London on my mind today – I even dreamed about walking on South Bank on a warm summer day. So this Friday, one of my favourite photographs from my favourite city.
Also see: Friday photo series…
Category Archives: England
The buskers are abusking
A set of images from two of my favourite places in London for catching street performers at work – Covent Garden and SouthBank. Although Covent Garden is no longer the fresh fruit and vegetable market that it was for a few centuries, it is today one of the best places in London to walk around in – and this is largely due to the buskers in the area. SouthBank is even nicer, somehow the atmosphere is more relaxed – it is perhaps the fresh cool air from the Thames – and the artists more friendly and fun. Apart from these, Leicester Square on weekends and the London Tube stations are places to find some of the best in the business.
London takes it street performers very seriously. Street performing is illegal in London – I just read that the Covent Garden Market Association pays hefty sums of money to the government for the privilege of having buskers all the year round. Though the comics and acrobats do not need licenses to perform, the musicians – especially the musicians on main squares and the Underground circuit – go through auditions and are checked for quality before they are issued licenses. And there is even a street performer of the year contest.
This is usually a smash hit with kids – look ma, no head!
I like the way these artists engage with people on the streets, drawing them into their circle, making them laugh and pay up willingly…
I have spotted some of the best photo-ops when the artists are on a break – stolen images from their moments stolen from work…
These artists are to be found everywhere in the world – art at work…
The entertainers and acrobats are fun – but the musicians are my favourites – there is great talent out there – many of them have been performing in their spots for years, some happy to just earn a living, some still hoping to be noticed by agents and companies…
And finally the ‘you pay and we move’ ones…
Just as I wonder how it is to wear silver paint and stand still all day, I read this about a silverman at Covent Garden – On a sunny Saturday or Sunday, in a good spot, as much as £50 an hour rattles into his hat. More on the busking business here.
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An earlier post on Covent Garden
Lazy London pic
I have been busy moving city and home and handling all the stress that comes with it – for those of you who don’t know (and why don’t you?!), I have moved to Bangalore. Hope to get back to blogging here soon.
For now, one of my all-time favourite images from London…
Midsummer madness
Published in Mint Lounge – May 31 – read it online here or the pdf version here…
We are just finishing a salad lunch at the tiny restaurant opposite the library when the dragons walk past. A bright red patch on a black face, a black-and-red body, head waving in a friendly fashion. A fairly amicable dragon, as dragons go. A large wooden elephant follows, a man’s face peeping out tentatively from inside a crate on its back. Behind that, a bunch of little fairies dressed in pristine white, with identical “don’t-mess-with-me” looks on their faces.
And just then, a little boy, a pair of white trousers in the midst of all the frocks, turns to the girl next to him and sticks out his tongue at her. For a moment, there is a frisson of unrest among the fairies but hard discipline kicks in, overriding the attractions of a street brawl.
The ever-informative Wikipedia says: “In 1564 the Midsummer Watch Parade (in Chester) included 4 gyants, 1 unikorne, 1 dromodarye, 1 luce, 1 camell, 1 dragon, 6 hobbyhorses and 16 naked boys.” The naked boys have gone into hiding, but most of the others are still around at the parade: giants, dragons, camels and dromedaries (the single-humped camel), hobbyhorses (and elephants). Huge floats convey the dragons and the sun and the moon and several stars, little girls dressed in lacy white frocks, old men and women in blue fancy suits, and tall men on stilts making them taller still. And jugglers and fire-eaters and drummers marching to their own beat. Perhaps the luce, too, whatever it is.
The Midsummer Watch Parade at Chester is a ritual believed to have begun in 1498, according to the city council, with “the outstanding features of the show (being) the Giants—enormous structures made of buckram and pasteboard and carried by two or more men”. Somewhat disturbingly, the naked boys featured even then: “There were also fantastic giant beasts including the unicorn, the elephant, the camel and the dragon. Originally the dragon was beaten by six naked boys, but this practice was banned in the late 16th century”. There’s something to be said, then, for Elizabethan morality.
