A Weekend Diary

…words and images from England's green and pleasant land…

Archive for the tag “Leicester Square”

30 Nov 2013

Friday afternoon in Fareham…and Saturday evening in London…

Worked a ten-hour day on Thursday, so treated myself to a half day on Friday…and spent a couple of hours in Fareham town centre…

A pint of Carling, at Table 63, in The Vanguard Pub, in Fareham West Street...

A pint of Carling, at Table 63, in The Vanguard Pub, in Fareham West Street…

The sculpture at the right is called 'Still Moves' and carries the inscription 'Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed’...which I'd have to meditate on for a very long time before it made any sense ;)...

The sculpture at the right is called ‘Still Moves’ and carries the inscription ‘Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed’…which I’d have to meditate on for a very long time before it made any sense ;)…

A bit further along the pedestrianised part of West Street, in the direction of the railway station...

A bit further along the pedestrianised part of West Street, in the direction of the railway station…

Had my barnet cut, by long-time barber Giovanni at Baker Street on Saturday afternoon, then headed down to the West End by way of King’s Cross…

The wonderful interior of King's Cross station, rendered in mono...

The wonderful interior of King’s Cross station, rendered in mono…

I’ve posted a couple of other photos of Platform 9¾ at King’s Cross on this blog, but never before have I caught a Harry Potter fan so…err…mid-air 🙂

An enthusiastic Harry Potter fan :)...

An enthusiastic Harry Potter fan :)…

That wonderful interior in colour...

That wonderful interior in colour…

The Victorian frontage of King's Cross, in the Euston Road...

The Victorian frontage of King’s Cross, in the Euston Road…

Black cabs, outside St Pancras International...

Black cabs, outside St Pancras International…

The Hippodrome, on the corner of Cranbourn Street and the Charing Cross Road

The Hippodrome, on the corner of Cranbourn Street and the Charing Cross Road

Cranbourn Street, leading to the north side of Leicester Square...

Cranbourn Street, leading to the north side of Leicester Square…

A festive Leicester Square, viewed from its south-western corner...

A festive Leicester Square, viewed from its south-western corner…

And a bit further north in Chinatown, a TCM/Massage clinic in Newport Court, off the Charing Cross Road

And a bit further north in Chinatown, a TCM/Massage clinic in Newport Court, off the Charing Cross Road

A temporary 'Gift Factory' outside the Royal Festival Hall on London's South Bank, with the London Eye visible in the distance...

A temporary ‘Gift Factory’ outside the Royal Festival Hall on London’s South Bank, with the London Eye visible in the distance…

Travelling down the escalator to the Northen Line platform at Waterloo Tube station...

Travelling down the escalator to the Northern Line platform at Waterloo Tube station…

Awaiting a High Barnet train home....and I'm wondering who composed the poem, presumably not Boris ;)...

Awaiting a High Barnet train home….and I’m wondering who composed the poem…presumably not Boris ;)…

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25 May 2013
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Some Titchfield flora…and a day in the life…

dandelion
FloweringCherry
daisy
BedOfPetals
PinkPetals

All the above were taken in the past week in Titchfield in Hampshire, during lunchtime walks to get some fresh air…whereas all of the following were taken today in Portsmouth/Southsea and London. The first is of Guildhall Square in Portsmouth at midday, with the Guildhall being watched over by Queen Victoria…

Portsmouth Guildhall, looking resplendent in the welcome sunshine...

Portsmouth Guildhall, looking resplendent in the late spring sunshine…

The next is of a book I bought in the Adelphi second-hand bookshop in Albert Road in Southsea early this afternoon. It cost me two pounds fifty, and is a 1938 reprint of a book originally published in 1937. It is the narrative, with paintings and poetry, of a Chinese artist living in London in the 1930s, recording an expedition to the English Lake District, taken in part to escape the London fogs, and also to reconnect with landscapes reminiscent of his home in China…

The Silent Traveller: A Chinese Artist in Lakeland, by Chiang Yee.

The Silent Traveller: A Chinese Artist in Lakeland, by Chiang Yee.

From Albert Road, I wandered down to Canoe Lake on Southsea seafront, aware that a procession of naked cyclists would be making its way from the naturist beach at nearby Eastney, along Southsea seafront and beyond. It was one of a series of World Naked Bike Rides taking place at various venues this summer, and it seemed like an event worth recording for posterity here (That said, I’m being very discreet in tagging these photos, restricting the tags to one only, ‘naturism’ ;)). Anyway, here they are, and if nothing else, it was at least a lovely day for such an event…

So here they come, along the seafront road from Eastney...

