The weather started to improve on my third day. I took the ferry to Cockatoo Island to check out the installations for the Biennale. It’s a great sit with some many things to see and so much character.
In the evening I ventured back to Circular Quay, but this time with my trusty tripod. I ended the night at Darling Harbour.
Day 2 was a bit soggy. During the day I visited some art installations for the Sydney Biennale and in the evening I explored Vivid in the Botanical Gardens.
In past years I've heard of Vivid, but always when it was too late to go there. But after visiting White Night in Melbourne earlier this year, I was prepared! I planned a short trip to spend the June long weekend in Sydney. Not only would I catch Vivid, but also the very end of the Sydney Biennale.
I arrived on the Saturday morning. During the day I visited the MCA and took a few snaps around the harbour. My first evening of photography was without a tripod. I wandered around The Rocks and Circular Quay.
As with Vivid, I had heard of White Night before, but always too late to go. But one of the apartments I have stayed in for work emailed me a "deal" for White Night early in the year which tipped me off. So, I planned a short stay in Melbourne to check it out.
During the day I visited the NGV. Then, once it was dark I headed out. I wasn't prepared for the vast numbers of people. It took me over 5 hours to walk from Carlton Gardens down past Federation Square.
We visited the old Templehof airport twice. The first time walking around the airfield. The second time on a wonderful Father’s Day, taking a tour around the airport buildings.
Seeing Moderat play live was the initial motivation for this adventure. Despite an agonising wait to get in to the stadium, it was an experience to remember.
We spent a day exploring the palaces of Potsdam.
We took the train to Lübbenau and explored the canals and waterways of the Spreewald.
Emily and I spent just over a week in Berlin. Plenty of time to explore and see different aspects of the city.
In September 2017, Emily and I travelled to Berlin for 10 days. The main reason was to see Moderat play their "last show in a long time". I had been to Berlin before and knew I would want to return. It was Emily's first time. And it was our first overseas adventure together since our initial father and daughter adventure in 2010.
Emily and I had a photo day on Granite Island.
Emily and I had a photo day in Myponga.
This adventure was the longest time I have spent in the UK and certainly the most exploratory. I had a wonderful time, everything went pretty much to plan and it has left me with many fantastic memories. I can't wait to put the book for this trip together.
So here are my final thoughts and reflections, in no particular order.
And just in case you wondered (but probably didn't), here's the approximate breakdown of photos per day.
Thanks for following along. Until next time...
Along the way I acquired a number of guides and books, partly necessitating an additional suitcase on my return. Most are self explanatory, but I will elaborate where necessary.
Flying out of Doha at night was amazing. I had a fantastic view of Doha in all it's sparkly glittery glory. I tried taking pictures on my phone but they don't do it any justice. Had I realised what to expect I would have left my good camera out of my bag.
By the time we departed I was really hungry so I had dinner; a lovely beef salad followed by lamb loin. Both were exceptional.
The plan was then to try and get some sleep. Unfortunately, towards the end of dinner the turbulence started. At times it was pretty bad, though not the worst I've encountered. But it was relentless and we continued to bump along for nearly 5 hours. I managed to doze on and off but it wasn't a refreshing sleep. It should do until tonight though.
After I had given up on getting any more sleep I watched my first and only movie for this trip home - "Hidden Figures" - a great movie. Then a nice breakfast of bircher muesli followed by scrambled eggs.
Now, I'm writing this entry as we speed across the Great Australian Bight only an hour from home.
I just had to check something on Google maps and I must admit I had a *sigh* moment when it opened on London, where I last used it. No point getting all emotional about it though. Time to get back and live life in my Australian home again for a while.
My flight was at 9:15am. As I don't like risking a missed flight I intended to get there early. I had set my alarm for 5:30am but was already awake at 5:00am. That was actually nice because it gave me a little time to enjoy the London skyline for one last time. It was a beautiful clear morning.
A little while after taking that shot I noticed a hot air baloon gracefully floating across the city. I also managed to get a better shot to give a sense of just how magnificent the view appears in the context of the room.
When I spoke to the doorman last night about booking a taxi he gave me a tip that there are treats on the reception level in the morning for people who need to head out before breakfast is served. He was right. I grabbed myself a yummy muesli slice which kept me going until I got to the airport.
I decided to only get a taxi to Paddington Station and then catch the Heathrow Express from there. I figured it would be the quickest route and it was. It nearly took 1/2 hour to get to Paddington but then it was only 15min train journey to the airport.
