Some of the bloggers & photographers at the London Olympic Test meet in January.
see original photo on Facebook
(via my Gymnastics blog)
Category: travel
a tourist in Europe
During my 3wks in England, Ireland and Belgium, every single day included Gymnastics and/or Travel.
But one evening I did get to wander Antwerp, quite deserted in January. Off season does have it’s advantages. The Antwerp hostel was empty. In London my hostel cost only 10£ / night.
more Antwerp photos
In London, my prettiest evening was walking along the Thames near Tower Bridge.
The look was intended to harmonize with nearby Tower of London.
In 1968, as a stunt to celebrate the RAF’s 50th birthday, Flt Lt Alan Pollock flew a jet fighter through the bridge. He was arrested and discharged from the Air Force.
A kook named Paul Martin did the same thing twice in 1973 before crashing his personal plane.
The Bridge inspired me to watch Robert Downey Jr’s Sherlock Holmes, set during the construction.
Click PLAY or watch the trailer on YouTube.
The bigger news on the Thames is the imminent opening of the Shard London Bridge Tower.
A fast walker myself, during rush hour downtown London the suits & skirts practically sprint to the Tube. Anxious, I assume, to get to the Telly. Or pub.
We’ll be seeing a LOT of LONDON during the Olympics.
US airlines must advertise TRUE fares
Good news — under the Obama administration:
A series of new airfare rules put forth by the Department of Transportation (DOT) will go into effect Jan. 26 and offer travelers better “passenger protections.”
The most visible of the new rules is a law that requires airlines to include mandatory government taxes and fees in all advertised fares. Other rules pertaining to ticket cancellation policies and baggage fees went into effect on Jan. 24. …
Luggage fees are still not included. And code-share flights not necessarily disclosed. When you buy a flight on Alaska, for example, you might find yourself on Horizon.
What happens in the States often ends up happening worldwide, the aviation industry so international.
Zamboni in London
I dropped by the outdoor ice rink at Canary Wharf, London. It’s open Nov-Feb in Canada Square Park.
Antwerp Train Station
Antwerpen-Centraal (Antwerp Central) is the name of the main railway station in the Belgian city …
In 2009 the American magazine Newsweek judged Antwerpen-Centraal the world’s fourth greatest train station.
It’s gorgeous. Interesting photos on Flickr.
Click PLAY or watch a flash mob at the station on YouTube. One of the best ever.
I’d totally join in one of those.
Today the Channel Tunnel Eurostar to Newsweek’s #1 train station — St. Pancras, London. At 300km per hour (186 mph).
Canada Water, London
I’ve stayed a week near Canada Water, at the Thameside Hostel. Low season, the price dropped to £10 / night in the dorm. … Who says London is expensive?
There are some gorgeous canal walks here.
And we’ve not had a drop of rain in a week.
… I’m departing, though, en route to visit friends in Galway, Ireland.
Sadly, I had no time for any sightseeing in London.
centre space/time continuum
Here it is, just outside my bus window.
Greenwich Mean Time adopted as a global time standard. It is arguably the same as Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) …
Astronomers no longer use the term “Greenwich Mean Time”, but what do those geeks know?
An Idiot Abroad – Japan
The last episode of the 2nd season sees Karl Pilkington on a mission to climb Fuji. … And to come up with an invention — inflatable pants.
I don’t know why I like An Idiot Abroad. It’s absurd. But there are little moments of brilliance.
Karl almost liked Zen Buddhist meditation. Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Almost.
what am I doing in London?
PUnditifying from the rogues Press gallery.
All day every day blogging the Olympic Test Meet, final trial for the 2012 Games. I’m posting over on my Gymnastics site.
You can tell by the spelling mishakes and tpyos that I’m the real deal. The people’s press.
hate rent-a-car companies
Fox is the cheapest national brand in the USA, it seems.
For many cities you can get a vehicle for $50/week. Or even $6/day. … At least that’s what their website claims.
So why was my bill — still cheaper than the competition — more than double what I saw online:
$82 / week
$3.61 SEA Concess
$8.13 Tax SEA
$6.59 WA Rental Tax
$.26 WA MotVehTx
$35 CFC … (explained to be some sort of new building fee)
$3.36 VLF
Of course you are hassled with a scary up-sale of insanely expensive daily insurance options.
All in all, a terrible customer experience. Like this guy had:
On a recent trip to the airport rental counter I marveled at the ability of the Avis/Budget representative to make me feel like a criminal, a moron, and an irresponsible lout gambling with my life all in the space of about eight minutes. Welcome to modern car rental. …
Are there any rent-a-car companies who actually tell you the entire cost? …
Canada must have more rules against deliberately obfuscating prices. The same company prices online are about double in Canada for the same vehicle as in the States.