Today, the parade is one of Britain’s largest and most colourful street carnivals. But there is no sense of anticipation, no eager waiting crowds, in fact, no major indication that such a parade is about to take place, except for the posters all over town. One minute, all is quiet on the streets, with just a few tourists craning their necks to see the well-preserved Tudor buildings lining the streets. And the next, dragons and drummers are out in full force, and the streets are chock-a-block with people.
Midsummer’s eve, associated with summer solstice and the longest day, has been celebrated in various ways from ancient times, from worshipping the healing powers of the sun’s rays (a reaction, perhaps, to the bitterly cold winter months) to lighting bonfires through the night to keep evil spirits away.
Superstition finds its natural home in midsummer, when any kind of madness is possible and, in the hands of Shakespeare, the queen of the fairies gets besotted with an ass-faced pleb, and young couples fall in and out of love at will (and sometimes against their will). The rituals have changed slightly down the years, but midsummer is often still considered licence for the laity to slip on fancy dress, blow trumpets, drink copiously and make merry.
The history of Chester goes back even further, to the times when Romans came, saw and conquered their way through Britain, leaving behind walls and wells for later-day tourists. History has it that all towns with “chester” in their name (the Roman castrum, meaning fortified city or camp, was corrupted to “chester” and “caster”, as in Colchester, Winchester and Doncaster) had been occupied by the Romans, though Chester itself was originally named Dewa (or Deva), after the spirit of the river Dee. Chester was ideally situated—on a high promontory, overlooking a fine harbour and a navigable river—for the conquest-minded; today the river is one of the most pleasant places in Chester, the perfect spot for a Sunday afternoon rendezvous.
When I reach the boat pier, the local deaf choir is performing on the banks of the river, the eyes of the participants moving in time to the swaying hands of the conductor. Couples and families are walking about with their ice-cream cones as we touristy-types noisily queue up for the boat ride. I spot several familiar faces, co-cheerers from the watch parade. In some ways, this scene is as colourful as the parade itself: buskers playing their guitars, street artists offering to sketch you or trying to sell their works of art, boisterous merrymakers waving their hands from the passing boats.
On the large boat, the discomfort of the hard wooden seats is soon forgotten as the countryside unfurls, and we pass picturesque little houses, each of which has a boat and tiny landing pier, and each of which I desperately want to own. The ride itself is a bit like being inside a poem; I mean, do you really ever expect to see daffodils fluttering and dancing in the breeze?
Perhaps, to emphasize those literary connections, the city hosts the Chester Mystery Plays this summer (28 June-19 July). Performed once in five years on the streets of Chester, the plays are dramatizations of biblical stories that portray the role of God in man’s life and are not—as I imagined—suspense dramas of The Mousetrap school. These plays, which date back to the 10th century, were banned by the English church in the 16th century, to be revived only in 1951 for the Festival of Britain, a feel-good event organized for the war-battered populace.
But for all that, it is the Midsummer Watch Parade that is the key attraction of Chester (21-22 June this year). And, not surprisingly, the local government takes it very seriously, going by the ads that have been up on their website (www.chester.gov.uk/tourism_and_leisure-1/festivals_and_events/midsummer_watch.aspx) for a few months now. “Wanted… Angels, devils, fiery goblins, green men…to take part in Chester’s spectacular Midsummer Watch Parade.”
If you have it in you to be a green man, or a goblin, you know where to apply.
TRIP PLANNER
How to get there:
You will need a UK visa to go to Chester. The British high commission in India issues tourist visas (known as visit visas) within three working days for Rs5,500.
Fly from any large metro in India to London on British Airways or Jet Airways. Round trip economy fares range between Rs32,000 and Rs38,000. From London Euston, Chester is roughly three hours by train or road. Alternatively, fly into Manchester or Liverpool and take a cab to Chester, barely 40 minutes away.
Where to stay:
It is best to visit Chester as a day trip from London or stop over en route to Wales. Stay at the Broxton Hall, close to Chester as well as the Snowdonia National Park in North Wales. Broxton Hall is a Tudor property, spread over 5 acres. Rates start from £75 (around Rs6,220) for single rooms with breakfast, going up to £140 for suites. Alternatively, the Chester Grosvenor is located in the middle of town and has excellent reviews.
