Olha a ombreira poderosa no blazer da Kininha! O look dos anos 90 resgata a moda que começou nos anos 80, com a t-shirt psicadélica da cyberdog, as ombreiras, os leggings brilhantes e a cor ácida dos sapatos compensados de plástico. Um visual com forte apelo rock e atitude levemente agressiva.

See how powerfull  Kininha´s shoulders are on her blazer! The look that began in the 80´s, was saved and transformed right into the 90´s, with the Psycadelic tee by Cyberdog, shoulders, shinny leggings and the plastic shoes with an acid colour. Her visual is is all about rock with a slight agressive atitude.

Blazer – TopShop

T-shirt – Cyberdog

Leggings – Blanco

Sapatos //Shoes – Melissa

Bolsa // Bag – Bimba & Lola

This morning’s sky over Camden Town looked wonderfully dramatic as I left home this morning.

We decided to tackle northern London for Madre’s last day.  First stop: King’s Cross for a divine brunch at Smithy’s (special thanks to Allison and Pete Tomasino for the recommendation!) with our dearest Annie.  It’s right around the corner from King’s Cross, so we popped in to snap a shot at the famous Platform 9 3/4 — it was moved due to construction but there were re-directional signs!  Now that’s embracing tourism.

We then headed up to the border of zones 2/3 to Hampstead Village adjacent to Hampstead Heath for an enchanting walk (thanks to a course charted by The Unofficial Guide to London) through one of London’s oldest and most charming areas.  On the way back into central London, we stopped at Camden Town to check out the market, pick up some more Christmas gifts for family/friends (;)), and get Madre her long-awaited Guinness at The World’s End pub.  After heading home to watch our appearance on TV Burp (!) we headed out to get Madre a true London curry at the Indian restaurant down the block, Miran Masala–delicious food and an adorable old Indian man owner!  It hit the spot…especially because nothing gets you in the mood for local, freshly made sweets from Hampstead Village like spicy curry   Yup, there’s a method to our madness!

First post about going from Camden to Brick Lane
Next posts will include pictures of the new East London Line
All pictures will gradually be uploaded on my flickr account
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12445197@N05/sets/72157614139538921/

Camden Town, Northern Line
Due to having a morning and an afternoon meeting in Central London, with quite a bit of time in between, I had the opportunity to go on this excursion. I was in an office near London Bridge station and took the underground from there to Camden Town.

On the way to Camden Road Overground Station
From Camden Town I walked to Camden Road. The route was well signposted.

Camden Road Station 

Camden Road Station
Looking across the viaduct towards Caledonian Road & Barnsbury. The North London Line makes a dip towards the area where the Euston, St Pancras and King’s Cross rail terminals are.

Camden Road Station
New Overground train ready to take me to Dalston Kingsland

More to follow
Harjinder Singh
Man in Blue

Quilted clouds, a glimpse of sun, the hymn of traffic. Yes, Marianne thought, big open skies – even over Highbury Fields – make you greedy to gulp down more air. Twenty minutes early for her first day at Lean Green Cars, she perched on a bench with a cappuccino, licking the creamy moustache from her top lip. A few feet away, a Chinese woman chopped the air slowly with her arms and legs, in a silent dance, whilst behind her, a young couple were sharing a joke. It’s an amazing thing hearing people laughing, Marianne thought, the way it takes them over, the way, like crying, it must be done until it’s spent.  

Her recent decision to practice kindness was proving harder than she imagined. Trying to greet the noisy traders on Ridley Road as they set up stall felt silly. But she had chatted to the Big Issue lady outside Dalston Kingsland station who, she learnt today, was called Felicia and had moved here from Romania ten years ago; and she had flirted with the Italian-looking boys who operated the mobile coffee stall (‘Where are you from?’ she had asked. ‘Tottenham,’ one answered.) At Canonbury, her offer of the last seat to a pensioner had been met with an obscenity, his face screwed up like a walnut.

The wind rustled in the oaks, and the clouds now loomed overhead like dark continents, some so sculptured it was as if God had appointed a new, enthusiastic underling. Oh, why had she slept with Joe? She fished out her notebook to list the reasons – it always helped to write things down – but found herself staring at dogs bombing along the grass, fetching sticks and balls without question. To fetch and be happy: that was their purpose, wasn’t it? It seemed moronic, but… but what was hers? She would never marry Joe, for a start. She may have weakened, but a wedding was not going to happen. She had kicked him out today. Go back to Deal, Joe. 

She re-read Archie’s latest text, a smile warming her face. They were meeting tonight on the bench on top of Parliament Hill. 

 * 

The eternal spool of time returns us again and again to a new day. Archie left Ben asleep on the sofa, his head throbbing from yesterday’s pub marathon. Outside, Queens Crescent bristled with Monday morning usefulness: kids dragged to school, fruit stalls doing brisk trade from passing commuters, vans dispensing loaves of bread or tinned goods, and a curling queue outside the post office.  

It was a fifteen minute walk to his office, a box room behind an open-plan space near the canal. He had two bands on his roster, rather than the five or six of previous years. The process was complex these days, with fewer financial dividends, but constant gigging, licensing, and utilizing social new media, brought in just enough money to survive (although in truth he had relied on Rose’s Sales Director salary, which now worried him).  

