London in September
AOG, London
After being away from the island since the 22nd of July, I finally made it over to spend my birthday in the company of friends and family.
Seeing as how these days I'm "Homeless in London", my partner and I were lucky enough to stay with friends in Brixton, as well as being lucky enough to have friends to stay with in the first place.
The Complaints section
We rented a car, and for the first time ever, I drove from Gatwick into central London. One and a half hours later (more or less), we made it into town. It has always amazed me how long it take to get out of London.
Yes, London is gigantic, but what makes the process so slow is not its size, it is the fact that you get out of it through small winding streets masquerading as roads and highways. In this respect, Madrid has an advantage over London. Even in central Madrid, getting out of town takes no more than 25 minutes.
Yes, I know, Madrid is smaller (though not all that much these days), and many would argue that it has had the space to build motorways out of town. Yes and no. Madrid, like many other capitals, is surrounded by small villages which eventually have been absorbed into the city's fabric. However, I think that the only difference is will power. In Madrid, local politicians decided at some point that it should have ring roads and highways and ways out. Many of these are tunnels. Expensive tunnels which must avoid underground (Subway/Metro) tunnels, and entire city blocks with buildings on top. Not easy. And, considering how London is built mostly on flat land (unlike Madrid which is very hilly), I think political will power wins over weird excuses.
The Get Him! section
I remember once having the nephew of the Duke of Northumberland telling me (how's that for name dropping!!), that after WWII, when there was a plan to build a motorway right through South London, a little boy wrote to the Department of Transport informing them that he was very concerned about the plans to have a highway running right through his home. His father was some aristocrat, and the home in question was a palace somewhere down there (I forget where). So no highway was built.
Although a cute story, and probably a true one, it is amazing that even in 2007 things in London are as bad as they are.
The Culture and Recap section
We spent most of Saturday on the East End. It was a sunny day, and it helped make that part of town look less depressing than usual. We went to see an the Hiraki Sawa HAKO exhibition at the Chisenhale Gallery and spent the afternoon in the East End, mostly around Whitechapel and Aldgate- mostly Brick Lane. The smells of the area are amazing. It is an odd fusion of Asia, second hand clothing stores and avant- garde art galleries. All a stone's throw away from the City of London, the financial heart. I suppose this is one of the things which people like about London, this mixture.
It soon got late, and we rushed back to Brixton to get ready to go to dinner at the Texas Embassy in Trafalgar Square. It was great seeing old friends again. It was a lovely and familiar feeling.
Afterwards, three of us went to Bar Code in Vauxhall. I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. The decoration was modern, almost cutting edge, and, more importantly, smoke-free. I think one of London's most unique offers, insofar as interesting spaces are concerned, are the space underneath the railways arches which sprout all over London and the UK. Normally, they are very dingy, and certainly humid. I can almost smell the spores when I go into one. But, Bar Code, no spores. Well done. I was pleased we went.
Then home to Brixton to sleep. Sunday we didn't really have much time to do anything. I mostly got to chat with Oliver, our host, about many things. He mentioned he found it interesting that in Spain, in everyday language, there is a concept of "the modern" in a way which does not happen in Germany. Oliver is German. We discussed Spain, the UK, Germany, the US, life, philosophy, human Psychology, Zeitgeist, in short, nothing and everything. He eventually wants to return to Spain. It is just a case of convincing his partner Albert.
In the afternoon we packed and left for Gatwick. Another 2 hour drive out of London.
After being away from the island since the 22nd of July, I finally made it over to spend my birthday in the company of friends and family.
Seeing as how these days I'm "Homeless in London", my partner and I were lucky enough to stay with friends in Brixton, as well as being lucky enough to have friends to stay with in the first place.
The Complaints section
We rented a car, and for the first time ever, I drove from Gatwick into central London. One and a half hours later (more or less), we made it into town. It has always amazed me how long it take to get out of London.
Yes, London is gigantic, but what makes the process so slow is not its size, it is the fact that you get out of it through small winding streets masquerading as roads and highways. In this respect, Madrid has an advantage over London. Even in central Madrid, getting out of town takes no more than 25 minutes.
Yes, I know, Madrid is smaller (though not all that much these days), and many would argue that it has had the space to build motorways out of town. Yes and no. Madrid, like many other capitals, is surrounded by small villages which eventually have been absorbed into the city's fabric. However, I think that the only difference is will power. In Madrid, local politicians decided at some point that it should have ring roads and highways and ways out. Many of these are tunnels. Expensive tunnels which must avoid underground (Subway/Metro) tunnels, and entire city blocks with buildings on top. Not easy. And, considering how London is built mostly on flat land (unlike Madrid which is very hilly), I think political will power wins over weird excuses.
The Get Him! section
I remember once having the nephew of the Duke of Northumberland telling me (how's that for name dropping!!), that after WWII, when there was a plan to build a motorway right through South London, a little boy wrote to the Department of Transport informing them that he was very concerned about the plans to have a highway running right through his home. His father was some aristocrat, and the home in question was a palace somewhere down there (I forget where). So no highway was built.
Although a cute story, and probably a true one, it is amazing that even in 2007 things in London are as bad as they are.
The Culture and Recap section
We spent most of Saturday on the East End. It was a sunny day, and it helped make that part of town look less depressing than usual. We went to see an the Hiraki Sawa HAKO exhibition at the Chisenhale Gallery and spent the afternoon in the East End, mostly around Whitechapel and Aldgate- mostly Brick Lane. The smells of the area are amazing. It is an odd fusion of Asia, second hand clothing stores and avant- garde art galleries. All a stone's throw away from the City of London, the financial heart. I suppose this is one of the things which people like about London, this mixture.
It soon got late, and we rushed back to Brixton to get ready to go to dinner at the Texas Embassy in Trafalgar Square. It was great seeing old friends again. It was a lovely and familiar feeling.
Afterwards, three of us went to Bar Code in Vauxhall. I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. The decoration was modern, almost cutting edge, and, more importantly, smoke-free. I think one of London's most unique offers, insofar as interesting spaces are concerned, are the space underneath the railways arches which sprout all over London and the UK. Normally, they are very dingy, and certainly humid. I can almost smell the spores when I go into one. But, Bar Code, no spores. Well done. I was pleased we went.
Then home to Brixton to sleep. Sunday we didn't really have much time to do anything. I mostly got to chat with Oliver, our host, about many things. He mentioned he found it interesting that in Spain, in everyday language, there is a concept of "the modern" in a way which does not happen in Germany. Oliver is German. We discussed Spain, the UK, Germany, the US, life, philosophy, human Psychology, Zeitgeist, in short, nothing and everything. He eventually wants to return to Spain. It is just a case of convincing his partner Albert.
In the afternoon we packed and left for Gatwick. Another 2 hour drive out of London.
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