Friday, April 28, 2006
Streets of London - Ralph McTell
I wondered aroung the strrets of London yesterday and i did the complete London experience yesterday - visited a museum, watched a play, listened to a jazz concert, ate at Chinatown, did some shopping (only the "window" type) and hung out in a park! And to top it all off, the train that was to take me home was delayed - and i ended up walking for over an hour to get back here!!!!!!
1. Imperial War Museum
The Imperial War Museum is a must for all was enthusiast. And no, it does not glorify war. But it contains a whole wealth of info about the wars. They even have a brand new section dealing with Crimes Against Humanity - which i decided against going since i just handed in an assignment on that and i thought i needed a break from it!!!! But visit that section i will the next time.
This time round, it was a whirlwind visit - i was going for a concert at the Royal Festival Hall and since i had an hour or so, i decided to drop by the IWM.
The last time i was there was in February 1994. I went wif Stephan and we took a lot of pics - the one here on the right is one of me favourites. It's me posing with a part of the Berlin Wall outside the IWM. I looked for it and it was still there in the same exact spot, except the wall now looked more weathered. This time round, i realised how thin the wall was!
I guess the last time round was more fun, being with Stephan and having someone to take pics of you! I kinda miss that - dun get me wrong, me flatmates are nice and fun, but they just dun seem too keen to go down and hang out in London! Like i was reading the other day about the open air theatre resuming at Regent's Park in late spring, i remember how the whole gang of us went for it, despite the fact that there were prolly only 2 real Shakespeare fans. But the rest went along for the experience. Ah.... those were the days!
For more pics of th IWM (including pics of the P-51D Mustang, the Spitfire, the Sherman tank etc.) go here.
2. Royal Festival Hall
Thereafter, i rushed off to the Royal Festival Hall to catch a free lunchtime jazz concert - the John Williams Trio! No, no, no, not the John Williams. Another lessor known one.
He is a saxaphonist (he even played a baritone sax - mehtinks it's the first time i heard a baritone sax live) and he was accopanied by a bassist and a guitarist - both as old as he is!!!!
I took the pic on the right not only to show the trio but if you in the foreground, u'd see many heads wif white hair - if there are any left! So many senior citizens there!
But it was cool. They played mainstream jazz - early 20th century stuffs and at one point, a senior couple even got up and danced, much to the amusement of a lttle 2 or 3 year kid standing near me.
I used to hang around at the RFH a lot cuz it used to be the home to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - the best orchestra i have ever heard! Flawless stuffs. RPO has since had their performances at the Royal Albert Hall.
3. One flew over the cuckoo's nest
OK. I have to admit that the main draw was Christian Slater! Since being here, i have missed Kevin Spacey, Patrick Stewart and Ewan McGregor - and i told meself that i'm not gonna miss another big star!
And you have to admit he does look a little "Nicholson" in the poster, doesn't he?
For those who dun know, it's about this sane guy sent into a mental institution and faces-off with an evil domineering head nurse.
The verdict? Well, it was alrite. The story is good. I wasn't impressed with the acting, tho. I mean, acting as mental patients does not take much talent - and unfortunately, it showed. Nothing outstanding at all.
But the performances of the 2 leads made up for it. Maybe it's because the 2 leads were so good that it made the rest look bad! Slater was good - he made the role his. Alex Kingston (of ER fame) was equally up to her task as Nurse Ratched.
The really stupid thing happenned at the end when the performers came out to take their bows. Certain section of the crowd actually boo-ed Alex Kingston!!!!!!! How dumb can you get???
I guess in some ways, she can(and she should) take it as a compliment - she made her role so real and so evil that some of the weak-minded people in the audience couldn't make the distinction between acting and real life.
(pic of the Garrick theatre obtained from Christian Slater's Video Diary)
4. Spring time at Kensington Gardens
I spent quite some time at Kensington Park, just enjoying spring in all its glory. It was lovely - flowers in all colours - red, pink, orange, blue, yellow, green, white, purple!
And there were so many squirrels running all over the place. They were quite tame but cautious. One even followed me for a while hoping to get a free meal.
I kept on thinking how wonderful it would be if me mom, me nephew and me niece were wif me. Me mom would love the flowers while me nephew and niece would be simply thrilled wif the squirrels.
For more spring pics - including some taken at the Kensington Palace Gardens - see here and here.
Yup, spring has truly sprung. The weather was lovely and the days are getting longer. When it did turned dark, i found some stores were opened! Even Borders closes at 11 daily except for Sundays. A lot of sports jackets were going for really cheap - 70 -80% discount while England's away jersy (the new one) is going for 50% of - and money back if England wins the World Cup!!!! Am so tempted to buy it - is this considered as gambling???
After that, as there was still time to kill before the last train back, i just sat at Leicester Square and watched life pass by, enjoying the lovely cool spring nite.
