Rising Sun for the evening

I went to London to meet with my ex-colleagues. Close to St. Paul's there is a Thai Restaurant, it is part of the Rising Sun public house. We were set to meet at 7pm, and had a good meal. It was great to catch up with them. I arrived in London very early and read through one of the free magazines - 'Sport'. Too much on golf for my liking, but the article on cycling was interesting, and there was a column on the Canadian GP that takes place this weekend. After that I wandered through the familiar roads, very little has changed. Opposite St Paul's, is the Tate Modern. As I glanced across, there was a painting on the side of the building. A man with a gun. Surely not, not in the middle of town. That might be dangerous. Supposing someone spots it out of the corner of his eye, just as I did. Supposing he is armed and reacts. Supposing he shoots at the building and kills someone in the line of fire.
I'm sorry, Tate Modern, but you'll just have to turn your building in-side-out. If you turn it back before the next general election, you will be arrested under the prevention of terrorism act.

Southwark Bridge

After the lunacy that was happening last week I needed a walk, so I strolled over to the Tate Modern. For once it wasn't the art that caught my eye. It seems there is work going on to narrow the bridge. Southwark bridge is one of the few places in London where the traffic flows reasonably freely. Not true of the road it feeds on the North Bank of the Thames though. That's more congested now than before the infamous congestion charge was applied. The congestion charge is exactly what it says - a charge to sit in congestion - rarely has anything been so accurately named.

I digress - and I shouldn't do that.

Where this photo was taken there has often been a string of coaches parked. The passengers are visiting the Globe or the Tate. Apart from the steep steps down to the Thames its ideal. Close to the attractions and easy to find when you have to return. Where have the coaches gone? Where will the visitors have to return to? I have no idea.

I'm just convinced, in my grumpy old man way, that the people who lead London are doing their very best to remove cars from the city altogether, and with them of course the lorries and coaches. There will be only bendy-busses, cyclists and pedestrians soon.

Perhaps I should phone the number and ask WHY?

I will try to remember to get another picture at the end of February so you can see the effect its had on the road width.

Anyway back to the art. I was very pleased to see one exhibit in particular. Sorry no picture - mainly because I don't think its allowed, and the guard was rather suspicious of me as I looked really very closely at the exhibit. What was it?


A piece of marble - remarkable similar to one of the work tops we are thinking about for the kitchen. Really remarkably similar. Too square for my purposes though, and probably too heavy to carry on the train, and then there's that guard of course looking at me suspiciously. Perhaps now I know why.

Cracking Up

To relieve the tension, and to stop my self from cracking up, I decided to take a stroll through Tate Modern at lunch time. I'm not sure if this exhibit was one of the first in Turbine Hall, my memory isn't that good, but it certainly makes for an interesting piece outside the entrance.
Below is the banner advertising the exhibition, this is a regular feature at Tate Modern, but a different display each year.

So now to this years display - a crack in the floor:
They have people handing out warning leaflets at all the entrances, apparently some people have already fallen down it! In these "Health and Safety" days, I'm surprised it hasn't been cordoned off. Below is a picture of the crack as it goes across the east end of the Turbine Hall.
It is ART? - Who knows? When I walk through Tate Modern, as I do occasionally, I often hear comments. The slides got lots of positive comments, the only comment I heard today "This is cr*p".

OK so I'm going to help fill in some, thankfully, smaller cracks. In the wall of one of our bedrooms.