Robert is your mother's brother

This old steam engine is stationed in Stratford, it used to be around the corner but it must have got in the way of Westfield. Glad it is still there, though.

Mini Docklands

I meant to try to find out why there was a mini Docklands built on the Greenwich peninsular, I assume it was something to do with the regeneration projects afoot in the area, but I don't know. Pretty substantial efforts though.

It's a wind-up, or perhaps not

The new cablecar across the Thames is a curious thing, basically the cheapest way Boris could look as if he was doing something new and shiny whilst hoping people didn't realise it wasn't very useful (rather similar to the mayoralty, wouldn't you say?). Most travellers these days are tourists and it looks like a good ride. I will try it one day, but on this day they weren't running "because of the wind". Hah, someday, whoever set that criteria ought to go skiing if they wanted to see whether they work in the wind. Still, I suppose the passengers might have felt unsafe.

The Crystal

The Crystal is London's newest addition in the Royal Victoria Dock, it was launched with a bit of razzmatazz, and it does look interesting, I've even read Diamond Geezer When it opened, but I'm still not sure what it's about.

Up and Over

The view from Trinity Buoy Wharf includes probably the best view of the Dome, and the new walkway that takes you way up high above the O2. You can just see the people on the top if you look.

Mad Jack Fuller

Before we leave Trinity Buoy Wharf, a couple more shots. The wharf has been made into an artist/small business workshop, with many different artists studios here. There are quite a few works of art about here, this by Andrew Baldwin. I'd love to see it in action, there is a video on his website here.

Looking Out a Lighthouse

I couldn't walk up the lighthouse and not show you the view from the top, now could I? There are chairs up here to sit, watch and listen to the music.

Just an Aeon

You've heard of Just a Minute? The BBC Radio panel game in which the contestants are challenged to speak for one minute without hesitation, deviation or repetition? Well, this is Longplayer, a musical composition that has been running since December 31st 1999, and is intended to run for 1,000 years without repetition. You can listen to it from this page, if you'd like; it's actually quite calm and beautiful. When the lighthouse is open, you can sit inside and listen.

Shine a Light

Now you know what Trinity Buoy Wharf is all about, it makes sense that you will find a lighthouse here. There's a surprise inside for tomorrow. Oh, and that's Faraday's hut on the left by the door.

A Faraday Cage

Or more accurately, a Faraday Hut.

At this stage, it would probably to benefit you to know about Trinity Wharf:
The Corporation of Trinity House was an association of shipmen and mariners dating back to the reign of King Henry VIII. They were a granted a royal charter in 1514 and received its coat of arms in 1573 along with the authority to erect and maintain beacons, markers and signs of the sea.

Of course you knew that Michael Faraday discovered electromagnetic induction, without which we wouldn't have generators. But you probably didn't know he was Scientific Advisor to Trinity House nearly thirty years. This hut sets out to recreate what his working conditions would have been like and provide information.

Lightship LV93

There's quite a bit to see in Trinity Buoy Wharf, this is an old lightship now used as a photographic studio by Michele Turriani.

Fatboy's Diner

Trinity Buoy Wharf is the location for Fatboy's Diner, an original vintage diner from Arizona dropped into London. Well worth the visit in my view.

Boy oh boy

For the next few days I'll be in Trinity Buoy Wharf. The one thing about buoys is that they always seem too big and heavy to float, but they do.

Bow Creek Nature Reserve

This oasis is ignored my most Londoners and visitors, but as Diamond Geezer reported in 2006, it is well worth a visit.

Contrasts - The other side

The last four days have been two pairs of photos, each from pretty much the same place, from either side of the flyover; that new (rather upmarket) tower block gives you the centre point. I find the alternative views fascinating.

That's the end of the short contrasts series.

Contrasts - Reed bed in sunlight

Moving a little from yesterday (not very much, you'll see tomorrow) you get quite close to nature. This reed bed is in Bow Creek and makes for a rather nice image, anyway.

Contrasts - Canning Town 2012

...and it is in the shadow of the Docklands development.

I turned through 90 degrees to take these two photos. Just on the other side of the road, there is more wealth and gloss than you can image. This here is the wrong side of the tracks.