The day din end on a high note, tho. There i was, seated comfortably on the 10 pm train. let me explain. The train goes all the way from London to North Station, Colchester. From there, i take another train to Hythe which is 20 mins walk away from me Uni. Alternatively, i can take a bus. The last train to Hythe from Colchester North is around 10:50 pm while the last bus is at 11. So any train that i take from London later than 10 pm will mean i have 2 alternatives - take a cab (can come up to about 9 quid) or walk - for an hour or so!!!!
At literally the last minute (9:59 pm - i saw the clock in the station), they announced that the 10 pm train will not be leaving and it will instead now be the 10:18 train!!!! There was nothing i could do but just moan!!!
What made things worse was this bunch of people in the same carriage who were making lots of noises, screaming and shouting each time the train driver makes an announcement, laughing and being a pain. At one point of time, they offended a lady sitting nearby who got up and moved over closer to where i sat. This prompted one of them to start verbally abusing her. Then, they found it so amusing when one of them started farting loudly. The laughs only encouraged him to do that more.
What is really depressing was that this is not a bunch of loud-mouth teenagers. This was a group of adults in their forties or late thirties. By the way they were dressed, they looked like professionals - shirts, suits etc. I got the impression that they got off work, had dinner and a drink together and were going back home.
Look, i dun have anything against people having a good time together - but there is a line that has to be drawn - and last nite, that line was crossed many times. It din help that many of us were tired, exhausted - some like me were trying to sleep, and a little angry over the initial delay.
So when the verbal abuse started along wif the farting, some of the men sitting where i was couldn't take it any longer and gave them a piece of their mind. A shouting match ensued - and at one point of time, i was fearful that it might turn into a fistfight.
But it din.
So that was it. I walked back to Uni - it was cold! And when i reached home, i realised how hungry i was a midnite feast was started! Soon, the unpleasantness of the train journey back was forgotten and i dropped into bed - bone tired, soles hurting but feeling all good inside!
1. Imperial War Museum
The Imperial War Museum is a must for all was enthusiast. And no, it does not glorify war. But it contains a whole wealth of info about the wars. They even have a brand new section dealing with Crimes Against Humanity - which i decided against going since i just handed in an assignment on that and i thought i needed a break from it!!!! But visit that section i will the next time.
This time round, it was a whirlwind visit - i was going for a concert at the Royal Festival Hall and since i had an hour or so, i decided to drop by the IWM.The last time i was there was in February 1994. I went wif Stephan and we took a lot of pics - the one here on the right is one of me favourites. It's me posing with a part of the Berlin Wall outside the IWM. I looked for it and it was still there in the same exact spot, except the wall now looked more weathered. This time round, i realised how thin the wall was!
I guess the last time round was more fun, being with Stephan and having someone to take pics of you! I kinda miss that - dun get me wrong, me flatmates are nice and fun, but they just dun seem too keen to go down and hang out in London! Like i was reading the other day about the open air theatre resuming at Regent's Park in late spring, i remember how the whole gang of us went for it, despite the fact that there were prolly only 2 real Shakespeare fans. But the rest went along for the experience. Ah.... those were the days!
For more pics of th IWM (including pics of the P-51D Mustang, the Spitfire, the Sherman tank etc.) go here.
2. Royal Festival Hall
Thereafter, i rushed off to the Royal Festival Hall to catch a free lunchtime jazz concert - the John Williams Trio! No, no, no, not the John Williams. Another lessor known one.He is a saxaphonist (he even played a baritone sax - mehtinks it's the first time i heard a baritone sax live) and he was accopanied by a bassist and a guitarist - both as old as he is!!!!
I took the pic on the right not only to show the trio but if you in the foreground, u'd see many heads wif white hair - if there are any left! So many senior citizens there!
But it was cool. They played mainstream jazz - early 20th century stuffs and at one point, a senior couple even got up and danced, much to the amusement of a lttle 2 or 3 year kid standing near me.
I used to hang around at the RFH a lot cuz it used to be the home to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra - the best orchestra i have ever heard! Flawless stuffs. RPO has since had their performances at the Royal Albert Hall.
3. One flew over the cuckoo's nest
OK. I have to admit that the main draw was Christian Slater! Since being here, i have missed Kevin Spacey, Patrick Stewart and Ewan McGregor - and i told meself that i'm not gonna miss another big star!And you have to admit he does look a little "Nicholson" in the poster, doesn't he?
For those who dun know, it's about this sane guy sent into a mental institution and faces-off with an evil domineering head nurse.
The verdict? Well, it was alrite. The story is good. I wasn't impressed with the acting, tho. I mean, acting as mental patients does not take much talent - and unfortunately, it showed. Nothing outstanding at all.
But the performances of the 2 leads made up for it. Maybe it's because the 2 leads were so good that it made the rest look bad! Slater was good - he made the role his. Alex Kingston (of ER fame) was equally up to her task as Nurse Ratched.
The really stupid thing happenned at the end when the performers came out to take their bows. Certain section of the crowd actually boo-ed Alex Kingston!!!!!!! How dumb can you get???
I guess in some ways, she can(and she should) take it as a compliment - she made her role so real and so evil that some of the weak-minded people in the audience couldn't make the distinction between acting and real life.
