Take the Tube

For the first time since I’ve received my driving license, I don’t have access to a car. It a little unsettling for me and I was concerned at first to loose the independence that a car represents. However, it’s just not practical to drive in London.

First there is the whole “drive on the left” thing, which I’m not sure I’ve really gotten worked out. Second it is impossible to find a place to leave your car when you aren’t driving it, as parking spaces seem to be the most endangered species in London. Third, it seems that cars are mostly just a target for thieves in London anyway, so why bother.

Now my lack of a car doesn’t mean that I don’t have any way to get around. London has a great network of underground trains (the tube), buses, and taxis. In fact most of the time it is faster to get someplace by the tube than it is to get there by driving, especially during rush hour.

You have to be careful, when you choose a place to live, that you are on the right tube lines. The Google office in London is located right near Victoria Station, and so I have the Circle, District, and Victoria lines to choose from as direct routes to work. We picked a place on the Circle line, and it’s ok most of the time. If I had it to do over again, I think I would have picked a place on the Victoria line because it seems to run with fewer delays than the Circle and District lines.

Speaking of delays I was amazed that no one had written a Google Gadget to show you the status of the London Underground on your Google Home Page, so I put one together from pieces I found on the web. It has turned out to be essential that I know what state the line to my house is in, so that I can pick the right way to get home.

Sometimes the dog wins

We live in a neighborhood in London where you see regularly see people walking their dogs in the evenings. At first I was surprised. There were many more dogs on the streets than I expected in a city as dense as this. Many people had two dogs with them, occasionally you would see someone with three.

I don’t know where people keep their dogs during the day. If our flat is any indication, you are doing really well if you have enough room to keep two people in a place, let alone two or three dogs.

A few weeks ago, Jenna and I were walking to a local restaurant to get some dinner. We saw a man walking two dogs down the street. One dog was a small bulldog, while the other one was a beautiful golden retriever.

I first noticed them because the two dogs seemed to be kind of an odd pair, but they looked like fast friends and were obviously enjoying their walk. It was a warm evening, and they were both walking down the street with their lounges hanging out in that expression that only dogs can accomplish when they are in the middle of a particularly good walk.

It looked like they had come from Kensington Gardens, which meant they had probably spent some time chasing squirrels or balls, or something. They looked happy, and their human was also pretty happy looking.

That was, until they turned to go down our street. The bulldog was happy to explore down the street, but the golden retriever just sat down. The man walking the dogs came up short, turned around, and looked at his obstinate charge. The dog, meanwhile, just looked at the man with an expression that said, “you go ahead, I’ll just wait here.”

The man tried pulling on the leash, but the dog just braced himself on the sidewalk. Then the man decided to try a guilt trip on the dog. He was using one of those long retractable leashes, so he let the leash out and started walking down the street. The dog just sat there.

The man tried to reason with the dog by calling him from the end of the fully extended leash, but still the dog wouldn’t budge. At this point the man hit upon, what he thought was a brilliant, but somewhat sneaky, idea. He walked back to the stubborn dog like they were going to go the other direction. The dog, amazingly, jumped up and started walking like there was nothing wrong. Once they got half way across the street the man turned trying to get the dog to go down the street, again the dog sat down and effectively said, “no.”

At this point there was a fairly sizable but loosely organized crowd around the man. We were all trying not to laugh, and not to look too obvious, but he knew we were there. He was embarrassed, and tried the whole routine again, but the dog just wouldn’t budge.

Finally, he gave up and walked the opposite direction up the street. The dog was happy with this decision and accompanied the man and the other dog.

It was a funny little scene, and one that I’ll always remember when I think of our little street in London. Sometimes the dog wins.

Westminster Cathedral

Westminster Cathedral - 2, originally uploaded by Allen Hutchison.

I can see the tower on this building from my office, but hadn’t had a chance to visit it until last week.

It’s Westminster Cathedral which shouldn’t be confused with Westminster Abbey which is just down the road from here.

This is the Catholic church in Westminster, and it’s built in a really unique style. I’m glad I got a chance to see it.

Seven Sisters

Seven Sisters - 2, originally uploaded by Allen Hutchison.

Some of the famous white cliffs that make up the southern shoreline of Great Britain. We went on a day trip out to seven sisters. This area isn’t nearly as famous as Dover, but the view was nice, and we had a great time.