Contrasts - Canning Town 2012

Let's throw a few pounds at a derelict working mens club, to brighten it up and make it less embarrassing for our foreign visitors to see. There was a lot of that this year. There's little doubt that it is more scenic than it was before, but it is still derelict....and...

Contrasts - The Greenway

Again, an internal contrast. This off road path is actually the Northern Sewer Outfall, and that's what it was called until a few years back when they thought to make it sound more attractive. So, maybe more of a euphemism than a contrast.

(By coincidence it appears that Diamond Geezer is on the Greenway, today)

Contrasts - the A13

You wouldn't really know that this was taken within yards of the photo from yesterday, would you? The most ironic thing is that almost all those who dash past are unaware of the little piece of history sitting just by the road.

Contrasts - St Mary Magdalen

You begin to see why this is a journey of contrasts. St Mary Magdalen lays claim to being the oldest Normal Norman church in regular use in London, it certainly dates from the 12th century, probably earlier. This is still in East Ham, and the grounds around it have been turned into a nature reserve.

Contrasts - All in one photo

Back to the East Ham jaunt. This corner has all the contrast in one shot. On the ghost advert: "John Morris, Hovis, Dainty Bread" now the home to a Halal Butcher and Grocery, next door to Browns (home made curry). It all changes, doesn't it?

Seven Years

It's been seven years, or 2,555 days - each day with its own photograph rain or shine. It's not important, but it mine, and you are all welcome visitors.

It's an awful lot of photos, though.

Contrasts - East Ham 2012

Turn away from the Town Hall and you see this, the gateway to East Ham town centre. From the confidence and hope of 1900, 1990 brought you this: a shabby arch, Costcutter, Pound City.

Contrasts - East Ham Town Hall

This week marks the seventh anniversary of the start of this blog, and I thought to myself that it might be an idea to do something I haven't really done before; so I headed out to take photographs in my local area.

It struck me that one of the most fascinating aspects of any London suburb is how it changes over time, the contrasts as the years go by. So, here I am heading off through East Ham, and this is East Ham Town Hall, built at the turn of the 20th century when hope and affluence walked these streets.

Nothing Seedy Here

Shepherd's Market sits on the site of the old May Fair - that gave its name to Mayfair - and was closed in the early 18th Century because of rioutous behaviour. So, a bloke named Shepherd came along and built this, nothing to do with sheep or farming. It always used to have a fabulously seedy atmosphere, but over the last 20 years it has been gentrified. There may be one or two signs for "models" still, but they are easy to pass by without noticing.

Coffee and Scooters

The Scooter Cafe in Lower Marsh by Waterloo is not just a hangover from the 60's Mods'n'Rockers but they make damn fine coffee, too. Do pay a visit if you are in the area, there aren't many places around with as much genuine character.

Farringdon Road

This view up the Farringdon Road shows clearly its ancestry as a river, the River Fleet. It is a fascinating street in its own right, to quote wikipedia:

Its construction, which took almost 20 years between the 1840s and the 1860s, is considered one of the greatest urban engineering achievements of the 19th century. Not only was it one of the first engineered multi-lane roads, but it also buried the River Fleet in a system of underground tunnels, solving one of London's most daunting sanitary problems. Its construction also included the building of the world's first stretch of underground railway, a branch of the Metropolitan Railway that later became part of the London Underground

Ragged School Museum

Today we're inside what used to be London's largest Ragged School - free schools for the poor in Victorian London. A lot of the work of the Ragged School Museum is with local schools, helping the children understand what life would have been like in Victorian London.

Wine is bottled poetry

Or so said Robert Louis Stevenson. Normally, I end up telling you about good stuff after the event, for once I can give you notice! Coming up soon are the Three Wine Men, Oz Clark (above), Olly Smith and Tim Atkin. Checkout the video on this page. I was there last year - if you like wine, or you want an amazing gift for someone who likes wine drag yourself along, you will have a good time.

Watch the Birdie!

Rainham Marshes is the home of the RSPB Nature Reserve, a fantastic, wild place where you can walk, cycle and watch the wildlife for which it is famous. I have to add, the Centre and cafe has another very endearing quality - some of the best cake you will ever eat.

