the aircraft steps my shirt was transparent and sticking to my back!

Thankfully we had brought only hand luggage and made our way outside where a driver was waiting for us with a big placard on which was writ en in Big letters "REVEREND AND MRS LINDSAY ALLEN" so no low key entrance here. Incidentally I noticed our tickets were in the name of Mr Lindsay Allen and Mrs Lilian Carey so I just hoped that it didn't create any problems having a double room!
The driver who was an employee of the school spoke little English but managed to let us know that everyone was expecting us! I didn't know what I was expecting from Mount Carmel Christian school but what I saw as we swept through the guarded gates took my breath away! A magnificent campus on a grand scale. This was no ordinary school as I was to discover. It was founded and is still run by Mr and Mrs Williams who started it with Mrs Williams teaching a few pupils in her garage. Today it has 2,500 pupils, and 150 staff!

We arrived on Mrs Williams Birthday and sort of "gate crashed" their big family party! Found myself in the company of Senior Educationalists, a television producers, a senior Liver Transplant Surgeon and a Justice of the Supreme Court of India! (The sort of gathering you find yourself part of most weekends in fact!) Absolutely amazing food again and of course all served by delightful and beautiful, doe eyed, Indian servant girls. But I have eyes only for Lilian!We turned in early so as not to intrude too much on what was very much a family occasion, (didn't tell them that actually we were Mr Allen and Mrs Carey!) very grateful that the house and bedrooms are air conditioned!

I've just remembered that in the middle of the party my mobile phone rang and it was the BBC in Belfast asking if I could come down to the studio to do a piece on Mother Teresa! The last time he rang me on my mobile I was in a car in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, this time I'm at a party in Delhi! He must wonder when I'm ever in Carrick! Glad I'm not paying his phone bill!