He sat with his back to the blinds. The antique desk was tidy: laptop, moleskine diary and a pile of magazines. To the right, books filled a shelf – trade manuals, an Oxford dictionary, a thesaurus and the collected stories of Chekhov (he’d studied English at university) for when he needed distraction (and because it impressed a new band). To the left was a photo of Rose on their first holiday to Lille, six years ago.  

They had met on the number 29 bus, an occurrence no less strange than this thing with Marianne and the notebook. One morning he had sensed a girl’s eyes on him, but continued to stare out at a bus travelling in the other direction, its passengers nodding like dressed-up dogs. But the next day he felt her gaze again, and there was momentary eye contact, as an alternate future started to spin in his mind: because that’s what pure love is, isn’t it – the future? 

On the third morning serendipity deposited them at the same stop on Oxford Street; in the hot summer air there was a kind of distortion, a sense of possibility, adventure. But it wasn’t till the following day, when she dismounted two stops earlier than normal, that he found himself leaping off the crowded vehicle to chase her down the road, without knowing how or what he would say.

‘Excuse me-’ He was panting, red in the face, sweat dampening his brow.

‘Yes?’ She eyeballed him. It wasn’t going to be easy.

‘Um-’

‘You want to ask me out, don’t you?’

He nodded.

‘It was a little undignified though, wasn’t it?’ She pointed at him and laughed. ‘Your sprint, I mean.’

He blushed. ‘Didn’t you feel it too? These last few days-’

She smiled. ‘You’re cute, what do you want me to say?’

He was paralyzed with happiness. There’s a lot under the surface of life – we all know that – but there’s loneliness where you wouldn’t expect to find it, too.

‘Look-’

‘Archie-’

‘Archie, I’m Rose. I’m in a mental rush, cow of a boss, here’s my number’ – she had scribbled it on an old ticket – ‘call me.’ He eyed the ticket. ‘It’s real,’ she said. 

But now Rose had disappeared. And it was probably his fault. The strip light flickered as he boiled a kettle, and the buzzer went; it must be Bryony, his new intern. His phone beeped. Marianne. The edge of a smile crossed his face as he went to the door.

I’ve lived in and around Camden Town for about eight years now. I’m not a born and bred Londoner, but I’m certainly a Camdenite. It feels like my part of London. Who knows what it is, the grit and grime (like East Berlin perhaps), music, culture, excitement, the fact that it’s a transient tourist trap but after quite a while here there are people I know, see in the street, recognise (the short lady who wanders around with her trolley full of bags all day then boards the 253 bus north/east late at night)…

I saw a video for Goodbye London today and being quite substantially based in and around Camden Town I thought it was a brilliant tour around my part (and other parts) of London. Here’s some bumf from DigitalUrban:

Babelgum Metropolis is looking for the globe’s best and edgiest artists for what is being termed’the world’s biggest art show’. Winners will have their work shown on giant advertising screens this December in Times Square, the neon heart of New York City. Out of the notable nominees is Luke Jackson’s Goodbye London video, directed by Murray John. The video features a mix of stop motion photography and drawn 2-D animation using After Effects. Having just moved to the heart of Camden Town ourselves we really like the video, in fact we love it.

And what better time than to also show you a quirky sight I walk past in Camden each day. Introducing Electrocute:

Ambulance in Camden

The scheme is designed to treat victims of street fights, bar disputes and traffic accidents to free up ambulances for life-saving calls. It also allows the police to get on with solving crimes.

Mr Pierce said the scheme is designed to leave emergency vehicles free to deal with “life threatening calls.”

“It also frees up the police to look for suspects and speak to witnesses while we take care of the victims.”

He added: “There have been a couple of incidents where glass bottles have been used to threaten us. Fortunately we have the police with us to deal with this.

Scheme continues throughout Christmas

The pilot scheme started at the end of August and will continue running throughout the busy Christmas and New Year period.

Booze bus

Gary Barrett, duty station officer at Camden Ambulance Station, in Cressy Road, Gospel Oak said: “we are happy to carry on with the scheme throughout the year.”

“This is about saving hospital hours. By putting a paramedic in the back of a police car we can provide quick treatment for those who need it.”

If the patient is critical, they are taken to hospital by ambulance or the booze bus, a specialist ambulance, which takes victims of alcohol fuelled violence at once.

Innovative scheme

A spokesman for the operations team at Camden police said: “we believe that the pilot scheme is a bonus for us. It allows us to get on with solving crime scenes, arresting suspects instead of trying provide first aid ourselves.”

If the innovative scheme is successful, several paramedics will be permanent across North London and other London Boroughs.

By Gurdeep Hundal

A North London paramedic is providing immediate treatment for victims in the back of a police car, as part of a new pilot scheme.

David Pierce, 46, a paramedic at the Royal Free Hospital spends every Friday and Saturday night driving with police officers in Camden Town and Kentish Town.

The scheme is designed to treat victims of street fights, bar disputes and traffic accidents to free up ambulances for life-saving calls. It also allows the police to get on with solving crimes.

Mr Pierce said the scheme is designed to leave emergency vehicles free to deal with “life threatening calls.”

“It also frees up the police to look for suspects and speak to witnesses while we take care of the victims.”

He added: “There have been a couple of incidents where glass bottles have been used to threaten us. Fortunately we have the police with us to deal with this,

Scheme continues throughout Christmas

The pilot scheme started at the end of August and will continue running throughout the busy Christmas and New Year period.