What to do:
In Chester, take the 1920s vintage open-top bus tour that comes with a driver and guide, fully-costumed in Victorian wardrobe. Or, walk around over the ancient walls encircling the town, stretching for just over 3km. There are city wall walks available for those interested in covering them completely; I just climbed up and walked on the walls, getting down to explore wherever the fancy took me.
The Chester Cathedral, which attracts more than a million visitors every year, is also a must-visit. Records show a church on that spot since the early 10th century (AD 907), though this cathedral with its stunning stained-glass windows was built sometime around 1092. Also worth visiting, is the Chester amphitheatre (capable of seating 7,000 spectators in its time), regarded as Britain’s finest and still the base for the Roman Changing of the Guard festival, which takes place once a month.
Everything about the town is quaint. Chester is, I am told, the only place where the world’s first—and perhaps, only—husband and wife Town Crier partnership still operates. David and Julie Mitchell carry out midday proclamations through summer (May to August) at the High Cross, where this tradition has been alive since the Middle Ages.
Chester also hosts an annual literature festival in October, highlighted by a book-swap: bring a book and take back another!
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More photos from Chester and the parade here on flickr…
A-punting we go on the Cam
Published today in BRUNCH – the Sunday supplement of Hindustan Times, under the title River Town… this is the original piece I had sent then, which was published with a few edits…
Morality and the University
Do you remember the song ‘yeh hai Bombay meri jaan’ from the film CID…? Johnny Walker on the big bad city that Bombay is, especially to the outsider? That it seems was just what London was to the authorities at Cambridge – a corrupting influence on students who had to be kept away by all means. So there were the bull dogs, as the local rectors used to be known, maintaining strict vigil at the railway station to catch students going to London for a night of drink and debauchery. That was a hundred years ago. Today, Cambridge boasts of a hundred and twenty pubs, not surprising, considering Cambridge is primarily a University town. Debauchery if any, is not apparent though.
The highlight of a visit to Cambridge is of course, a tour of the famous colleges set along the river Cam. On most days, visitors are allowed inside the college buildings at specific times. The best way to see Cambridge is to take a walking tour; I had the pleasure of being the solitary member of an hour long walking tour conducted by Emily, a grandmother of six who was born in Cambridge, has traveled around the world and has now come back to Cambridge “which is my favorite place in the world”. Cambridge also has some fine chapels including the one at King’s College, St. Johns’ College and one of the two round churches of England. There are interesting small bookshops, an open air market in the town square and several eating options.
The King Street Run
For the truly thirsty, there are the hundred and twenty pubs to choose from. And if you are particularly adventurous, there is the King Street Run, a bi-annual event in Cambridge, with a history of over fifty glorious years. In this event, competitors run through each of the eight pubs on King’s Street – and two more on the corner at Hobson Street and Short Street, taking in on the way as much fluid refreshment as is humanly possible. The other condition is to complete the round within an hour, without relieving oneself in any manner; in the coarser words, no peeing or puking. I would imagine there are no winners in this, only survivors, but that is clearly not so, judging by the popularity of the event and the fact that people compete to win – a tie specially designed for the event. The ever-informative wikipedia.com tells me that the current record is 14 min 05 sec, held by John Philips of the Cambridge Hash House Harriers. Though there are only five pubs remaining on King Street (including one called King Street Run in honor of the event), the tradition lives on and has given rise to the term ‘pub crawl’.
Punting on the Cam
However interesting college buildings and chapels were, that was not why I was in Cambridge. I was there to find myself a punt and take a spin on the river Cam – rather, be taken on a spin. In summers, the river Cam is ideal for a sport called punting. A punt is a flat-bottomed boat, propelled by a long pole about ten feet long, slicing through the water. Punting looks deceptively easy but is very difficult and requires a lot of skill and stamina. Often, students take on jobs as punters during the summer months to earn extra pocket money.
