I have an announcement to make before I carry on with this blog - I've decided that from now on, my video blogs on YouTube will be private, and only viewable to my friends, and while I will not be making this text blog private, I will be more careful as to what I post in it. My reason for this is because I don't think displaying my personal life for the world to see is appropriate, because at the end of the day I don't know just who's watching my videos or viewing this blog. This is really how it should've been from the start, but of course I didn't know any better. Thanks for understanding.
I had a feeling that September would be an eventful month, and it certainly was - on the downbeat side of things, the lack of job situation remains the same, and I've also found myself becoming less motivated to do artwork. This is something I mentioned a few blogs back, and I think the main reason for it is everything going on in my life at this moment in time, but also because of the also previously mentioned gripes with DeviantArt - honestly, going there and just seeing pages of fanart, fanart, fetish art, fanart is enough to wonder what the point is anymore. There is no way I will ever leave DA though, I've been there too long and made too many friends through it for that to happen. At the end of the day, we all have our opinions and a choice to either acknowledge all the fanart etc, or to simply ignore it and carry on doing what you do. I know which option I'm choosing.
On the plus side of things, the change of season from Summer to Autumn isn't the only thing that's been happening this month. On the 8th, I took a 2 day trip down to London, my second visit there, met up with my good friend Mike (aka Dracorum-Order) and saw the city's sights and sounds, revisiting places we'd seen before and exploring new ones too. The trip was both for fun and business however, as I was also down there to have my medical checkup as part of the application for my US visa. It went very well indeed, and I very much enjoyed visiting London once again.
But wait, there's more - the London doctors wanted some extra information from me, which I had to get from my local doctors, and it ended up taking a week and a half longer than I'd have liked, but the US Embassy now has my documentation, and they will be contacting me within the next month and a half to schedule a visa interview, so it's all happening - exciting times.
My videos from the London trip are right here - and I'll leave you with this bit of cosmic artwork - my alien characters feeling right at home in Tomorrowland.
30/09/2015
13/09/2015
London: September 2015
Travel time again - and it was at very short notice, I have to say. On 8 September I paid only my second visit to my home country's capital city - London, of course. There was a twist with this trip however, it wasn't all for pleasure, there was a spot of business involved - I'll get to that later on.
Day 1
With only a slight delay, I took the 3 hour train ride from Durham down to London King's Cross. I'd only been in London about a couple of weeks previously, travelling through to get to the Isle of Wight, however this was the first time I'd visited London for the purpose of visiting London since December 2013, and as mentioned before, only the second time I'd done so. Just like last time, I met up with my good friend Mike, aka Dracorum-Order from DeviantArt, who was letting fly with his puns pretty much as soon as we said hello, and speaking of flying, before we headed into the city, we met with King's Cross' resident rat-catcher, a hawk named Harris.
One quick Tube train ride later and we were revisiting the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and the Abbey in Westminster, before making our way along to the picturesque St. James's Park, a favourite spot from last time around - no squirrels jumping on me this time though, but there were plenty of wildfowl including various types of ducks, swans, and a heron. We then made our way to the Household Cavalry Museum, the home of the Royal Horse Guards, where we walked on the large courtyard and saw the classic architecture of the place, as well as getting some photos of the two Horse Guards on duty.
Before long, we were back in another familiar place, London's famous Trafalgar Square, where we stopped for some dinner while checking out the Square's fountains and bustling atmosphere, complete with a skeleton of what looked like a dinosaur or a bird, we weren't sure. Following that, we made our way along London's famous Strand street, where we came across the historic Somerset House, with its paved courtyard, plus one of London's many abandoned Tube stations, but this one was the most well-known of them all, the former Aldwych/Strand station, well-known because it has been used many times as a filming location. We weren't able to go inside, but it was cool to see the entrance all the same. Just across the road was the Australian Embassy, which reminded me of my pending visit to the US Embassy (more on that whole process a little later).
We then jumped on the Tube once again to Wood Lane, to get a quick look at an iconic London building, the closed BBC Television Centre, however it was in the process of getting demolished - still, at least I can say I got to see it anyway. Then it was another ride on the Tube to probably one of the most famous streets in the world, not just London - Baker Street, where we found a museum dedicated to who else but Sherlock Holmes, along with the door to his house, complete with a plaque saying that he'd lived there, or rather "lived" there. Me and Mike also ended up on something of a wild goose chase, thanks to a comment we overheard from a passer-by, we thought it would be a good idea to try and find Dangermouse's postbox (anyone who's seen Dangermouse will know what I'm talking about), and while we did find a couple of postboxes on Baker Street, none of them made any mention of a certain secret agent mouse - ah well, we tried.