Booze bus

Gary Barrett, duty station officer at Camden Ambulance Station, in Cressy Road, Gospel Oak said: “we are happy to carry on with the scheme throughout the year.”

“This is about saving hospital hours. By putting a paramedic in the back of a police car we can provide quick treatment for those who need it.”

If the patient is critical, they are taken to hospital by ambulance or the booze bus, a specialist ambulance, which takes victims of alcohol fuelled violence at once.

Innovative scheme

A spokesman for the operations team at Camden police said: “we believe that the pilot scheme is a bonus for us. It allows us to get on with solving crime scenes, arresting suspects instead of trying provide first aid ourselves.”

If the innovative scheme is successful, several paramedics will be permanent across North London and other London Boroughs.

Camden town es una barrio en Londres que no tiene monumentos, museos, ni ninguna de esas cosas que hacen importante una zona de una ciudad.

Camden market

Pero el ambiente que se respira nada más sales de la estación de metro lo hace especial. Calles abarrotadas de gente a todas horas, llenas de tiendas alternativas con fachadas surrealistas, cientos de puestos de comida de infinidad de lugares diferentes y el famoso mercado de Camden town. Es el lugar perfecto para comprar esa camiseta un tanto geek, esas chaquetas largas a lo matrix o los collares de pinchos que llevan los punkies. Un sitio diferente que visitar en Londres.

British boot

Asientos para comer en Camden

Patri y Raquel, comiendo en Camden

Franny Armstrong: saved from 'oiks' by Boris Johnson

UPDATED: THE spidey-sense said: This has got to be a PR stunt. Could this really have happened? Boris Johnson passes a potential mugging in Camden Town, leaps off his bike and saves the day. But it turns out it’s all true.

The would-be victim of the attack in Georgiana Street on Monday night was Franny Armstrong, founder of the 10:10 campaign to convince institutions to seriously cut carbon emissions by next year and the maker of The Age Of Stupid, a scary climate change film which has jolted many people who have seen it into action.

Open about the fact she’d rather Livingstone had beaten Boris in the mayoral elections last year, why would she want to give Boris a boost in the papers with an engineered set piece? She has already found far better ways to get 10:10 noticed.

The only confusion I have from the reports of the incident is the suggestion that Franny was attacked by three girls with an iron bar. Not the case, Franny told CNJ reporter Dan Carrier, whose report you can find here. He reports that she had told him the assailants were boys. In the Sunday Times today, Franny is back on the original line that this was three girls with an iron bar as big as a broom handle. Forgive her fogginess, she says Dan was just one of 70 journalists to call her.

When people here of teenagers mugging people in Canden Town backstreets, they assume those involved are boys. In their hooded tops. With their scowls and bad language.  They’re the ones causing all the trouble. Well, not all the time. A few weeks ago now, I was on a bus not too far from Georgiana Street and four or five girls brought it to a standstill. I was downstairs but you could hear from the elephant thuds from the top deck that  something was wrong.

Next came angry wails. Verbal abuse. A bit of spitting. The girls thundered down the stairs, broke open the middle doors and scurried away down an alleyway. Before anyone could say ‘kids today, eh?’, a man with blood trickling from a wound near his eyebrow followed them down and asked the bus driver to stop.

The police were called and we were all told to get off and get the bus behind. In a flash, the 253 had become a crime scene and the blame was pointed at the girls. In their hooded tops. With their scowls and bad language.

TIME AND PLACE:

Doors: 8pm- 1am

@ The Black Heart
3 Greenland Place
Camden, NW1 0AP

FREE

***LAUNCH NIGHT: SUNDAY 1st NOVEMBER***

Music courtesy of:

DJ YASMIN
MR THING (DMC Champ / Extended Players)
MAGDI FERNANDES (Market Place)

HIP HOP, R&B and more, OLD SCHOOL preferred but we get crunk too!
Bad Intentions lead to Good Vibes…

Oi did we forget to mention… ENTRY is 100% FREE!!!

Dress Code: Whatever you faaackin want.

Leave any stanky attitudes at the door and come on in and enjoy the ‘house party’ viiiiibes all night!

Hey,

If there’s anybody out there, reading this, I just want to thank you, thank you for reading ! Well, today it’s halloween, so of course, everybody is suddenly interested in clothes!!!

We’re going to have a sleepover today, after trick-or-treating and stuff like that, but I’ll be going at 10:30! So it’s obviously not trick-or-treating time! So, we’re going to the second most scariest place in London, Camden Town. Don’t get me wrong, Camden’s great,  but it’s scary if you don’t know where to look! So, I’m going as an 80’s rocker, modeling off of Joan Jett, and Penguiz is going as a Newspaper! We’re going to Camden to buy stuff!!!!!! So, I might buy a bunch of sunglasses and accesories or just a bunch of random weird stuff. I might ( will) buy shutter sunglasses, you know like the kanye west ones..  Anyways, it’s going to be a great trip! Penguiz going to bring a notebook and pencil and I’m bringing the camera, and we’re going to tell YOU what is in style this season!

So, this is just the heads up post, I’ll be uploading pictures and stuff later, so be ready!!!

