London Transport

London lament :-(
Yes, I'm having a brief grumble about my chosen place of habitat....
London.
Or rather London Transport.
I grew up on the Misery Line, that's the Northern Line to you foreigners.
But I loved it.
I never felt let down by the tube.
It started early and finished late, sometimes later.
As for buses, what could be better then a slow ride across London Town, taking in all the sights on the way to work.
And the night buses saved me many a time when I was a 'bit' younger after a night out clubbing.
We, en masse, would make our way down to Trafalgar Square, hoards of the youth of North London, finding our own personal bus home.
I have so many fond memories of wending my way home in the wee hours of the morning, turning the key in the door, creeping in and up to my room, not wanting to wake the parents. Going to bed as the sun is starting to rise and the dawn chorus is beginning to sing, has it's own particular sort of magic.
But last night I felt failed by London's wonderful transport service.
I had to walk along a busy road, round the corner and there is the bus stop. But what is so unfair, is that every time I do this journey, the bus (no matter what time I arrive) goes past the corner just as I'm getting to it.
This was last night's scenario.
Except that I ended up sitting there for a further half an hour, much to my chagrin.
It's amazing the array of different people that went past me at that time of night.
Older couples coming back from the theatre, young gaggles of girls drunk on too much 'whatever', looking barely legal. A father and son, same in profile, both chewing gum.
Finally, along came my bus.
I sat down and closed my eyes, knowing that I had a way to go, my bed getting ever closer.

Milan....not quite Florence

On a return trip back from Florence, I ended up at Milano Statizone and this was my observation.

Watching. Listening. Dreaming.
People, many people.
Old, young, babies.
Talking, laughing, shouting, crying.
People from all over the world.
Everywhere.
Italians, Americans, French, German, British and more.
All traveling, either to or from, coming or going.
Each of us in transit, in limbo, between departure and destination.
Some have far to go, long tedious hours to travel.
Others only a short time, a matter of a mere hour or two.
How lucky they are.
Everyone so different yet all sharing one thing.
The need to travel.
For work, business, fun, pleasure, study, experience or love.
A common denominator between us all.
United for a short space of precious time.

JP 7/8/89

2009 Kindness of Strangers Tour

Mike Harling, author of Postcards from Across the Pond and fellow blogger, is on a "virtual" world tour visiting blogs all over the globe. Today Mike is virtually visiting Highgate and I have given him a place here on my blog for the day. Enjoy his virtual visit!

London
26 August 2009


What did I say about not suffering from jet lag on my last tour stop? Australia, Rhode Island, then back to Blighty and I’ll be fine, right? Sure. On my way to visit LuLu Travels in London, I thought I’d pop into the flat and become reacquainted with my wife. A month later I was still there, and still had not managed to get up to London.

I tell you, this virtual travel really tires a guy out.

So, with autumn approaching, I pulled out the tour schedule, dusted it off and set out on the virtual highway once again. Visiting LuLu Travels is a good place to start, as it’s just a quick jaunt to London and back. I didn’t even bother to bring a camera.

I always regarded London as a wonderful, magical place when I first arrived. I still do, I suppose, but back then it was wonderful, magical and new, so I always went armed with a camera. The first time I found myself in London without my camera was a sort of “coming of age” moment for me, when I realized England was truly my home and no longer one continual adventure.

That’s a bit of a shame, because London is full of amazing sights (and, for you people who live in London, the rest of the country is pretty nice, as well) and I liked that feeling of open-eyed wonder every time I went anyplace new. But, alas Victoria station, the Underground and Buckingham Palace are no longer new, and filling up my hard-drive with additional of photos of them just doesn’t interest me.

So LuLu Travels has promised to take me on a tour of the Highgate area, someplace I have never been before. Hopefully it will bring back some of that open-eyed wonder.

I should have brought a camera.



Would you like to participate in the
2009 KINDNESS of STRANGERS TOUR?
Visit the Tour Page to sign up or to view the latest Tour updates.