We then jumped on a bus up to the very picturesque and sprawling Regent's Park, and once we got there it was easy to see why it's such a well-loved beauty spot, it was definitely a welcome breath of fresh air from the bustling city centre, with its playing fields, gardens and boating lake. Also located in the park was the famous London Zoo, which was closed for the day - more on that later, too. Just across the road from the park was Primrose Hill, and it was a hefty climb up to the top, however it was well worth it, because from the top of the hill was an awesome view of the London skyline, and it was certainly a very popular spot.
From Primrose Hill we took a lengthy walk back through Regent's Park to the busy London borough of Camden, which was of course very busy, complete with street dancers doing their thing outside the Tube station, where we once again took the Tube through to London Bridge, to revisit the London riverside, which included dancing fountains, the HMS Belfast frigate, London's tallest skyscraper The Shard, and another of London's most iconic landmarks, Tower Bridge. Last time round we saw the bridge from a distance, however this time we decided to take a walk on the bridge and check out the views across the River Thames, as well as briefly checking out the Tower of London also.
At this point it was dark, so we jumped on a train from London Bridge through to Mike's home town of Croydon, in south London, where I got to experience a London pub for the first time with a meal of burger, chips and pineapple juice at the Green Dragon pub. Then it was a quick bus ride to the block of flats that Mike called home - he very kindly put me up for the night at his place, which I appreciated greatly (thanks again, I owe you one). This wasn't the first time I'd stayed overnight in London, so it wasn't really a huge departure for me, and I managed to sleep just fine. Of course, me and Mike had to get some late night doodles in there, too.
Day 2
It was time for the business side of the trip - after some breakfast including a very delicious apple-flavoured green tea that I'd never tried before, we headed back to the train station via a quick tram ride, taking the train back into the centre of London and jumping on a Tube train to Bond Street, where I made my way to a very fancy looking place called Bentinck Mansions, the home of Knightsbridge Doctors. The reason I was there was to undergo a medical check-up, which was a requirement for applying for my US visa, and it was also the reason that this London trip was short notice. Mike headed off elsewhere while I went inside, and after a little bit of a wait, I saw three different doctors who assessed me and performed a check-up on me - I won't go into detail, but the long and short of it was that everything was fine. I'd been nervous about the medical, however it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be - the only bad thing was the fee I had to pay for it, it wasn't cheap!
Me and Mike reconvened after a brief wander around trying to find the meeting place we'd arranged, before jumping on a bus at Oxford Street down to the historic district of Soho, where we wandered around its narrow streets (which reminded me a lot of similar streets in Durham and York) until we found a place to grab some dinner, a busy but quaint café called Honest Burgers - no surprises for guessing what we had, very good burgers and chips too.
A short walk later, and we found ourselves in "Theatreland", aka London's West End, where we witnessed a coach trying to almost unsuccessfully reverse into a parking spot, as well as the streets lined with what were most probbaly very packed theatres, and of course teeming with people. We made our way to London's Chinatown district from there, complete with many Chinese restaurants (including one that Mike's family once owned), someone in a panda costume, and the beautifully ornate Oriental gates at the entrance and exit of the street. Before long, we found ourselves in London's equivalent of Times Square in New York City - Leicester Square, and much like Times Square it was absolutely packed. Just a short walk further along was another famous sight, the advertisment boards and striking white architecture of Piccadilly Circus.
From there, it was another Tube train ride back to Regent's Park, to pay a visit to London Zoo, one of the biggest zoos that I've been to, next to Southwick Zoo in Massachusetts in the US. There wasn't time to see absolutely everything there, but what we did see was well worth it - we got to witness a live talk on the zoo's resident Sumatran tigers, with one of the tigers getting up close and personal to the windows; a Komodo dragon named Raja who'd had a starring role in the James Bond film "Skyfall" (my first time seeing a Komodo dragon too); a quartet of Galapagos tortoises (one of which was born in 1940!); the Amphibian Ark, which was home to many different types of reptiles and amphibians, including snakes, frogs, chameleons and a crocodile; Gorilla Kingdom, with various very playful monkeys and a lone gorilla who was content playing with a sack; a colony of penguins being fed and swimming to their heart's content at Penguin Beach; a group of pelicans and flamingoes plus some colourful macaws; and last but not least, an exhibit dedicated to bugs, including a plague of locusts (!), cockroaches, spiders, a praying mantis, and to equal disgust and delight, bluebottle fly maggots!
