Just another day in London

When I get really bored, I look for a day trip. This time, I found a 66 euro aller/retour ticket on the Eurostar and planned another trip to the V&A in London. I am still in touch with the staff there after my Wikipedia adventure there in Feb. 2008, and they have been keeping our interest alive (those of us who are museum photo taking buffs) by setting out new challenges for us and asking us to submit some photos to their online collection. It is a challenge, I love it, and it's a good excuse to go to London for the day - where they all speak the same language as me!

So the day starts out with my new camera (yep, that Kodak had to be sent back to the US for repairs after only 8 months of gentle use) and some British pounds left over from someone else's last trip to London, and my Oyster card that just needed "topping off" to get me through the day on the Tube. That's all british-speak for money, and a magnetic transit pass that allows me to ride all day on their subway system or buses making it easier getting through the turnstyles.

I had a little trouble at Paris Gare de Nord because of a missing apostrophe in my reservation, but no harm -- off we go. The train ride is a very pleasant, nearly 3 hours. I like to plan accordingly with reading material and maybe some tunes. Train etiquette requires that everyone be as quiet as possible. It's usually the Americans who are the loudest - chatting amongst themselves at an unbelievably loud volume. After a sandwich and a coke and a camera manual to read (in french mind you), I arrive in London to find out it is "Fashion Week" and there is all kind of "hulleybalou" going on.

I had been tipped off to go see another VanGogh at the Somerset House, Courtauld Institute, and I certainly wasn't disappointed. The place is under reconstruction, but what I saw was an amazing (at one-time private) collection of some of the greats of the Impressionist era, including VanGogh's Self-portrait with Bandaged Ear (1889). There were also some magnificent ceiling paintings, and the architectural details were stunning. In the courtyard below me, the 25th anniversary of Fashion Week was going on, but I was not an invitee therefore...

So I headed to the V&A where I knew I would be more welcome. I arrived around 1 and started clicking before I got in the door. They are building a new room for their collection of Middle Age Arts so I stared through the windows trying to imagine how one recreates the middle ages! Around 3, I met with Nadia, a director of the digital details department (or something like that : ) and she bought me a nice cup of tea. She made me promise to check out the new ceramics wing, but the true fun of the day was roaming the great halls of that fantastic museum finding the juxtapositions, the close-up details, reading the notes, and shooting some wonderful photos.

After exhausting the camera battery and accumulating about 300 shots, I headed outside to stroll back towards St. Pancras Station. The weather was windy, cool but not raining, and when I arrived at the station, I decided to see what was outside. I love the red brick buildings and the red buses and the red brake lights of the traffic at 6 p.m. on the choked London streets. I strolled through the garden of the British Library but they were closing for the evening so didn't go in. Instead, hungry and tired, I strolled back to the Eurostar station and thought I'd find a book for my ride home. Turned out that I had plenty of time, as the train to go back to Paris was stalled in the station, and I was going to sit there, with another 1000 or so folks trying to get out of London that night for an extra two hours at least. I was tired, but pleased with my big day, and knew that eventually I would get back to Paris, but would also return to London on another day.

This is the foreigner (above) as depicted by early century asian artisans.

Just wondering if I am lost in the crowd. I seem to be drawn to those photos that explain another slice of life. Or maybe all photos do that. The glass men are a sculpture by Reekie. It's fantastic.