As I got off the train, I promised myself that I would complete a walking tour of the town, find some healthy lunch and then get myself on a punt. That, however, was not to be. Five minutes into the town, stop three of the open air bus, opposite the Queen’s College, I found myself off the bus and along the riverside waiting for the punt tour to begin. And in a few minutes, in a punt along with an American family of three and a group of four students, two Japanese and two Italian. On the pole was young Rosie, with amazing energy levels that her slight frame gave no indication of. In fact, what she lacked by way of skill, Rosie made up for with enthusiasm, which as I found out, is sadly not quite enough.
On crowded days on the river, there are traffic jams and accidents on the Cam, just as there are bound to be on the road. Unskilled or negligent punters also face the possibility of getting their poles stuck in the water. While it is possible to get the pole free by twisting it skillfully, most punters do not manage that. They utter a small prayer or a loud oath, according to their preference, and then try to use the paddle provided in the punt to reach the stuck punt. Rosie certainly did not; she alternated between the prayer and the oath, and in the course of half a dozen accidents with assorted walls and punts on the way, managed only thanks to a miracle, not to capsize the punt. The fourth time it happened was also the only time the great patriarch of the American family opened his mouth – to drawl “women drivers!” Almost simultaneously, one of the Italians began his story of an earlier punt ride where his punt turned over and passengers found themselves exercising their swimming skills vigorously in the water. Everyone in the punt laughed heartily at this story, but for the non-swimmers in the group, viz. me, and I guessed by the look on his face, the American dad.
The ride along the colleges
A punt takes from two to ten people and can be hired for self-punting or with a “chauffer”. On a punt ride, you pass the grand college buildings of Cambridge on either side of the river as the punter doubles up as tourist guide and rattles off the names of the different college buildings and their famous alumni and the various bridges we pass under. From Isaac Newton and Francis Bacon to Jawaharlal Nehru, Stephen Hawking and Douglas Adams, the list is very impressive. Amartya Sen? I piped up hopefully. My young punter Rosie looked very doubtful – the name was clearly not in her list – but another Japanese tourist in my punt was excited, yes, yes, Amartya Sen, the economist.
The more famous bridges are the “Bridge of Sighs” and the “Mathematical Bridge”. The Bridge of Sighs belongs to St. John’s College and is supposed to be named after the Bridge of Sighs in Venice. However, unlike in Venice, this bridge has far less romantic connotations. Local folklore says that the name is derived from the sound of the sighs of students crossing the bridge on their way to and back from their examinations. I cannot say this is hard to believe.
The ‘Mathematical Bridge’, belonging to Queen’s College, also has several stories around it. Made almost entirely of wood, it was built in 1749 and rebuilt in 1867 and 1902. Popular myth has it that the bridge was constructed by Sir Isaac Newton, and held itself together without any bolts or screws. Which is unlikely since the bridge was built 22 years after Isaac Newton passed away.
I cannot think of a better way of enjoying a late summer afternoon in the UK than sitting back on one of these punts (being punted by a sweating student, of course) and feeling the cool air on your face. All along the banks of the river, you see students who clearly have the same idea, viz. enjoying that fine summer day which comes by so rarely in that country. You pass by open air cook-outs and barbeques, and beer parties in the middle of the day. You also spot the loners, perched on the low walls by the banks, a book in one hand, a beer can in the other.
General Information
Cambridge is located roughly 100 km to the North of London. The best way to reach Cambridge is by train from King’s Cross Station in London. The journey is just more than an hour and day return fares are not so expensive. Inside Cambridge, you have the option of walking tours, cycling around, and the hop-on-hop-off open air bus that stops right in front of the train station. It is also possible to drive from London or take a coach.
Things to do
Ideally, spend 2-3 days at Cambridge, though it is still possible to take in some of the sights in a day, as I did. Be sure to take a punt ride and a walking tour (which comes as part of the bus ticket, if you choose to take the hop-on-hop-off tour). After you have taken in the breath-taking stained glass windows at the St. John’s College Chapel, climb up the few hundred steps for a fine view of Cambridge and surrounding areas. The Fitzwilliam museum, one of the oldest in Britain, and believed by many to be one of the best, has a good collection of art and artifacts from around the world. Cambridge also has an excellent botanic garden within walking distance of the railway station, where you can spend a couple of hours before taking your train back to big bad London. The bull dogs have all retired now.