After check-in I was able to go through the fast track security before heading to the Qatar lounge. They were serving breakfast.
We boarded only a little late but the plane stayed at the gate for a while due to traffic in the airport. We finished up leaving about 1/2 hour late but made most of that up.
Since I'd only just had breakfast I decided not to have anything straight away on the plan. Because of their dine any time service I could choose to have something a bit later.
The sky was clear over England and later of Europe. That's new for me. I think the last trip was cloudy all the way.
As usual there was a little sadness as we crossed the English Channel but not as much as last year. Maybe I'm just getting used to this relationship I have formed with my homeland.
I spent quite a bit of time sorting through my photos. Not only did it pass the time very well, but it was a great way to reminisce.
A couple of hours into the flight I decided to have some lunch.
I chose the goat's cheese salad followed by the chicken kapsa. Both were delicious and filling. I decided to leave dessert for later.
After a nice meal like that (and a couple of champagnes after take off) I was sleepy and had a nap for an hour. Then it was dessert time. I had the cheesecake followed by a nice chai (but forgot to take a photo).
After some more photo sorting it was time to descend. The flight was 6.5 hours long but it went incredibly quickly. I have a couple of hours before the flight to Adelaide so I'm sitting in the lounge in Doha. The lounge is massive with different areas. I'm in the "blue" area.
It's funny, but only a couple of weeks into my holiday it had felt like I had been in the UK for ages. The last week in particular seemed like a lifetime away from Adelaide. Then the moment I stepped on the plane and into the familiarity of my seat it seemed like the holiday had all happened in an instant.
But I know differently and will hold onto that feeling of drawn out absence for as long as I possibly can.
This time tomorrow I will be on the plane on my way home after this wonderful adventure.
I travel solo mainly out of choice but also because the reality of my life these days doesn't really give me an alternative. Mostly I love the freedom of only having to worry about myself, but it does get lonely from time to time. It doesn't help that I'm not great at engaging with strangers.
So, I want to say a big thank you to everyone who engaged with my posts in any way. For me, your responses and reactions became part of a dialogue that helped me through the times I was feeling on my own on the other side of the world.
I went to bed late last night after all my night time photography shenanigans. Of course, that didn't mean my body would allow me to sleep in this morning. Still, I took my time getting ready as there were only a couple of things on my list for this final day.
After much fluffing around I headed towards Oxford street going along the river bank as far as I could. I've seen the growth on this bridge before and it amazes me how it survives.
The tide was out and I wondered where each of these fragments would have originated from.
The pedestrian crossing lights in Trafalgar Square now have a variety of different inclusive symbols instead of the traditional green man. I saw just about every combination you could imagine. This was just one.
Near Oxford street is the Photographer's Gallery. Unfortunately, it was smaller than I had expected/hoped, but it was still interesting and I particularly liked an exhibition by Sophie Calle. I bought a couple of books from their book shop afterwards.
Following the gallery I slowly made my way back to the Thames. I popped through Carnaby Street to do a little bit of shopping.
Then I made my way back along the bank, stopping a couple of times for a drink and to soak up the atmosphere. I should have made more time for this and will remember for the future. I passed a guy who was making huge bubbles for the crowd. I tried to capture some with my camera but it wasn't easy.
When I got back to the hotel it was time to pack before going out. Last night an advert for a play at the Battersea Arts Centre just happened to pop up in my Facebook feed and the first night just happened to be tonight so I though "why not". I caught the Northern Line from London Bridge to Clapham South and then walked about 20min to the theatre.
The play was fantastic. Really smart and ingenious in the way that they use light to allow them to change quickly back and forth between scenes. Here's a link if you're interested in knowing more.
https://www.bac.org.uk/events/21989/view
I got back to the hotel by about 9:30pm. I will try to get to bed soon. I need to be up early in the morning so I can get to the airport in plenty of time. My flight departs at 9:15am. I will be a bit sad to leave, but I'm also very ready to go home.
My original plan had been to do some day trips out of London but I've decided to make the most of being here and stick to city activities. I've had plenty of time to explore further afield during this holiday. Today's main activity was to catch up with a friend. That was scheduled for 1:00pm so I had time for some other things.
A place I wanted to visit was Leadenhall Market. I've seen photos and it looks quite ornate. It looked as I expected, but was quite small - more like an arcade.
