Tiny sign at Tower Bridge...

I spotted this the other day, right down at the bottom just beyond the glass back wall of the lift, really, unless you were looking extremely hard (as I guess I do), there is no way you would ever notice it (addressing no-one in particular) tucked away in the corner with no obvious way to reach it -

- here is a view of the space it points towards (from the lift when at the top) - you can see to get to it would require you to basically tip-toe along the wall at the side of the Thames -

- and a shot from the bottom (it's pointing at two square yards of paving slabs - and a few leaves - positioned behind the metal structure of the lift machinery)...so what is so important?  It's basically saying - if - by a grand demonstration of river-side acrobatics - you have managed to actually get to the sign to read it - that you shouldn't have - these 10 paving slabs are not a public right of way...as if you needed telling...completely pointless!

The Thames by night...

...snapped the other evening... ;)

The Thames at sunrise

Thames Clipper Commute review - pics and video

What could have been an absolute disaster this morning (Jubilee line suspended due to power failure) turned into an amazing experience...I groaned when I got down the escalator at London Bridge and all the gates were shut, whole place rammed (I mean, even the trains had been full when we got on at Earlswood, but luckily two people got off at Redhill and we dived into their seats), but when I got about a third of the way across London Bridge (thinking DLR, but dreading the crush) and just happened to peer to my right and spot the pier..BAM! I stopped dead in my tracks and reversed course (against the almost unstoppable flow of other commuters) until I was able to find a way down to the bank of the Thames...

...Amazingly only a tiny handful of other people had twigged and were checking prices, which *appeared* to be £4 for a single -

- but to save the agro that was definitely worth it so I walked down and joined the small queue of people-

- and luckily enough the next boat was "due" now -

- it was only about two minutes late (but I don't expect perfect timekeeping when rivers are involved)...

We were then *counted* on to *ensure* that every single passenger gets a seat (how civilized?)-


- and I began to explore, quickly finding the open-air seats at the back of the boat -


- waved goodbye to the swarm of ants on London Bridge -

- and then we were off -

- past the HMS Belfast -

- under Tower Bridge -


- and then things really got up to speed (had to hang on tight!) tiny bit of video here showing how quickly we were travelling -

- and in no time the Wharf was in sight -


- it took a minute or two to dock (because the pier was full so there was nowhere to moor) and then everyone queued to get off (and pay if the lady with the ticket machine had missed them, as she had done in my case, but it was only £2.60!) past the coffee bar (don't get them on the tube!) -

- and then through the gardens and plaza(s) towards One Canada Square -


- (and I must say it looks incredible walking up the avenue towards the building from this direction, like New York on Thames, honestly) -

- more pictures here if you like this kind of thing...

Summer River Cruise down the Thames - Summer 2001

Been going through a few *very* old pictures just lately (just tidying up and sorting), and came across some pictures from the very dawn of the (popular) digital camera age, having borrowed my Dad's cutting edge Fujifilm MX-1500 for the occasion (I was still using a point and shoot 35mm at the time), which started with a coach trip (although quite how Flyingpops' folks managed to drag her onto it, I will *never* know)... ;)

So, please set your wayback machines to the truely magnificent summer of 2001 and come with me to the glittering metropolis that is the City of London, still hung over from the Millennium celebrations, for a cruise down the river Thames...starting at the (recently useful) Thames Barrier which isn't quite so shiny now -


- around the (doomed) Millennium dome (now the thriving O2) listening to the guide telling us how it hadn't quite been possible to remove all the toxic waste from the surrounding areas during redevelopment -

- past the place (how spooky to see it here) I had absolutely no idea I would end up working -One Canada Square (now, of course, utterly lost in a forest of equally impressive companions, and soon to be joined by several taller ones!) -

- and along the river -

- under Tower Bridge (ooh!) -


- past HMS Belfast (which has managed to hang onto it's name and resist sponsorship, thank goodness) -

- the Tate Modern (complete with failed wobbling Millennium Bridge, you can clearly see the scaffolding in the second shot towards St. Paul's..hehe...!) -


- under Blackfriars Station/bridge (which would be, again unknowingly, my route to work in Kings Cross for all those years, really don't miss the Thameslink line ;) -

- followed by a trip on the "Millennium Wheel" (as it was known at the time, now known as the "London Eye", of course) in probably the best possible conditions...


...most suprising to me is that a number of these pictures I am actually still really very happy with (even today being 50,000+ shots practice further down the line towards being an "enthusiast")...

Anyway, I'll post a couple of shots from the "Millennium Wheel" itself when I get to them, and perhaps a few more (if I find any interesting ones) as I continue forward through time...

Thames Clipper Riverline - voucher

Got this voucher handed to me as I was stepping out of the tube this morning (there were delays on the Jubilee line, so I think they were going for the "I hate the tube" factor as an extra incentive to defect)...basically it's 50% off one single journey on a Thames Clipper...and I have to admit I was quite tempted...The hype makes it sound quite wonderful -

• "Canary Wharf to London Bridge in 13 minutes, every 15 minutes"


• "Riverline services suffer none of the problems of congestion or interruption that can blight Londoner's journey to work. Boats run to schedule with a better than 98% on time record"


• "Standing inside boats is not allowed, so all passengers travel sitting in airline style seats"


• "Tickets can be purchased on board, and season tickets are available. Travelcard discounts apply"

...and this is still saying nothing about the lovely view as one would be swept along the Thames - my daily commute would take me past the Tower of London, HMS Belfast and under Tower Bridge every day, to name but a few of the wonderful sights and the wind in your hair rather than stuffy air and close proximity to other commuters B.O. or choice of aftershave...all rather tempting, eh?

So I thought it might, at least, be worth checking out the prices...But when I did I nearly choked on the mini-cheddar I was eating! A *single* is £4.00 (which works out costing about two grand a year)! Even if you pay for a zone 1-2 travel card (about £90 a month) it's still £2.60 extra per trip! Admittedly the season tickets do make a big difference, but it's still going to set you back £1215 a year (about £4.67 for a return each day)...so it really can't compete with the tube for price (being, at best, £135 more expensive (if you throw away your travelcard completely, which isn't a great idea)...or £801 more expensive if you hang onto it...

Oh well, what a shame...I'll put that dream of a seat for every journey on hold for now then...but I have my 50% off voucher, so I guess I can at least try it out (especially if the underground is being silly)... ;)