My Moan Of The Week
The Richard Bacon Show on BBC Radio 5 has a weekly moan-in, where people vent their moans.
My moan would be about the number of people who moan generally about the cost and problems of having a car. If it’s not fuel costs, it’s about traffic jams, congestion charging, insurance or finding somewhere to park.
I don’t have these problems any more, as since my stroke I haven’t driven and don’t have a licence any more And I reckon my bank account benefits by several thousand pounds a year. That would buy lots of taxis, if I wanted, but I prefer trains and buses, as you see more of life and don’t get the driver complaining about the sad state of the taxi industry.
A Superb Gluten Free Meal At Kings Cross
I popped into Kings Cross station and had a superb gluten-free meal at Leon.
As you can see the surroundings weren’t bad either for the sit down part of a fast food restaurant. It made your average burger joint look exceedingly plastic, tacky and in the worst possible taste from across the pond.
To cap it all, the Catalan Salad and White Bean Stew with a Fresh Lemonade was just £8.55.
The Kings Cross Extension Comes Down
This must be one of the most satisfying jobs in London.
Knocking down the awful 1970s extension to Kings Cross station is a demolition job with a real purpose.
Stefan From The Atos Trio
The trip to Leicester on the train, was enlivened by this guy.
He is a member of the Atos Trio and was going to perform at a concert in Nottingham.
Sometimes, you see small women struggling with enormous double-bases on the Underground. Do they wish they’d chosen to play the violin or the piccolo?
Changing At Brussels
Coming back, I changed at Brussels.
The signage is very confusing and resulted in my walking up and down several times before I found the new Channel Terminal, which doesn’t feature on the signs. There was no-one to ask either.
The new terminal was rather poor with only limited sit-down toilets for men and rather tired furniture. Hopefully, it’s just part way through completion.
It was also not improved by the most obese member of the UK Border Force, I’ve ever seen. A real advert for the UK,
Continental Trains
The train I travelled on between Brussels and The Hague was a fairly new one. There are differences between these trains and what we expect in the UK.
Traditionally, continental trains have always had a few steps up.
Too Many Steps
We do have our bad examples, but usually it’s step-free or just one step from the platform.
It was interesting to compare the trains to the one I took yesterday to go to Leicester.
The East Midlands train had a visual display which told you the next station, whilst the European one had announcements in various languages.
But what annoyed me particularly, was that when I moved around the European train, the doors didn’t open either automatically or by just pressing a button. I bumped into two doors, before I realised you pulled the handle.
There is a lot wrong with our railway system, but in some areas we’re better than Europe.
Smoking In The Tunnel
This tunnel leads to all the platforms at Den Haag HS station.
The Tunnel At Den Haag HS Station
When I arrived, there were several smokers loitering about inside. Are the Dutch more tolerant than we are?
By Eurostar To The Netherlands
On Thursday I took the Eurostar to visit a friend in The Hague. I travelled in Standard Premier to get a comfortable seat with a table and a meal.
My route was to take the Eurostar to Brussels, where I would change to the Dutch Inter City train to Den Haag HS. The weather wasn’t good as this picture shows.
To Brussels In The Mist
Not that you get to see much on a trip to Brussels. But at least the gluten-free breakfast is worth having.
Eurostar’s Gluten-Free Breakfast
Note the Dove’s Farm biscuits, which seem to have disappeared from the shops.
Coming back, I got a rather nice gluten-free chicken for supper, with as much wine as I wanted.
It is a bit of a pain having to change trains in Brussels, but it isn’t too far to walk. It would be nice though if I could have got a train right the way through to The Hague or Rotterdam from St. Pancras.
The main reason is that Eurostar trains can’t run on the Dutch train network, although they can run on ours. Most modern trains like the East and West Coast Main Lines in the UK, the French TGV and the Channel Tunnel are electrified to the same standard of 25kV A.C. But the Dutch railway for some reason is electrified at 1.5kV D.C. Although the High Speed Line to Amsterdam is at the higher voltage.
This entry in Wikipedia talks about the future of high speed trains from London to the Netherlands. When Eurostar get their new trains, they may even call at The Hague.
Thank You, London Overground
That is the tone of this article to mark the fifth birthday of the London Overground in Time Out.
I think it shows if you bring in an urban transport system and design it properly, you completely enhance the lives of those it touches.
This country and the world in general needs more Overgrounds! Lots more!
The only problem with the Overground is that its success has meant too many people want to use it. But that is hopefully being solved by adding more and longer trains and the infrastructure to handle them.
With the opening of the new line to Clapham Junction in a few weeks time, I think we’ll see the popularity of the Overground grow.
The only problem with the Overground is that its success has meant too many people want to use it. But that is hopefully being solved by adding more and longer trains and the infrastructure to handle them.
An Infuriating Website
I’ve just booked a couple of Eurostar tickets.
It is rather an infuriating web site.
1. I have used it many times before and it wouldn’t let me login using my normal profile.
2. I thought I might have got the password wrong, but then it kept asking me to type my e-mail address, despite it being the right one.
3. When I created a new profile, I made the odd mistake and had to type in things again.
4. It also made me type in a city, when all I need is a house number, a road name, London and a post code.
5. Printing out the details was five pages.
The Anonymous Widower 