So here they come, along the seafront road from Eastney…

Unsurprisingly maybe, there were a minority of women cyclists participating, but there were some brave enough to take part...:)

Unsurprisingly maybe, there were a minority of women cyclists participating, but there were some brave enough to take part…:)

Methinks the character in red here looks distinctly over-dressed ;)...

Methinks the character in red here looks distinctly over-dressed ;)…

At nearby Canoe Lake in Southsea, among the attractions is 'water walking', a bit of a misnomer, but that's what it's called...

At nearby Canoe Lake in Southsea, among the attractions is ‘water walking’, a bit of a misnomer, but that’s what it’s called…

And this is what it means...

And this is what it means…

Further attractions in Southsea this summer...

Further attractions in Southsea this summer…

German fans in Trafalgar Square, prior to this evening's Champions League Final at Wembley...and a great match it was too :)...

German fans in Trafalgar Square, prior to this evening’s Champions League Final at Wembley…and a great match it was too :)…

A living statue, north of Trafalgar Square...

A living statue, north of Trafalgar Square…

Union Flags in Leicester Square...

Union Flags in Leicester Square…

Finally, close to home, a couple of pictures taken in Whetstone, London N20…

Swan Lane Open Space, early evening...

Swan Lane Open Space, early evening…

And another of Swan Lane Open Space...

And another of Swan Lane Open Space…

Posted in Hampshire, London, Portsmouth, Southsea and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
10 Feb 2013

新年快乐!…Chinese New Year in London

Gerrard Street, London Chinatown's main shopping street, early afternoon today...

Gerrard Street, London Chinatown’s main shopping street, early afternoon today…

Flower baskets, lamps etc. above Waxy's Little Sister, on the corner of Wardour Street and Lisle Street...

Flower baskets, lamps etc. above Waxy’s Little Sister, on the corner of Wardour Street and Lisle Street…

Kung fu and qi gong demonstration, in Lisle Street, by Lau Gar Kuen from Essex, England…

Kung fu and qi gong demonstration, in Lisle Street, by Lau Gar Kuen from Essex, England…

Odeon cinema, on the eastern side of Leicester Square, just to the south of Chinatown...

Odeon cinema, on the eastern side of Leicester Square, just to the south of Chinatown…

White dragon, at the southern end of the Charing Cross Road...

White dragon, at the southern end of the Charing Cross Road…

Steps leading down into Trafalgar Square, where Chinese New Year events were taking place all afternoon..

Steps leading down into Trafalgar Square, where Chinese New Year events were taking place all afternoon..

And here's the stage where most of those events took place...and note the Hong Kong/Cantonese heritage of London's Chinatown, with 'kung hei fat choi' instead of the Mandarin 'gong xi fa cai'...

And here’s the stage where most of those events took place…and note the Hong Kong/Cantonese heritage of London’s Chinatown, with ‘kung hei fat choi’ instead of the Mandarin ‘gong xi fa cai’…

I didn't catch this young singer's name, but she told us she was on her first visit to London, and after singing her first song in Mandarin, she said she'd prepared a song in English, which I recognised as being 'Venus', a rock song from 1969, originally recorded by a Dutch group called Shocking Blue ;).

I didn’t catch this young singer’s name, but she told us she was on her first visit to London, and after singing her first song in Mandarin, she said she’d prepared a song in English, which I recognised as being ‘Venus’, a rock song from 1969, originally recorded by a Dutch group called Shocking Blue ;).

We were also treated to some elegant and colourful dancers :)...

We were also treated to some elegant and colourful dancers :)…

Back to Gerrard Street, and the traditional Lion Dance, bestowing good fortune on the Loon Tao restaurant...

Back to Gerrard Street, and the traditional Lion Dance, bestowing good fortune on the Loon Tao restaurant…

And here he is again, further along Gerrard Street, doing the same for the Golden Dragon restaurant...

And here he is again, further along Gerrard Street, doing the same for the Golden Dragon restaurant…

And if you were wondering, it's the Year of the Snake this year :)...

And if you were wondering, it’s the Year of the Snake this year :)…

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