The Anonymous Widower

An Old London Bendy Bus In Liverpool

I saw this example of one of the dreaded London bendy buses in Liverpool.

An Old London Bendy Bus In Liverpool

It was being used to take students to and from accommodation.

Note the wi-fi.

November 4, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , | 1 Comment

The Hope Street Hotel

On Friday night, I went to Liverpool for an Alumni Dinner at the University and stayed in the Hope Street Hotel,where the dinner was held. Here’s a few pictures.

One of the reasons, I like the hotel is that it does gluten-free food superbly well. It did in the dinner on Friday night and the food was summed up by the superb smoked haddock and poached eggs that I had for breakfast.

Other hotels should take note about the breakfast as fish and eggs is so simple and also impossible to add gluten.

November 4, 2012 Posted by | Food, Transport/Travel | , , | 2 Comments

A Ginger Damsel In Distress

On the way home tonight, I went via Kings Cross to pick up a train ticket.

it was one of those times, when I wished I’d had my camera with me, as in front of the ticket machine was a ginger damsel in distress. She had an enormous ruck-sack on her back and was trying to bend over to pick-up the Oystercard she had dropped. Suffice to say she wasn’t managing to pick the card up.

So I did the gentlemanly thing and retrieved her card.

When I heard she was on her way to Norwich, I did wonder if I’d done the right thing!

November 1, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , , | Leave a comment

Bad Karma

My financial advisor has just left on his bicycle to go home to South West London. I did suggest as it was raining that he cycle to Canonbury station and get the North London line most of the way.

He didn’t as he said that was Bad Karma.

October 31, 2012 Posted by | Business, Finance & Investment, Transport/Travel | , , | 1 Comment

A Poppy Covered Bus

For Poppy Day, TfL have decorated two buses appropriately.

A Poppy Covered Bus

This picture shows one on route 55 at the Angel, Islington.

October 29, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel, World | , , | Leave a comment

Standardising With Europe

The clock change highlights how we don’t have the same time as Europe, although we do generally change for summer time on the same day.

Although I poked fun at the European rules for hairdressers, I do think in most things we should be in line with most of the continent.

  1. I never use Imperial measurements and in fact don’t have anything other than metric rulers in my house.
  2. I work totally in Centigrade, although sometimes I have been known to quote temperature in Scottish units or Degrees Kelvin.  But that’s really only an extension of Centigrade related to Absolute Zero.
  3. My father once said that we should have changed to driving on the right-hand side of the road after the Second World War. It should have been done, but it’s too late to change now.

Interestingly, both trains and aircraft are left-hand-drive in the UK.

 

October 28, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel, World | , , , , , | Leave a comment

Victoria Has Disappeared Too!

Elizabeth went underground yesterday and by the time I got there today, it looked like Victoria had joined her, although I can’t find any news on the web. But I can’t see a TBM in this picture.

The TBMs Have Disappeared

Note the massive cranes.

October 27, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , | Leave a comment

Elizabeth Goes Down The Hole

The weather last night, which was dry and clear enabled CrossRail to lower the first of the pair of tunnel boring machines; Elizabeth and Victoria, into the enormous hole on the Limmo peninsular by Canning Town station.

There are some wonderful pictures here on the CrossRail site.

The pictures have a sort of Kubrickesque feel to them. You could just imagine them being used as a model for some futuristic film set.

October 27, 2012 Posted by | News, Transport/Travel | , , , | 1 Comment

No Football Today

Ipswich are at home and there’s rail replacement buses both way. I’ve normally nothing against buses, but rail replacement ones generally have a standard that leaves a lot to be desired and given the weather they’ll probably be icy.

October 27, 2012 Posted by | Sport, Transport/Travel | , , , | Leave a comment

The Cheeky Conductor

I got a New Bus for London home from the Angel this morning. I’d not seen him before or the route and I suspect, he could have been someone training to do the job.

He was certainly enjoying himself balancing on the platform watching the street.

I used the expression cheeky in the title, as at one set of lights, whilst the bus was stationary and waiting for the green, he dismounted and went and looked in a shop window, before getting back on the bus well before it moved away.

A couple of conductors on New Buses for London have said to me how much they like the job and the interactions with the public. He was only demonstrating this in a direct way.

October 24, 2012 Posted by | Transport/Travel | , , | 2 Comments