Buses that won't drive off without you.

So.

You know when you're waiting in the London rain for a bus? You feel like you're standing, fully clothed (hopefully) under a freezing cold shower, splashes of muddy water soaking your socks, and arctic winds blowing into your face. That red beacon of warmth and hope seems so, so far away. You look at the indicator. It says the bus is due in a minute. The problem? It's been saying that for the past ten minutes. Or it could be the last few months. The icy water is leeching into your head and stopping you from thinking straight.

Finally, the bus arrives. You squeeze behind 10,456 other people also trying to get on, only to meet a wall of grumpy, squished commuter-sardine hybrids, each wearing an expression which should be weaponised by the Ministry of Defence.

So you stand, in your rain-soaked clothes, on a rain-soaked bus, and think, 'That's it. There's no point in waiting for 10 minutes/5 years for a bus that arrives late anyway.'

So the next day, you leisurely saunter out, and see the bus stop just down the road.

There's a problem. The bus is already there.

You run. You get muddy water all over you as you do your best impression of Usain Bolt.

You fall over.

You land on your bum.

In a muddy puddle.

And end up having to wait 5 years for the next bus anyway.

Sound familiar? Well, you're going to love these buses.

These small sculptures of routemaster buses are gaudily painted in a variety of colours, just to make you bitter and twisted about their relentless cheerfulness.

The design behind me shows day and nights, to highlight, I believe, the many days you must wait at a bus stop before your bus comes.

And here's another one, near Trafalgar Square, which shows the landmarks of London you could be touring whilst you wait behind Mr SmellyBreath for your ride home.

I mean, yeah, sure, you can't go anywhere on these. Each sculpture even has a prim little 'Do Not Climb' sign on its base, just in case you try.

But the best thing about these buses?

They can't drive off without you.

If you want to see more buses, I've generously, selflessly and philanthropically provided a link to the 'Sculpture Trails' website here. As you click the link, think of all 6.5 seconds your tireless Elf put in to provide it.

Hope you're feeling all warm and fuzzy inside,

Elf Dryadalis

Poppies at the Tower: Remembrance Day

On Sunday 11th November is the annual Remembrance Day, commemorating the moment when the guns on the Western Front fell silent after 4 years of war, 1914-1918.

This year at the Tower of London, a new exhibition, called 'Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red' shows ceramic poppies progressively filling the moat until the number 888,246 is reached - the number of British casualties during the First World War. You can find out more at the link here.

I'm going to provide some information for you, in case you want to go (and I highly recommend it - it's extremely moving).

1) The crowds

It's recommended to visit before 10am, or after 6pm. I went at midday, and it was absolutely packed.
The wonderful thing, though, is that everyone was being really good natured and polite towards each other. When trying to reach the front, so I could take a picture, rather than the usual jostling on London's streets, people were actually moving aside to let me pass, and people were saying 'excuse me' and 'sorry' to each other. I think that the solemnity of the exhibition made everyone stop and think, and take time to be nicer to their fellow citizens. There was a helicopter hovering overhead too, possibly for security reasons, but there was no trouble that I could see.
So don't be put off by the crowds; everyone's very good-natured.

2) The views
This was the crowd diagonally opposite me (from the Tower Hill station direction). There, you get a decent enough view, but it must be hard to get to the front, no matter how friendly everyone's being. Tower Hill is also reportedly extremely busy. I walked here from my favourite station, Charing Cross, but I understand that if you're unfamiliar with London, it might be quite a daunting trek! Try Monument, Aldgate or Aldgate East stations instead. There are fewer crowds from the London Bridge station direction, so you could try there, too.

3) Can you walk amongst the poppies?
No, you can't get down there. Only VIPs like the Royal Family are seen doing that on TV (I zoomed in the path they'd probably take). I think that the impact is greater from above, since all the poppies really do seem to form a sea.

This has been quite a solemn post, and different from my usual style, but I wouldn't want to  miss out on including this in my blog.

See you soon,

Elf Dryadalis