Peace out girl scout,

Emily

I met Avey in Camden on Sunday afternoon to stroll through the market — she was on a hunt for earrings and cheap thai food and I was on a hunt for something to do with myself, so it worked out perfectly.  I ended up picking up some great postcards as well

The birthplace of punk, Camden Lock Market is basically St. Mark’s Place on steroids.  There are countless stores, tents, and huts full of everything from postcards to pipes to pizza.  The convergence of so many cultures creates a cornucopia of sensual stimuli; everywhere you go there is something new to be seen, smelled, felt, heard, and tasted.  It’s also probably the most crowded place I’ve been in London so far.

Speaking of tasted, Avey and I each picked up two of our favorite things to tickle our tastebuds:

Thai Time

Cute Cupcake

After navigating the market maze, we headed back towards the Tube station…but not before stopping for the best treat of all: snakebites!

Snakebite Slurp

The World’s End is the biggest pub I’ve ever been in, taking up half of a block and offering several different areas to set up camp.  We had our first snakebite at the smaller bar at the front entrance decorated in classic pub style.  As an added bonus, there was a group of musicians jamming that added the perfect Celtic soundscape!

Jam Session

Then, it was chips time.  After all, a petite cupcake can only hold a girl for so long!  We grabbed our grub from the counter and headed downstairs to the dining room.  It was pretty packed, so we asked to squeeze on to a table with two Greek guys, Dimitrius and Will (or at least that’s the “American way”).  We ended up chatting for a while, bonding over how we are all new to London and studying abroad for the semester.  The cultural exchange was great and resulted in several hours of hanging out.  We decided to go out for a walk and headed back towards the market, but the sight of £3 takeaway Chinese food caught the Greek eyes so we made a pit stop.  Soon enough it was time to head home, but once again with two new friends made!

Stray dogs walks the streets of Camden

By Gurdeep Hundal

According to the animal welfare team, the number of stray dogs found in North London has quadrupled since last year.

Figures released by Camden Council, show that more than 120 abandoned dogs were picked up in 2008, compared to 30 in the previous year. But, in the six months between April and September this year, 54 dogs were rescued from Camden, compared to 26 in 2006 and 30 in 2007.

Jane Evans, 45, resident of Camden town, is concerned that nothing is being done for the well being of stray dogs. She believes “the community officers in in Camden should deal with this. It’s their job to keep the streets safe at night.”

The rise can be linked to the recent change in the law that saw the police hand over responsibility for stray dogs to the council in 2008. Unfortunately nobody from the council’s animal welfare department was willing to speak. But they did say that more pets are being deserted because of the recession.

Nicky Daniel, spokesman for Battersea Lost dogs & cats said: “A lot of stray dogs are roaming the streets because they are untagged by their owners”.

The Government should introduce compulsary micro-chipping

“If they are tagged Battersea and RSPCA have a tracking system that tracks the dogs owner.”

“This is the best way to reduce the number of stray dogs in Camden. It’s easier, quick, efficient and reduces the number of stray animals on the road.”

Sinead Scott-Lennon, a spokesman for Dogs Trust said: “ We believe that the time is right to review the Control of Dogs Order and are calling on the Government to introduce compulsory micro-chipping of all dogs in the UK. Micro-chipping is an essential part of being a responsible dog owner and has helped so many people become reunited with their pets.”

Wills leaves for Lucinda Cowell’s place in what used to be his old flat on Basset Road
– Bootsy stays the night in the cell.

Next day, early in the morning at Marylebone Magistrates court.

Wills pleads guilty, the judge asks if he has anything to say, he says, “Won’t do it again.”
The judge returns the stencil, when told it is an art object.

The notice of a 55 pound fine.

It was on a  grey day, Sunday 11 January 1976,* that, after I had been visiting with graphic-designer Barney B, I walked from The Barbican four miles to stay at what had been my old flat on Basset Rd. with the vivacious Lucinda Cowell,+ whom I had met one Saturday in the ‘Bridge Kaff’ (The Mountain Grill) on Portobello.

On the journey, carrying a back pack and two shoulder bags, somewhere around Camden Town, I found a sombrero that added to my odd appearance. By the time I got to Notting Hill, and having sprayed my recently cut stencil in a couple of places, I got too careless and was busted, literally red handed, spray paint dribbling, as I stenciled, on a traffic-light control box, “Street Lightnin’ Gang Rules Easy, OK.” This art was one of a series of cardboard stencils I had designed that related to SLG President Molly (now Mrs. Mark Bode) Rodriguez’s ‘World Teleport’ system of world free transport. It was an early green solution to reduce world pollution from cars and planes, World Teleport’s tag line is “Get’s you where you want to go, in your own time.” (A line that was later adopted by the Grateful Dead.) All one has to to do is brand a space with a stencil, (it can be on paper attached with sticky tape) and there’s your teleport. If you really want to, you’ll get there one way or another.

Back to the story. I was apprehended by Sgt. ‘Bootsy’ Frankton of the Notting Hill Gate constabulary. (The guys who had targeted the underground magazine Oz I had worked on intermittently from ‘67 to ‘71.) Bootsy drove up, unnoticed in what I think may have been his cop car, yelling. “Stop that! You’re under arrest!”

Bootsy was in a bad temper because I had interrupted his journey home, and he thought I was potentially dangerous, so I was delivered under guard in the back seat by Police Constable Michael Moody, whom we picked up on the way to the station. In the booking room, while being questioned at his typewriter by Sgt. Fraser, I drew portraits of the assembled coppers.