Time was getting short at this point, however there was just enough time to revisit another landmark - and quite appropriate considering that the Queen was celebrating becoming the UK's longest reigning monarch that day - Buckingham Palace, complete with Mike's sneaky Queen and Prince Philip impression. ;)
Before we knew it, we were heading back through Green Park and back on the Tube to King's Cross, where me and Mike said our goodbyes, before I headed back up north and back home, one train to ride to Darlington, one late train to Durham and a mad dash for the bus later.
All in all, it was a great trip, I was glad to get the medical out of the way and I enjoyed getting to revisit some of London's sights as well as seeing new sights too, and I want to thank Mike again for putting me up for the night and keeping me company - London is best enjoyed when you've got a friend with you, and while I wouldn't ever wish to live in London, or any city for that matter, I definitely recommend visiting it.
To see my photos from the trip, click here.
Day 1
With only a slight delay, I took the 3 hour train ride from Durham down to London King's Cross. I'd only been in London about a couple of weeks previously, travelling through to get to the Isle of Wight, however this was the first time I'd visited London for the purpose of visiting London since December 2013, and as mentioned before, only the second time I'd done so. Just like last time, I met up with my good friend Mike, aka Dracorum-Order from DeviantArt, who was letting fly with his puns pretty much as soon as we said hello, and speaking of flying, before we headed into the city, we met with King's Cross' resident rat-catcher, a hawk named Harris.
One quick Tube train ride later and we were revisiting the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben and the Abbey in Westminster, before making our way along to the picturesque St. James's Park, a favourite spot from last time around - no squirrels jumping on me this time though, but there were plenty of wildfowl including various types of ducks, swans, and a heron. We then made our way to the Household Cavalry Museum, the home of the Royal Horse Guards, where we walked on the large courtyard and saw the classic architecture of the place, as well as getting some photos of the two Horse Guards on duty.
Before long, we were back in another familiar place, London's famous Trafalgar Square, where we stopped for some dinner while checking out the Square's fountains and bustling atmosphere, complete with a skeleton of what looked like a dinosaur or a bird, we weren't sure. Following that, we made our way along London's famous Strand street, where we came across the historic Somerset House, with its paved courtyard, plus one of London's many abandoned Tube stations, but this one was the most well-known of them all, the former Aldwych/Strand station, well-known because it has been used many times as a filming location. We weren't able to go inside, but it was cool to see the entrance all the same. Just across the road was the Australian Embassy, which reminded me of my pending visit to the US Embassy (more on that whole process a little later).
We then jumped on the Tube once again to Wood Lane, to get a quick look at an iconic London building, the closed BBC Television Centre, however it was in the process of getting demolished - still, at least I can say I got to see it anyway. Then it was another ride on the Tube to probably one of the most famous streets in the world, not just London - Baker Street, where we found a museum dedicated to who else but Sherlock Holmes, along with the door to his house, complete with a plaque saying that he'd lived there, or rather "lived" there. Me and Mike also ended up on something of a wild goose chase, thanks to a comment we overheard from a passer-by, we thought it would be a good idea to try and find Dangermouse's postbox (anyone who's seen Dangermouse will know what I'm talking about), and while we did find a couple of postboxes on Baker Street, none of them made any mention of a certain secret agent mouse - ah well, we tried.
We then jumped on a bus up to the very picturesque and sprawling Regent's Park, and once we got there it was easy to see why it's such a well-loved beauty spot, it was definitely a welcome breath of fresh air from the bustling city centre, with its playing fields, gardens and boating lake. Also located in the park was the famous London Zoo, which was closed for the day - more on that later, too. Just across the road from the park was Primrose Hill, and it was a hefty climb up to the top, however it was well worth it, because from the top of the hill was an awesome view of the London skyline, and it was certainly a very popular spot.
From Primrose Hill we took a lengthy walk back through Regent's Park to the busy London borough of Camden, which was of course very busy, complete with street dancers doing their thing outside the Tube station, where we once again took the Tube through to London Bridge, to revisit the London riverside, which included dancing fountains, the HMS Belfast frigate, London's tallest skyscraper The Shard, and another of London's most iconic landmarks, Tower Bridge. Last time round we saw the bridge from a distance, however this time we decided to take a walk on the bridge and check out the views across the River Thames, as well as briefly checking out the Tower of London also.
