Sunday 7 November 2010

Unblogged London

I'm now well into my second week of work and able to count off the days to going home on the fingers of one hand. Meanwhile, from the weather map on the telly this morning, the isobars further out in the Atlantic appear to be cosying close to each other and heading this way. We'll have to see how this pans out - it might all be over by Thursday and there will be perfect conditions to send a chopper out to get us. I the mean time this is a perfect opportunity for another dip into my archive of old photos and this time a few snaps from my various trips to London that didn't quite make it into a previous blog.

Leopold Mozart was a violinist at the court of the Archbishop of Salzburg. It seems reasonable to pass your musical skills down to your offspring and Leopold seems to have managed this with some degree of efficiency. In fact, before long it struck him that the kids were getting good and perhaps taking them of on a mighty old European tour might be easier than working.  So in 1764, at the age of 8, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart arrived in London with dad and big sister Maria Anne (who was quite a harpsichord player - after 1769 it was decided that getting married was a more suitable vocation for a young lady - not of course to the chap of her choosing). Mozart stay in London for a little over a year, writing his first two symphonies in this time and leaving somewhat wiser (or perhaps unwiser) in the ways of the world. He lived in the area near Orange Square where they have put up a statue to him. It's a lovely statue but could be improved if the council were to turn up with a duster from time to time. I think that's a real violin that's been bronzed - I can see it needing replaced umpteen times during the lifetime of the statue.



Round the corner from Orange Square is a shop selling the following furniture. Can you imagine waking up to this in the morning, especially after a heavy night?


There's always room for a gratuitous piece of stained glass in any blog - this, if I remember, is in St Brides church on (or just off to be truthful) Fleet Street.


 There is no great degree of uniformity amongst London's tube stations and some of them are very distinctively decorated - I suppose it takes your mind off the strange smell they have and the temperature often being several degrees higher than the surface. Here's some gloriously colourful wall mosaics in the Tottenham Court Road station (as if you couldn't read it for yourself).



An finally for this blog, a photo from the first time I was in London of recent years. They had a Dali Exhibition on (we didn't go in as it was really quite pricey and there was so many free things to see) and had this large statue of a Daliesque elephant outside.

15 comments:

Sultan said...

I love the tile at the Tottenham Court Road Station. A million years ago I was a student at the University of London and used to take that station every day. Sadly they were just starting to put up the tiles when I was there so I never got to see the end result.

John @ Beans and I on the Loose said...

Nice little bit of history on the Mozarts and a neat looking statue also, cobwebs aside. If Wolfgang were alive today I could see him buying that furniture in the store window, if Salvadore didn't beat him to it.

Unknown said...

What an interesting and wonderful to read post! I ought to have swotted up on your posts before we came down to visit London the other week. Yes that statue looks as if it could do with a good dusting. I would be going out with my feather duster if I lived near to it.

Rachel Hoyt said...

I love the neon furniture, elephant statue, and beautiful mosaic. What a great collection of photos to pop online and say hey with!

http://www.rhymemeasmile.blogspot.com

Sandy's witterings said...

Laoch, it wouldn't surprise me if they had to start tiling the Tottenham court road a million years ago if they wanted it finished by the time I arrived.

I (from Sinbad and I), you could be right about who would buy such a piece of furniture - you could just see Mozart's periwig planted on top of that or Mr Dali's moustache combs.

Technogran - I do all my swotting after the event (which may explain my poor exam marks)- you never know what you're going to see until you've seen it - I'm going to be keeping a particular eye out for marshmallow kebab stalls from now on.

Thanks Rachel - London is a tremendous provider of wonderful things to photograph.

Unknown said...

That tube smell must be universal. My first foray into a New York subway had me wondering how long I could hold my breath and what would happen to me once I passed out.

Sandy's witterings said...

I suspect chip that underground railwat stations the world over must smell the same - a combination of electrical ionisation, oil, and worst of all People!!!! eugh!

Crafty Green Poet said...

Impressive underground station!

And yes that does look like a real violin, how bizarre!

Poppy (aka Val) said...

Great blog Sandy, sadly some of the pics aren't showing for me, no idea why. I must get myself into gear and start nattering on here too. Still trying to delete all my photos on live space, but its very sad doing that! Glad you are keeping well, take care :)

Poppy (aka Val) said...

Spoke too soon, all the photos are there now, great pics as always :)

Becky said...

It is really interesting how you can just come upon some statue in London, well, in most parts of Europe. I really like the ones near Big Ben.

Sandy's witterings said...

Juliet, many of Londons undergrounds are quite impressively decorated and have their own distinct feel. Seems a bit odd put a real fiddle on a bronze statue - it's patently going to fall apart early.

From an e-mail that appeared in my inbox this morning Poppy, I think Live Spaces will self destruct sometime round about March so your pictures will remove themselves - much easier.

You've got that rather good one of Churchill near Big Ben, Becky or even better Bodicea round the corner by the river. It's not just London though - the whole country is fairly well supplied with statues.

Michael (Light-In-A-Box) said...

Hey Sandy! Hopefully you did not get to bad of a weather hit out there. Nice story on the Mozarts.
That furniture I'm afraid would not be in my house, a little too loud I'd say! Although in the middle of a dark night maybe some emergency beacons coud be placed here & there?
Michael

Becky said...

Yes, it is lovely how you just come upon a statue anywhere. I especially like those bronze ones of ordinary folks doing ordinary things in any place, know what I mean? I have more Burning Man things for you to see: http://thisisblackrockcity.blogspot.com

Sandy's witterings said...

I'm with you there on the furniture front Michael.

Just off to the Black Rock City now for a look - Thanks Becky.