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FRIDAY NIGHT GHOST TOURS
If you are the types willing to pay good money for bad frights, take the Ghost Tour on Friday nights for a peep into the haunted past of the town. Britain takes it ghosts seriously; the very popular Ghost Club which promises to get you “amazed by Britain’s supernatural heritage!” maintains strict records and even a website [http://www.ghostclub.org.uk/]. Scudmore Punts also offers you a “ghostly punting experience” followed by an hour-long ghost tour. Confirm the timings and days of the ghost tours beforehand, some websites state that these tours are organized on Saturdays as well. Strangely enough, the ghost walks are organized only during the summer months, perhaps in recognition of the fact that ghosts need to hibernate in winters? And do make reservations in advance. These walks are open to all, though the organizers do make it clear that children under twelve must be accompanied by an adult.
Also see : More Cambridge photographs on pbase
The streets of London – 1
… while they may or may not be paved with gold, are full of life and that hard-to-describe thing called character. It is mainly the people – the lazy gaping tourists, office-goers always clad in black, always in a hurry, brisk walkers and joggers out to enjoy the sunshine, vendors and finally those brilliant street performers and artists. Walking is the best way to get around London, especially on those rare, warm days when there are clouds in the sky but no dull persistent rain.
And here a few images from my two weeks in London, from some of my favorite spots there – I start with Covent Garden, which unsurprisingly, is somewhere at the top of this list. The small square on one side, which is the main “market” is a modern-day version of the old apple market, with locals selling all kinds of things from rare second hand books and prints to kitschy scarfs and jewelry. What is more interesting is the piazza around it, with more shops and eateries and most importantly, the buskers.
A break from busking…
I am not interested in selling. Are you interested in buying?
Music never sounds as good as when you listen to it at the Covent Garden square, a cup of coffee in hand and street performances never as much fun and engaging elsewhere. And for the real thing, just down to one side is the Royal Opera House with its free Monday lunch-time recitals and fabulous free screenings of opera and ballet out on the open square of Covent Garden.
A bit of HongKong in London…
If music be the food of love and all that…
The agony and the ecstasy…
Covent Garden was a fifteen minute walk from my college and when I was not headed towards Southbank, I used to walk down here to spend the most aimless and enjoyable few hours one can ever hope to in London. I have never actually seen though the flower market in action, the one immortalized by that most gorgeous flower girl of all – Eliza Doolittle.
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Coming up next : South Bank and then the streets themselves…
Also see : photographs from London on flickr…
Midsummer watch parade
Wikipedia tells me – In 1564 the midsummer watch parade included: 4 gyants, 1 unikorne, 1 dromodarye, 1 luce, 1 camell, 1 dragon, 6 hobbyhorses and 16 naked boys. The naked boys have gone into hiding but most of the others are still around at the parade – giants, dragons, camels and dromedaries (the single-humped camel) hobbyhorses (and elephants)… perhaps the luce too, whatever they are…
This is the midsummer watch parade at Chester, a ritual believed to have begun in 1498, with the outstanding features of the show (being) the Giants – enormous structures made of buckram and pasteboard and carried by two or more men. Somewhat disturbingly, the naked boys feature here as well – there were also fantastic giant Beasts including the Unicorn, the Elephant, the Camel and the Dragon. Originally the Dragon was beaten by six naked boys, but this practice was banned in the late 16th century. Thank god for Victorian morality.
Enter the dragon…
The drummer girl…
A clown in the audience…
And finally, the fire-eater…
And so it happened that I set out for Wales bright and early one Saturday morning in June. But British weather being what it is – viz. the only unpredictable thing about the country, the day got progressively duller and I found myself in Chester instead. Chester is a pretty town close to the Wales border, one of the several towns the Romans marched through, leaving behind them walls and wells for the later-day Britons to convert into brown-boarded sights of attraction for unsuspecting tourists. Also scattered through the town are original Tudor style buildings, with their stark black and whites and sharp angles.