At this point it was dark, so we jumped on a train from London Bridge through to Mike's home town of Croydon, in south London, where I got to experience a London pub for the first time with a meal of burger, chips and pineapple juice at the Green Dragon pub. Then it was a quick bus ride to the block of flats that Mike called home - he very kindly put me up for the night at his place, which I appreciated greatly (thanks again, I owe you one). This wasn't the first time I'd stayed overnight in London, so it wasn't really a huge departure for me, and I managed to sleep just fine. Of course, me and Mike had to get some late night doodles in there, too.
Day 2
It was time for the business side of the trip - after some breakfast including a very delicious apple-flavoured green tea that I'd never tried before, we headed back to the train station via a quick tram ride, taking the train back into the centre of London and jumping on a Tube train to Bond Street, where I made my way to a very fancy looking place called Bentinck Mansions, the home of Knightsbridge Doctors. The reason I was there was to undergo a medical check-up, which was a requirement for applying for my US visa, and it was also the reason that this London trip was short notice. Mike headed off elsewhere while I went inside, and after a little bit of a wait, I saw three different doctors who assessed me and performed a check-up on me - I won't go into detail, but the long and short of it was that everything was fine. I'd been nervous about the medical, however it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be - the only bad thing was the fee I had to pay for it, it wasn't cheap!
Me and Mike reconvened after a brief wander around trying to find the meeting place we'd arranged, before jumping on a bus at Oxford Street down to the historic district of Soho, where we wandered around its narrow streets (which reminded me a lot of similar streets in Durham and York) until we found a place to grab some dinner, a busy but quaint café called Honest Burgers - no surprises for guessing what we had, very good burgers and chips too.
A short walk later, and we found ourselves in "Theatreland", aka London's West End, where we witnessed a coach trying to almost unsuccessfully reverse into a parking spot, as well as the streets lined with what were most probbaly very packed theatres, and of course teeming with people. We made our way to London's Chinatown district from there, complete with many Chinese restaurants (including one that Mike's family once owned), someone in a panda costume, and the beautifully ornate Oriental gates at the entrance and exit of the street. Before long, we found ourselves in London's equivalent of Times Square in New York City - Leicester Square, and much like Times Square it was absolutely packed. Just a short walk further along was another famous sight, the advertisment boards and striking white architecture of Piccadilly Circus.
From there, it was another Tube train ride back to Regent's Park, to pay a visit to London Zoo, one of the biggest zoos that I've been to, next to Southwick Zoo in Massachusetts in the US. There wasn't time to see absolutely everything there, but what we did see was well worth it - we got to witness a live talk on the zoo's resident Sumatran tigers, with one of the tigers getting up close and personal to the windows; a Komodo dragon named Raja who'd had a starring role in the James Bond film "Skyfall" (my first time seeing a Komodo dragon too); a quartet of Galapagos tortoises (one of which was born in 1940!); the Amphibian Ark, which was home to many different types of reptiles and amphibians, including snakes, frogs, chameleons and a crocodile; Gorilla Kingdom, with various very playful monkeys and a lone gorilla who was content playing with a sack; a colony of penguins being fed and swimming to their heart's content at Penguin Beach; a group of pelicans and flamingoes plus some colourful macaws; and last but not least, an exhibit dedicated to bugs, including a plague of locusts (!), cockroaches, spiders, a praying mantis, and to equal disgust and delight, bluebottle fly maggots!
Time was getting short at this point, however there was just enough time to revisit another landmark - and quite appropriate considering that the Queen was celebrating becoming the UK's longest reigning monarch that day - Buckingham Palace, complete with Mike's sneaky Queen and Prince Philip impression. ;)
Before we knew it, we were heading back through Green Park and back on the Tube to King's Cross, where me and Mike said our goodbyes, before I headed back up north and back home, one train to ride to Darlington, one late train to Durham and a mad dash for the bus later.
All in all, it was a great trip, I was glad to get the medical out of the way and I enjoyed getting to revisit some of London's sights as well as seeing new sights too, and I want to thank Mike again for putting me up for the night and keeping me company - London is best enjoyed when you've got a friend with you, and while I wouldn't ever wish to live in London, or any city for that matter, I definitely recommend visiting it.
To see my photos from the trip, click here.
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