(pic of the Garrick theatre obtained from Christian Slater's Video Diary)
4. Spring time at Kensington Gardens
I spent quite some time at Kensington Park, just enjoying spring in all its glory. It was lovely - flowers in all colours - red, pink, orange, blue, yellow, green, white, purple!And there were so many squirrels running all over the place. They were quite tame but cautious. One even followed me for a while hoping to get a free meal.
I kept on thinking how wonderful it would be if me mom, me nephew and me niece were wif me. Me mom would love the flowers while me nephew and niece would be simply thrilled wif the squirrels.
For more spring pics - including some taken at the Kensington Palace Gardens - see here and here.
Yup, spring has truly sprung. The weather was lovely and the days are getting longer. When it did turned dark, i found some stores were opened! Even Borders closes at 11 daily except for Sundays. A lot of sports jackets were going for really cheap - 70 -80% discount while England's away jersy (the new one) is going for 50% of - and money back if England wins the World Cup!!!! Am so tempted to buy it - is this considered as gambling???
After that, as there was still time to kill before the last train back, i just sat at Leicester Square and watched life pass by, enjoying the lovely cool spring nite.
The day din end on a high note, tho. There i was, seated comfortably on the 10 pm train. let me explain. The train goes all the way from London to North Station, Colchester. From there, i take another train to Hythe which is 20 mins walk away from me Uni. Alternatively, i can take a bus. The last train to Hythe from Colchester North is around 10:50 pm while the last bus is at 11. So any train that i take from London later than 10 pm will mean i have 2 alternatives - take a cab (can come up to about 9 quid) or walk - for an hour or so!!!!
At literally the last minute (9:59 pm - i saw the clock in the station), they announced that the 10 pm train will not be leaving and it will instead now be the 10:18 train!!!! There was nothing i could do but just moan!!!
What made things worse was this bunch of people in the same carriage who were making lots of noises, screaming and shouting each time the train driver makes an announcement, laughing and being a pain. At one point of time, they offended a lady sitting nearby who got up and moved over closer to where i sat. This prompted one of them to start verbally abusing her. Then, they found it so amusing when one of them started farting loudly. The laughs only encouraged him to do that more.
What is really depressing was that this is not a bunch of loud-mouth teenagers. This was a group of adults in their forties or late thirties. By the way they were dressed, they looked like professionals - shirts, suits etc. I got the impression that they got off work, had dinner and a drink together and were going back home.
Look, i dun have anything against people having a good time together - but there is a line that has to be drawn - and last nite, that line was crossed many times. It din help that many of us were tired, exhausted - some like me were trying to sleep, and a little angry over the initial delay.
So when the verbal abuse started along wif the farting, some of the men sitting where i was couldn't take it any longer and gave them a piece of their mind. A shouting match ensued - and at one point of time, i was fearful that it might turn into a fistfight.
But it din.
So that was it. I walked back to Uni - it was cold! And when i reached home, i realised how hungry i was a midnite feast was started! Soon, the unpleasantness of the train journey back was forgotten and i dropped into bed - bone tired, soles hurting but feeling all good inside!
# posted by imissw : 2:06:00 am
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eerr... wat are you talking about? can't you read the post?????? something wrong wif your PC? or your eyes?
Yes, crouching and hidden (not squatting, tho - somehow, the image of a squatting tiger/dragon does not instil any fear in me).
Yes, crouching and hidden (not squatting, tho - somehow, the image of a squatting tiger/dragon does not instil any fear in me).
it's terrible. last friday, there was an incident right outside the church where the cg's were gathered. didnt witness the incident first hand tho. a group of 4 teens bullied a tattered homeless guy by pelting rocks at him. he was bout 50, was drunk n they just continued to throw the stones at him. they mocked him n even kicked him at times. they bullied him till he cried.
a few of my frens who witnessed the incident from inside the church went out n confronted them, shooed them away n then invited the guy to hav dinner with us.
it's just really sad. hitting a poor,defenceless homeless guy is just... low.
a few of my frens who witnessed the incident from inside the church went out n confronted them, shooed them away n then invited the guy to hav dinner with us.
it's just really sad. hitting a poor,defenceless homeless guy is just... low.
# posted by 
: Sat Apr 29, 07:38:00 pm
: Sat Apr 29, 07:38:00 pm
yeah. once while waiting for a mate in a train station, i started chatting wif this old guy. when i asked him about his broken specs, he told me that a grp of youths beat him up and stole his mobile phone.
so sad. and to top it off, he was sitting in the train station cuz he had nowhere to go - he lived on his own, so he rather sit in the station and chat wif strangers like me!
and i have frens (who are chinese) who have been "attacked" by local teens - one in Scotland and one in the midlands. they threw stones and plastic bottles at them.
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so sad. and to top it off, he was sitting in the train station cuz he had nowhere to go - he lived on his own, so he rather sit in the station and chat wif strangers like me!
and i have frens (who are chinese) who have been "attacked" by local teens - one in Scotland and one in the midlands. they threw stones and plastic bottles at them.
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