My next task was to buy a small suitcase. I haven't bought a lot but my case was packed full before I left and I've run out of room. I needed a second small case to split the contents. I caught the Central Line from Bank to Tottenham Court so I could have a look down Oxford Street. To my surprise, luggage shops were scarce and I found myself back at Muji before long. The other day I had seen a nice case there so it seemed like a sign. From there I headed back to the hotel to change before meeting Andy.
We arranged to meet at Waterloo Station (sounds quite poetic). After some confusion over which entrance to meet at, we located each other and walked to Lower Marsh. After grabbing some lunch it was nice to spend a couple of hours wandering around the city and catching up. These looked a bit like high density housing for the local bird population.
Andy was on night shift and need to grab some sleep so we parted mid afternoon. I took the tube back to the hotel from Southwark station. I noticed the massive patterned wall in the station which also acted a bit like a mirror.
I tried to have a nap too as my final plan for the day was to head out with my camera in the evening. The nap didn't really work out.
I headed out around 7:30pm. Although it was still very light, it was a good light and perfect when the sun came out from behind the clouds to illuminate the western facing surfaces of buildings and bridges. I walked all the way down to the Houses of Parliament before stopping for some dinner and working my way back.
At this part of the river and at this level, the Thames looked so wide.
The shapes of the roofs of this building reminded me of Disneyland.
There is a large construction site near the London Eye. I wondered, what would be the right collective noun? Maybe "a lifting of cranes"?
There was so much activity all along Southbank. This shot was taken around 9:30pm with people relaxing in chairs on the bank. It was a bit cool but no one seemed bothered.
As the sun went down I took shots of this skyline from various locations.
The cloud looming above St Paul's looked ominous.
In the end I was moderately happy with the results of my nighttime photography. I learnt a few things along the way that I would do differently and discovered that there were still limitations to what I would be able to do. Hopefully I will keep practicing so I can focus less on the technique and more on finding interesting scenes.
By the time I got back to the hotel it was about 11:00pm and still there were lots of couples and groups of people around me all the way back. It felt very safe.
Because the weather was supposed to be a bit dodgy today I decided it was a gallery day. I had two lined up that I'd like to visit.
First off was Tate Modern which is only about 10min walk from the hotel. I've been a number of times before but not since the new extension was finished. I left the hotel around 10:30am. Since it was so close I decided to travel without bags or camera. I'm not a big fan of taking hi-res photos in a gallery and it was quite liberating to travel so lightly for a change.
In the end I spent nearly 5 hours in the gallery and didn't make it to my second choice. But that's in no way a complaint.
I took this shot of a work in one of the free collections. It contained intricate mirrors that distorted and combined images from different sides of the cube. Quite freaky.
I really enjoyed my time at the gallery and there were 2 highlights.
First was an exhibition of works by Wolfgang Tillmans. He is known for his photographs of everyday life and contemporary culture and for his pioneering method of displaying prints as whole-room installations.
But the standout for me was a work by Janet Cardiff. The following blurb and cheeky shots explain the premise better than I could.
Aside from the beauty of the piece itself, you had the added experience of being able to walk around and as you pass a speaker you could clearly hear just that person's voice. It's if you were able to weave in and out and in between the members of choir getting right up close. In that way it was incredibly intimate and personal. And as singers came in and out with their parts you might be startled when a voice suddenly booms from the speaker next to you. They even recorded the chit chat from the singers before the performance began which again added to the intimacy. I found the who experience very emotional and I listened to the entire performance at the start of my visit and again before I left. I did feel a little sorry for the people who chose just to listen in the middle. Although they got an awesome surround sound experience, they would have missed the close up experience.
At the very end of my visit I decided to pop up to the 10th floor where there is an observation deck. As soon as the lift doors opened I realised I wanted my camera. The deck gives you a fantastic 360 view of the city at city level. Why did I not know about this? As the gallery would still be open for two more hours I decided to go back to the hotel and get my camera.
I finished up taking a series of shots I hope I will be able to stitch into some type of panorama. Here's just one.
The building itself was interesting too and I took a few shots of the interior.
I had some dinner on the way back to the hotel as well as taking a few pictures along the Thames. At river level the Millennium Bridge looked a bit like a conveyor belt feeding people into St Paul's.
I might try some night time street photography tonight if the weather holds out. If not, I have two more nights to go and the weather is forecast to improve.
Completely unrelated, I noticed this when looking out of my room this morning. Can't get much closer to the rail line than that.