I drew PC Moody (who had once booked writer/artist Heathcote Williams) as he discussed with Sgt. Fraser how to get Bootsy back home the quickest – because Bootsy’d had a hellava week and deserved an uninterrupted trouser-roll at the seaside he’d booked on his week off.

As I drew him, Moody looked up in a big legal tome, a lesser offense than the felony ‘Malicious Mischief’, or similar, that Bootsy was going to throw at me – and which would have taken him all week to report and try. So Moody came up with a misdemeanor, an old Victorian statute, one of the applicable citations being, ‘Defacing a Pale.’

The tea-lady walks in and says, “Anybody for tea and biscuits, you want some too dear?” And I swear to some god – I was served tea.

The deal was that Bootsy could get priority on the roster with a nice simple case, so we could both appear in Marylebone Magistrates court first thing, at eight in the morning on Monday along with the other easy cases such as women of the night and those people stealing electricity. I’d be the first case (Fraser had pull with the clerk) and so get Bootsy home for his break – as long as I plead guilty.

This is where it got funny. Bootsy lived forty mile away in Abinger, Kent, so to save traveling to and fro for our first thing in the morning trial, the arrangement was that he, the cop, slept overnight in the cell – while I conveniently went off to the joy of Basset Road.

I got to sleep with Lucinda up in a loft in what I think had been the future LA antique restorer, Rita George’s room, in the apartment we had shared back around 1970. It was in Rita’s room that I’d first tripped in ‘69, after sipping unknowingly on the acid-spiked-orange juice on Garry Rusoff’s  dining table (see my last post about Garry’s visit with Bruce Connors).

•••

The judge said “Do you know what you are accused of?”

I go, “Defacing a pale,” titters in court.

“What have you got to say?”

“Won’t do it again, can I have my stencil back?”

The clerk tells him that I said it was an “art object.” The judge fines me maximum, 55 pounds Sterling, but gave me back the stencil.

•••

I gave that stencil to a fellow artist, to use in my absence. (He could have been [but wasn't] the line-man Alan Stephenson, from Bristol, who said he was the distant grandson of ‘Rocket’ Stevenson.) The cops never got the Oz connection.

•••

* I had previously posted I had been “visiting Barney’s studio on Paul Street, as he worked on the Elvis Costello’s ‘My Aim is True’ sleeve, with all that small pearl type (it’s not really that small) meticulously stuck in little squares and positioned by hand. He was arranging a visit down in Fleet with our old friend Alison, who was featured on the album,” but that must have been in 1977. I just recently discovered the date of the court appearance on the court document as being 12 January 1976, the day after my adventure,  and that doesn’t square with the date of the Costello album, so I revised the story. Where I had been visiting with Barney so that I was in the Barbican I am at a loss to explain. I suppose I didn’t get down to visit Alison until I returned by Teleport from San Francisco the next year, in 1978. All very confusing, but hey, it was all a very long time ago…

+ Lucinda Cowell, being American, is as far as I know is no relation of A1GG ‘Record’ John Cowell or his brother, the TV fella, Simon Cowell, of amateur hour on the box, but what with all the other coincidences and whatnot – she might be. To add another level to the odd coincidences, when Lucinda moved back to San Francisco, she moved into, yet again, my old flat on Clay at Levenworth.

Further: The old brain kicks in, and I vaguely recall a conversation in which Lucinda said I knew her relative John. Not proficient  at name recollection, I had no idea who she was talking about at the time. So, yes I think Lucinda and John and Simon Cowell are all related. Funny that ‘cos I dated John’s friend, the elegant and very educational Victoria. Her dad was the retired spy, with a stall in the Camden Market.

This is a longer version of a post previously on this site and reprinted from the Haight Beat, San Francisco.

Nombre: Hotel The Caesar 4*- Londres (Reino Unido)

Web Oficial: www.derbyhotels.com

Ciudad: Londres (Reino Unido)

Metro: Realmente dispone de varias estaciones muy cercanas al hotel. Paddington, Queensway y Lancaster Gate, todas a tan solo 5 minutos.

Comentario: Londres es sin duda la capital más internacional de Europa…
Multitudinaria, estresante e interracial, la ciudad con el metro más antiguo del mundo pone a tu disposición ni más ni menos que 5 aeropuertos internacionales situados de norte a sur, y de este y oeste de la capital británica.
Heathrow es sin duda alguna el más cómodo, ya que se encuentra a tan solo 15 minutos exactos de la Estación de Paddington (unas 16 libras el billete de solo ida, con un suplemento de unas 3.5 libras si lo compras a bordo).
Gatwick Express es el tren que conecta Londres con el Aeropuerto de Gatwick en poco más de 30 minutos, desde la Estación de Victoria.
El Aeropuerto de Stansted está a casi 50 minutos en tren desde la Estación de Liverpool Street Station (línea Stansted Express). Este aeropuerto está tomado por la Low-Cost Ryanair, que dispone de cientos de vuelos diarios a los principales destinos de Europa
Y por si fuera poco, todavía cuenta con 2 aeropuertos más: Luton y London City Airport.