The Hulks

In the most godforsaken spot of the Rainham Marshes, just east of the Ferry Lane Industrial Eastate, lie these hulks of concrete barges. Probably used as tank transporters for the D-Day landings, they are still visible here, at high tide.

London from the Edge

On Saturday I cycled from London to Southend on Sea and back, alond a cirucular route that took in quite a few places people don't often visit. This included Purfleet, just inside the M25. Here's the view looking back into town.

Tiberius

This isn't a museum but one of the objects inside Westland, one of the most impressive antiques joints you will ever find. Do you fancy the Roman Emperor Tiberius on your mantelpiece? Sorry, you can't it's >sold, but there are many others.

A Smoker's Life....

....can be lonely and cold. I'm rather pleased that I have to dredge back in my memory to remember the times when there were smoking coaches on the underground (the penultimate at each end) and the top of buses. Trendy Curtain Road is the location here.

10 Trinity Square

This magnificent, brooding, building dates from the 20's, and was the appropriate home of the Port of London Authority at a time when London was the most important port in the world. The map was painted pink and Britain ruled the waves. Ninety years on, times have changed.... a bit and this massive building has been looking for a purpose for a while. Recently it has been bought to be turned into Hotel, Residences and a Private Club.

Inside St Paul's

While we are here, I must show you the interior - it is CofE, but you could be forgiven for thinking the architecture inside is somewhat catholic.

The Dome of St Paul's Cathedral

It is useful to know that on the day of the Lord Mayor's Show, St Paul's Cathedral throws open its doors and lets people in without charge. If you can't make it then, here's a picture of the dome from the inside.

The Lord Mayor's Show

Saturday was the Lord Mayor's show, and while I was not able to visit this year (this photo was taken in a past year) I do know that the Guild of Basketmaker's Gog & Magog were on the streets again. I do confess I can never see them without thinking of the Wicker Man.....

Remembrance Sunday

This Sunday is when the 11th day of the 11th month coincides. It is fitting that today, whatever our personal views of the rights and wrongs of war, we stop for a minute to consider the sacrifices of those who have died in conflict. Lets try to make our world better so that they will not have died in vain.

Canal Life

I'm not sure where I would want to live in London, if money was no object. Right by a canal (in this case, the Regent's Canal) would be quite high on the list. What I like though, is the way this very des. res. has been squashed onto the end of a row of houses

Camden Market

Must be time for some more Camden Town shopfronts....

An Egyptian Face

The discovery of Tutenkhamun's tomb in 1922 coincided with the Art Deco boom in building design and inspired many buildings, none more so than this one in old Broad Street. It still looks like a face to me, though.

Westminster

When all else fails (and the picture store is low) it never hurts to realise I don't often show these classic tourist shots.

Sitting by the Shore

This photo is (rather obviously from the summer) and demonstrates that you can sit on a sandy beach in London. This is the Thames at low tide, by the Oxo Tower. Kindly, someone has even written "London" in the sand to confirm where we are.

Holiday Snap in the Dordogne

I've just been away for a week to the northern Dordogne/Haute Vienne and had a truly splendid time. As is my wont, I thought I'd share a photo from this short break from London, which also gives me the opportunity to join in TARATS. This entry doesn't stand a chance up against the competition, but it's the taking part that counts (with any luck, the photo should be geotagged)

Victoria Station

Alongside Waterloo, Victoria was built at a time when the railways were the gateway to the world, and the buildings proclaimed that. Thankfully, the fascia is still largely intact.

Heavenly Gates

The gates to Green Park, nearby Buckingham Palace are truly magnificent; her maj seems to get the decorators in quite frequently, too.

Do you take poetry with your graffiti?

This area in Wheler Street in Shoreditch has an extended mural including pieces of writing, it's quiet nice to have something to read sometimes.

Not everything is What is Seems

The Old Axe might seem like an appealing Victorian pub in the Bethnal Green Road, but those darkened windows might give you a hint. Don't enter unless you want to frequent a stripper pub. Many years ago, there were a lot of "normal" pubs that had strippers as entertainment, I think its a better thing that they are confined to pubs devoted to it now.