The cathedral is a must-visit; the records show a church on that spot since the early tenth century (907) though this cathedral with its magnificent stained glass windows was built sometime around 1092.
The best way to see Chester is by walking around; the Roman walls stretch through the town for miles and miles and the walk along the river Dee is also the perfect way to spend a pleasant afternoon. Alternatively, take a boat ride lasting from half an hour to a few hours on the Dee, also taking in nearby towns and the picture-perfect English countryside which always inspires a sense of deja-vu in the foreign visitor; I mean, come, on, did you really ever expect to see daffodils fluttering and dancing in the breeze? or fat sheep grazing away on emerald green meadows along the road?
Although Chester is not compelling enough for you to visit if you only have a few days in hand, I would recommend it if you are around the area anyway. If Roman ruins do not attract you, remember, Chester is the only place where you find a road-side shack selling fried Mars bars. Now, if you find that a reason to stay away, don’t blame me – I liked Chester.
All the Queen’s roses
My first morning in London, a sunny summer day, I headed to one of my favorite spots, the Regent’s Park. At noon on a weekday, the park was full of camera-totting tourists (ahem) and serious joggers. Walking past the huge gilded gates leading into the park from the street, I went straight to the Queen’s rose gardens; a long stretch of the park filled with roses in colors I have never seen before. Not on roses certainly, on Govinda’s shirts perhaps. And names to match – from ‘Ingrid Bergman’ to ‘Bo Peep’ and ‘Thinking of You’. Amyyzing, innit?, I heard a voice close to me. As my heart with pleasure kept filling, I nodded in ready agreement – amazing indeed.
Need a better camera…
A rose by any other name would smell…?
After an hour with the roses, I moved to the second item on my agenda – buying a ticket for a play at the open air theare in the park. As I walked towards the long path leading to the box office, I caught sight of an electric blue salwar kameez and high heels (nope, I did not look at the face); who would come for a walk in the park in high heels? And three men, with video cameras and head phones – walk slowly this way, said the video camera to the electric blue salwar kameez. I stopped to stare. Huge head phones suddenly came close to me, pointed with his thumb to the electric blue, winked and said, Sheepa Shetty. As I gave him my best what have you been smoking, myte? look (you know the one – eyebrows slightly arched, mouth slightly open in disbelief and a loud sorry? what was that again? look in the eyes), he said, nooooo, not really. Oh, well, I will live with the disappointment.
Shilpa Shetty she was not…
And so the day went. The next time I went into the park, it had just rained and the roses were even more beautiful…
Happy, wet, colorful, pouting…
I sat in the open air amphitheatre and watched A Midsummer Night’s Dream – just the perfect play for that setting – the trees rustling above, doves flying, the sun shining on well into the performance (which started at 8 p.m.) as it slowly turned cool and then cold… I sat, shivering in the London night air watching the fairies with their lutes and flutes… listening to the music filling the air…
The open air theatre…
A midsummer night’s dream…
“It shocks me that there are Londoners who have never been to a Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream – this is one of the great and simple rituals of London life” – Alistair McAuley, Financial Times, 2006. Yes, it shocks me too.
London oh London
I have just been on a nostalgia trip at my other blog – memories of days as a broke student in London, finding things to do that were free and fun, counting the pennies (literally) when it came to anything else (including food, which while at the LSE canteens were reasonably priced, hurt elsewhere). And all these memories on the eve of another trip to London – watch this space for more photographs and posts soon…
The awe-insipiring interiors of the Natural History Museum – I agree with someone’s comment at flickr that this had a Harry-Pottersque air about it…
Storm clouds gathering over London Eye… while the ride itslef may be expensive (but totally worth it, I think – I went late in the evening and fell in love with London all over again – tiny lights twinkling in all directions), views of the London Eye are free, and offer several photo-ops…
Sepia memories… walking by the Thames on the stretch along Tower Bridge…
Another favorite pastime – walking from LSE to Covent Garden… My particular favorites were these pay-and-we-move characters…
Tulips at Regent’s Park – this was in June 2002, just before I was to come back to India…
I am off to London tomorrow for a couple of weeks… More here soon!