Londres no es caro, es carísimo. Afortunadamente para nosotros, su moneda se ha devaluado mucho en los últimos años y sus precios son mucho más asequibles para nosotros. Por ejemplo: 100 libras hace unos años eran unos 150/160 euros y ahora no llega a los 110 euros.
Te recomiendo que te muevas siempre en metro que a pesar de estar bastante viejo, sigue siendo el mejor y más barato medio de transporte de la ciudad. El taxi es recomendable para trayectos relativamente cortos. Aún así las tarifas oficiales de metro son altas (5 euros un billete simple de solo ida. Para abaratar costes, os recomiendo sacaros la tarjeta Oyster, que se puede recargar tantas veces como quieras y los precios son mucho más económicos. Una vez que devuelvas la tarjeta, te reembolsarán el importe no utilizado y la pequeña fianza que te piden al principio (unas 3 libras). Ojo, Si coges el metro antes de las 09.30 estarás en la franja de “Peak” u hora punta y es mucho más cara que la “Off Peak” o franja fuera de la hora punta.

He viajado a Londres en muchas ocasiones y os puedo asegurar que cada vez que me dispongo a organizar el viaje, bien sea por ocio o por negocio, es como empezar de nuevo y se convierte en toda una aventura.
Conocido es entre los viajeros habituales que la calidad de los hoteles de Londres deja mucho que desear. Junto con Paris, es quizás una de las ciudades con las habitaciones más antiguas y con menos metros cuadrados, aunque como todo, siempre existen excepciones si sabes buscar bien.
Casualmente me alojé hace unas semanas en el Hotel The Ceasar de la Cadena Española Derby. Según me explicaron, el hotel se ha sometido a una profunda renovación y actualmente ostenta la categoría de 4*. La situación no podía ser mejor: con varios metros a escasos 5 minutos del hotel que te llevará al Centro o al mercadillo de Notting Hill en tan solo unas paradas. Si vuelas a Heathrow también llegarás en solo 15 minutos desde Paddington.

La fachada del hotel no podía ser más auténtica: casas de estilo victoriano rodean el edificio principal en una zona residencial muy tranquila, llena de zonas verdes. Dos grandes maceteros con cañas de bambú te dan la bienvenida. El Hall es pequeño pero acogedor. El personal es ciertamente amable y todo tiene un toque español en mayor o menor medida. De hecho casi todo el mundo habla castellano, pero si tienes duda ni siquiera hace falta preguntar, tan solo fíjate en las placas que tienen colgadas en los uniformes donde cada bandera indica los idiomas que habla cada uno.
Las habitaciones tienen un toque moderno y urbano al mismo tiempo. Muchas de ellas tienen una parte de la pared con ladrillo visto, que le proporciona calidez y estilo al mismo tiempo. Tuve la posibilidad de ver varias habitaciones y las individuales son algo pequeñas, era de esperar en Londres…
Las Dobles y las Executive están bastante mejor, mucho más amplias y espaciosas. Para aquellos que vamos de trabajo, es muy práctico contar con un planta pantalones que ayuda a eliminar las arrugas que acumulan los trajes de chaqueta después de tantas y tantas horas de reunión, metro o presentaciones interminables. También y como no podía de ser otro modo en el Reino Unido, en las habitaciones podrás prepararte un café o té sin suplemento alguno.
Es muy importante que no olvides comprar un adaptador de corriente porque normalmente en los hoteles solo hay uno en el cuarto de baño. Si te acuerdas, no te preocupes siempre hay sitios donde te lo venden, incluso hay recepciones que te lo alquilan o te lo prestan.
Junto a Recepción encontrarás un pequeño Snack Bar donde tomar un café, o comer algo ligero. Lo que para mí no tiene precio es poder comer comida española en pleno centro de Londres. ¿sabéis lo que es tomar pan con tomate como aperitivo? ¿o tomarte una tostada con aceite, jamón y tomate por las mañanas?. Sinceramente, y como diría el anuncio de MasterCard, no tiene precio!! El restaurante está en la planta -1.
El wifi es de pago, aunque muy cerca de Recepción existen dos ordenadores con internet gratuito para sus clientes. Esto es inconcebible hoy en día en una ciudad como Londres…

En Londres puedes encontrar tantas diversiones como quieras: monumentos, museos, restaurantes, etc… A grandes rasgos os daré algunos consejillos de los lugares que considero fundamentales:

-Big Ben: mítica torre con uno de los relojes más conocidos del mundo.

-Abadía de Westminster: simplemente genial, merece la pena perderte por ella y pasear por los alrededores. Junto al Big Ben.

-Museo de Cera (Madame Tussaud): todos los famosos tienen su sitio en este famoso museo. Algo caro pero merece la pena.

-Eye of London: es la noria desde la que se divisa Londres entero. Los días con buena climatología se puede ver incluso Windsor (a 40 Km. de la ciudad).

-Cambio de la Guardia en el Palacio de Buckingham. Suele ser a las 11.00 hrs, pero dependiendo si es invierno o verano cambian los días. Mejor consultar antes y llegar con tiempo.

-British Museum: es increíble ver la cantidad de antigüedades que se concentran aquí. Momias, trozos del Partenón… impresionante!

-Picadilly Circus: una de las plazas más concurridas de la ciudad. No te la pierdas de noche con sus famosos neones al más puro estilo neoyorquino.