Michael Harling is the author of
“Postcards From Across the Pond – dispatches from an accidental expat”
“Laugh out loud funny regardless of which side of the pond you call home. Bill Bryson move over, there’s a new American expat in town with a keen sense of humor.”
-- Jeff Yeager, author of “The Ultimate Cheapskate”

Links:
Buy the Book: http://www.lindenwald.com/booksale.htm
Follow the Tour: http://www.lindenwald.com/thetour.htm
Visit the Home Page:
http://postcardsfromacrossthepond.blogspot.com/

2009 KINDNESS of STRANGERS TOUR a la lulu

....before....

Most people come to London via an airport or major train station. They visit us with eyes wide open and cameras at the ready.

I think that tourists love to feel that they have discovered a little bit of London that no-one else has seen, at least not in the last 5 minutes.

So in writing this post, I will attempt to take you to a part of London that I hold very dear to me.

It is a place that I call home of my heart.

I have lived many places, but this would be, as Paul Young once sang, "wherever I lay my hat, that's my home".

Many little villages of old, like Highgate, all grew together to make up the city that we now call London.

To find it, either hop on the Northern Line tube, nicknamed 'the misery line' and black in colour, or just head due north from Centre Point, for about 6 miles.

It's up hill all the way, in fact the top of Highgate is level with the top of St. Paul's Cathedral (apparently).

Highgate is one of those wonderful areas in London that still retains its village feel. The high street still feels traditional, no mass market shops, just little boutiques, some of which have been there for centuries.

It is also a village filled with pubs. As a teenager, I was told that it had 26 public houses within a one-mile square radius - not sure how true that is, so if you find out, let me know.

Apart from it's quaintness, it's Public schools and many pubs, the one thing that seems to attract the most visitors is it's cemetery.

Highgate Cemetery is filled to it's brim with amazing people, Karl Marx and Sir Ralph Richardson to name but two of it's residents. It's West Cemetery was opened in 1839, with the newer East Cemetery opening in 1854. The old part is fascinating, as it has the Egyptian Avenue and the Lebanon Circle.

It also has catacombs. Or should I say.....The Catacombs.

When I was a rebellious teenager, I was persuaded by so-called friends to climb over the walls with them one Halloween.

Oh what a fool I was back then.

A very scared fool.

There was probably about 8 of us and we crept through the dark, dank night, close to midnight, down into the catacombs.

Things whispered, rattled, little creatures ran through the undergrowth, eerie sounds echoed through the night.

This was not fun.

Something made us all jump and scream and with that, we all scarpered as fast as our legs could carry us.

I am definitely not recommending that as a tourist you attempt this, but a day-time visit with one of the very friendly tour-guides is a must for any happy visitor.

After which, a walk back up Swains Lane to Pond Square, will find you surround by a number of excellent pubs.

One that has still retained it's flavour of old, is The Prince of Wales, which on a Tuesday evening, used have wonderful old jazz bands playing.

North London is a very green part of London and by that I mean that there are a great many trees and open spaces. Highgate ajoins Kenwood and Hampstead Heath, but also has it's own ancient woodland, Queens Woods and Highgate Woods.

It is a beautiful place to be outside.

To stroll up and down the tree lined avenues, gaping at the amazing houses or to stand in awe surrounded by several hundred year old trees, oaks that tower over you. If the weather is being unkind to you, then stop in at one of the many cafes for a warming cup of tea.

It is historical but not lost in time.

Need directions, head north and just follow the slope up hill.

Or to quote C.S. Lewis:

"Onwards and upwards, Narnia and the north".

....after....

The all important list

As it comes.....

Winchelsea;

Paris;

London;

The Cotswolds;

New York City;

Highgate;

Florence;

Brighton;

The Dead Sea;

Bombay/Mumbai;

Le Tignet;

...this is just a beginning, more will follow.

Clocking up the air-miles

I've been thinking about how to start and what I'd like to write about.

So I think that I'll begin by making a list of as many places that I can remember, that I've been too.

I will hopefully start with the key or important ones. The ones that made an impact.

Once I have my list, which may grow over time, as I remember what I've missed out, then I'll start to elaborate.

It will be like a memory patchwork of my travels.

An intercontinental, transatlantic, cross-county quilt.

Make of it what you will.

Finding a destination

Oh the place you can go......