-China Town: a tan solo unos minutos a pie de Picadilly, una vez que te adentras en este barrio parecerá que habrás cambiado de ciudad…

-Covent Garden: también se puede ir a pie desde Picadilly aunque tienes una parada propia más cercana. Es una zona llena de bares y cafeterías donde se puede echar un buen rato disfrutando de un ambiente incomparable.

-Mercadillos de Camden Town y Notting Hill: cada uno con su estilo propio. En Camden encuentras quizás más ropa alternativa y prendas de ante y cuero durante los meses de invierno. Si te gustan las antigüedades, Notting Hill es tu mercadillo.

-Compras: Sin duda alguna las tiendas de mayor renombre se encuentran en Regent Street, Bond Street y las calles anexas. Como curiosidad y para los que le guste Abercrombie & Fitch, deciros que la única tienda que hay en Europa está en Savile Street, que es la continuación de Vigo Street, según caminas desde Picadilly y hasta Langham Place.
Por supuesto, no puedes dejar de hacer una visita a los famosos Almacenes Harrods.

-Torre de Londres: Junto al famoso puente de color azul, podréis acceder al recinto de la Torre de Londres. Un recinto muy bien cuidado, con muchas zonas verdes y varios edificios que representan diversas salas, todas ellas muy ligadas a la historia de la ciudad y los logros de sus tropas militares. En una de las salas podréis ver las famosas “Joyas de la Corona”.

-Hyde Park: el pulmón de la ciudad. Todo un clásico. Similar a los grandes parques de las capitales como el Retiro de Madrid y el Central Park de nueva York. Los días soleados es muy relajante pasear o hacer deporte en el parque.

Hay millones de cosas más para ver y hacer en Londres, pero con estas tienes para empezar…

Lo Peor: Quizás lo pequeña que eran las habitaciones individuales (sobre todo la 526) y que el wifi no fuera gratis.

Valoración Calidad-Precio: 8/10

Volvería a este Hotel: SI

Per il ponte di ognissanti andrò a scassinare il mercato di Camden Town a Londra . Naturalmente non mancherò Brick Lane il Sunday Up consigliato da Cosmpolitan (si, a volte lo leggo). Non vedo l’ora, partirò solo col bagaglio a mano, uno zainetto per stare leggeri, una volta lì mi comprerò una bella valigia capiente e tutto ciò che occorre per riempirla.

Londra, I’m coming!!

How many people have cursed their luck on making a dash to the Tube station after a night out, only to discover that they’ve missed the last train? And how many people have seen New York’s 24-hour subway service and thought, “Why can’t we have one of those over here?”

The reason, simply, is that the Tube needs to be shut down every night for maintenance purposes. The reason New York can run 24-hours is because their tunnels have regular crossovers, meaning that trains can be diverted from one line to another while routine maintenance is carried out. Above ground, crossovers aren’t a major expense (so it’s possible to get the train from St Pancras to St Albans more-or-less 24/7). Under the ground, however, it’s a different matter. Tube lines were expensive enough without building a whole load of extra tunnel. So, the result is a remarkably inflexible railway. No night trains, no overtaking and when a train fails you’re screwed.

Stockwell

Which is why the gaudily-painted building on the left is of interest. It’s located in Stockwell, just a short distance  from the Tube station. Gay paintwork aside, it could be more-or-less anything – an electricity substation, a public toilet or something even less interesting. Another of

Just south of Stockwell

those random buildings you get. However, if you look around the metropolis, you’ll notice that it’s not alone. There are several similar structures. The majority are in South London, a few are in Central and a couple more are North.

This one, hidden behind wooden fence panels, is in Clapham North.

Some of them are disguised, as per the one on Clapham High Street seen left. Some are painted, as per Stockwell. Others just stand there, being weird and mysterious.

Well, the story of these buildings is rather interesting. They were originally built during the Second World War.

Clapham Common

It’s a commonly known fact that the Tubes were used for shelter during the Second World War (and also the First, but people tend not to talk about that). So it was that the Ministry of Home Security had their great idea – if the London Underground could be used as a deep shelter, why not vice versa?

On Clapham Common, a hop, skip and a jump from Clapham South.

So they approached London Transport with a proposal. London Transport could build a series of deep-level shelters, some for public use and some for the Government. In return, the Government would grant them permission, after the cessation of hostilities, to build tunnels linking them.

Between Clapham and Balham

They would form an express Tube line running along the approximate route of the Northern Line, increasing speed and capacity along its busiest stretches. The idea had been proposed in the late 1930s, but nixed until now. London Transport leapt at the chance to finally carry their scheme out.

Tottenham Court Road

Unfortunately, the scheme didn’t proceed quite as planned. For a start, the war had left the country with a labour shortage. Then, as with any major construction project, there was the NIMBY factor to be taken into consideration.

Goodge Street

Probably the one person you really don’t want to annoy during a major construction programme in the middle of the biggest war the world has ever known is God. The authorities at St Paul’s Cathedral are the next best thing in London, and they had a few objections to the concept.

Camden Town, just behind the Market, off the High Street.

They hadn’t been big fans of the Central Line, and they weren’t going to stand for anyone else digging in the vicinity of their Cathedral either. Their concerns were not entirely baseless – the ground beneath St Paul’s is somewhat shifty at the best of times, so much so that Christopher Wren incorporated an early example of an expansion gap into its design. Anyway, that was that shelter scuppered.

The Goodge Street shelter – seen in the somewhat abortive attempt at night time photography above – was opened in 1942 as General Eisenhower’s London HQ, and is known to this day as the Eisenhower Centre (although it’s been a long time since it’s had a use half as interesting). The others were used for similar administrative purposes until 1944, when a new menace came to town – the fearsome V2 rockets. Stockwell, Clapham North, Clapham South, Belsize Park and Camden Town were all opened to the public.

Belsize Park

Unfortunately, things didn’t go quite as planned after the war. One way or another, it was discovered that, with a handful of exceptions, the shelters were no longer suitable to be converted into Tube stations. They served other purposes – first they were used to house demobbed soldiers, then the large influx of immigrants from the West Indies. Finally, they were turned into document storage facilities. In the 1990s, London Transport bought the shelters for their own use once more, with the aim of improving facilities at already-existing stations. By the look of things, at least one is now available to let.

They’ve had, to my knowledge, two appearances in fiction – in his classic work of London-based fantasy, Neverwhere, Neil Gaiman has a character making his home in one. The building on Clapham Common appears in Michael de Larrabeiti’s children’s fantasy, The Borribles Across the Dark Metropolis, in which it’s used as a secret police HQ.

Sadly, though, this seems to be about as much as the deep-level workings can hope for. They’re unlikely to ever be used for their intended purpose now. For all Ken and Boris’ exciting plans for transport in this city, so far none have included reviving this scheme.

Which is a pity, because, to return to the point with which I began this rambling entry, it would be nice if the Northern Line had an extra tunnel or two. You know, for night trains, overtaking and when a train fails…

Hey fellas, am promis ca vin cu detalii de la concertul Used. A trecut o buca’ de vreme si am revenit. A fost bestial tata. M-am simtit ca la 17 ani cand tagg-uiam metrourile si ascultam The Used la maxim (thanks Jojo ca mi-ai reamintit). Concertul a fost super. S-a tinut la Electric Ballroom, una dintre cele mai misto locatii de concerte rock din Camden Town. S-au cantat si piese vechi si piese noi de pe ultimul album, Art Work. Am asteptam momentul asta, sa-i vad in carne si oase, de foarte multa vreme. Inca din clasa a 10-a tot astept si uite ca s-a intamplat! Am stat f aproape de scena, asa ca am savurat din plin. La ,,Take it away” toata lumea canta mai tare ca band-ul. Nebunie.  Din pacate pentru fanii care nu au reusit sa-i vada, turneul lor s-a terminat odata cu acest ultim concert, in Londra. Dar au promis un altul in primavara. The Used - va astept la anul tot aici in Londra sau pe unde m-oi afla. Keep on rockin’!!!! AAAAArrrrgggghhhhhh.

The brand new single from N-Dubz and the first from their second album which will be released on the 16th of November.

I need you will be released on the 2nd of November

Hey ppl. Have I ever told you that I’m happy? Ok I will tell you now. Deci nu-mi vine sa cred cate ocazii de mega-concerte sunt in Londra. Saptamana trecuta ma dadeam cu placa pe valurile internetului si am descoperit ca formatia mea preferata din liceu (The Used) canta in cartierul unde tocmai m-am mutat. Aka in Camden Town/Londra. The Used este o formatie ska-punk si s-a infiintat in urma cu 10 ani in Utah/USA. In 2001 termina primul material demo, iar in 2002 lanseaza discul oficial de debut intitulat The Used. Ceea ce face ca formatia asta sa fie speciala pentru mine este vocea vocalului Bert. Vocea lui este de fapt un mix de tonuri sexi si agresive combinate cu putina ragusala specifica muzicii rock. Bineinteles nu numai vocea lui Bert este motivul pentru care ascult Used. Imi plac f mult melodiile lor. Nu pot descrie, au acel ceva.  Bandul canta miercuri (maine) intr-o locatie mai mult sau mai putin normala: Electric Ballroom – ziua e bazar si noaptea bar-club. Localul e la 2 minute de mine, de mers pe jos. Si da, ma duc! Abia astept sa dau un pic din plete si sa ascult muzica buna. Astept momentul asta de foarte multa vreme, de cand imi rodeam coatele pe bancile liceului si copiam la istorie in draci. Revin cu update-uri si poze dupa concert.

Some short clips from our trip

This first one is at Camden Market, at the Lock

The second one here is the video we took (taken with mouths wide open in astonishment) 

of the private apartments of Napoleon the III at the Lourve, Paris

We know why the people of Paris rebelled against the rich authorities then, now I SEE why. The everyday people didn’t have enough to eat and yet their rulers were living it out.

What I love about London is that you enter one street andthan another one, which is completely different. I guess no other European city has so many different faces.

When you take the Northern Line to Camden town, you are in the middle of all action. There are Punks and Gothics walking around, market stalls, funky shops and beautiful smells. The whole athmosphere is full of life. I actually posted an article on my To do in London blog about Camden market. One of my favourite walks is past Camden market, where you can see the Roundhouse. This is a former engine shed, which has been refurbished a view years ago and is now used for concerts an other events. Almost opposite, there is  Chalk farm station. I enjoy walking over the bridge approach road into Primrose Hill. There is a really good Italian restaurant, simply called J, where I sometimes have dinner. Further on Primrose Hill park begins. From the top point you can see the whole of London on a nice day.