mcgillianaire | Entries tagged with uk pics

Now that I'm the owner of an iPhone again, it only seemed appropriate to use the device's Autostitch app to create this panorama of Durham Cathedral. Founded in 1093, it is regarded as one of the finest examples of Norman architecture and is part of an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The two western towers of the cathedral rise up 44m and were built in the early 13th century.

( 5 More Snaps )

Three years ago we made a family trip to Bristol and Bath. I came up with this bright idea to take photos of every bridge I saw enroute. This is a summary of what I came up with. Enjoy! (As per usual, click to see a bigger version)

Pulteney Bridge in Bath was designed by Scottish architect Robert Adam and completed in 1773. It is one of only four bridges in the world with shops across the full span on both sides!

Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and completed in 1864. This picture doesn't do justice to the 214m long, 1500 ton beauty, but believe me, it's one of the modern wonders of the industrial world.

( 9 More Bridges, Some Remarkably Dull therefore Viewer Discretion Is Advised )

Standing next to a picture of one of the most famous marketing slogans of all-time. This particular Guinness billboard was in Piccadilly Circus, complete with two West Indian gentlemen in the foreground leaning on the Statue of Anteros. Guinness began their forty-two year association with Piccadilly Circus in 1930 and I think this photo was taken between 1932 and 1953 (but not during WWII, perhaps just after the Windrush arrived in 1948). Guinness was told to stop using the slogan but in 2003, a group of researchers at the University of Wisconsin claimed that a pint of Ireland's greatest export may "work as well as a low dose aspirin to prevent heart clots that raise the risk of heart attacks" while drinking lager didn't yield the same results. Indeed the original campaign in the 1920s stemmed from market research when people told the company that they "felt good after their pint". England went one step further by giving post-operative patients as well as blood donors Guinness based on the belief that it was high in iron! Healthy or not, it is without doubt the world's best beer!

I suppose when a cricket fan decides to make their Test debut as a spectator having followed the game with a religious passion for nearly twenty years, it seems only fitting to pick an occasion that turns out to be the biggest ever crowd for the last day's play of a Test at Lord's, the home of the world's greatest sport. And so it was for me last week Monday. The record books will show that England outplayed India comprehensively but as far as experiences go, few will match the pure joy that was 25 July 2011. It felt special from the moment the ticket prices were announced the evening before and the response online was immediate. I knew it was going to be a big crowd but I never imagined people would be turned away because it was full! It wasn't as bad as Old Trafford in 2005 but for the biggest ground in England, this was something new. At £20, boy was it worth it!

(If you missed the panoramic views of my day out at Lord's that I posted about a week ago, you can view them here).

By the time I arrived at St John's Wood tube station around eight, the queue had already snaked itself in an orderly fashion half a mile from the ground and onto Circus Road (as pictured above). Ticket sales were to begin at half-eight, gates to open at nine and play to start at eleven. And as the rate of people joining the queue behind us increased after my arrival, I'm fairly sure it eventually ended up close to a mile long.

The queues were so long because the MCC wanted to negate the effect of touts buying tickets in bulk. I'm led to believe the MCC normally sells a maximum of four tickets per person on Day Five at Lord's but for today they sold a maximum of one per person. And with free entry for Under-16s who had just embarked on their summer vacation, a lot of young fans could be seen waiting patiently with the rest of us. Stood in front of me was an Indian gentleman who was also attending his first Test at Lord's but he had arrived in London just for the match alone from Dubai. The lucky bugger didn't have any tickets until ten days before the first day's play but his English manager at work (he was employed with Willis Group Holdings) suggested writing to the MCC. He did and they got him tickets for the first four days and then he queued for the fifth!

( 23 More Pics From A Great Day Out ... with Commentary! )

A panoramic view of the Laurieston district in the Gorbals area of Glasgow as seen from the north side of the River Clyde. The two delightful bridges of contrasting styles date from the Victorian era. [Taken 29 Jul 2011]

I've just returned from attending a wedding in Scotland but no it wasn't the Royal one. I spent the weekend in the Scottish Highlands celebrating the nuptials of a close friend who I have LJ to thank for meeting in the first place. She posted as

3neonangels but stopped a few years ago. Thanks to her and her new hubby, I got to visit Glasgow and the Isle of Skye for the first time but in a bid to keep expenses to a minimum, found myself travelling by bus for about thirty-five hours in the space of three-and-a-half days. Of course it was worth it. And needless to say thanks to my old camera working again (albeit flash-free) the memorable experience will linger long in the memory. Unfortunately I can't be arsed and am too tired to make a proper pictorial post but I will leave you with a few panoramas to whet your appetite. In the meanwhile, have yerself a wee bonnie night!

Glasgow Central railway station is the busiest in Scotland and second-busiest UK station outside of London after Birmingham New Street. As you can tell, it has an endearingly Victorian dated look to it. [Taken 29 Jul 2011]

A panoramic view of the Scottish west coast taken from Armadale on the Isle of Skye, within the grounds of a castle and gardens that once belonged to Clan Donald, one of the largest Scottish clans. [Taken 30 Jul 2011]

Portree, the largest town in the Isle of Skye. Population: 2500. The scene of a beautiful wedding earlier in the day when the sun was shining, the men were wearing kilts and we were led by a bagpiper. [Taken 30 Jul 2011]

You can imagine what a happy bunny I must've been when I realised not only would I be attending my first-ever Test match, and at Lord's no less, but I'd also have a camera with which to capture the special occasion!

Click image(s) to enlarge. This is probably my fave panorama to date. It was taken at 11:41am, forty minutes into the day's play from the Lower Mound Stand, described by Blowers on TMS as "like a province in India".

The problem with the cleaned and cropped up version of the picture above is that it cut off too much at the bottom for my liking, so you've got both to make your own mind up with.

This panorama was taken at 4:28pm, not long before the game ended. And as you can tell, there was a fair amount of cloud cover by this point but it was still quite warm.

And just for the sake of completion, here's the clean and cropped up version of the same panorama.

Who knew? My old digicam still works. This is great news, London photo/walking tours beckon again! But for now the view outside my bedroom window will suffice. [Taken 23 Jul 2011]

As the first test between England and India at Lord's gets underway tomorrow morning, here are four photostitches taken at the home of cricket on 15 April 2008 during my first-ever visit there, along with

pappubahry.

Click image to enlarge. This is my favourite of the four panoramas. It's taken from the Compton Stand, where incidentally I sat during my first-ever Lord's cricket match in June 2009.

Click image to enlarge. This was taken in front of the award-winning media centre which you can see in the first panorama.

Click image to enlarge. This was taken from the Grand Stand and it hasn't turned out as well as I would've hoped. But I did manage to cram in pappubahry on the far right!

Click image to enlarge. Similar to the third panorama but not as wide. You can get a good view of the (Old) Pavilion on the right built in 1890 and the Media Centre on the left built in 1999.

The building that houses the High Commission of India in Aldwych, Central London was completed in 1930 and opened by King George V. It was designed by Sir Herbert Baker.
(The fort symbol on the top-left of the picture represents the British Indian province of Madras).

The main entrance.

The swastika is obviously a Dharmic religious symbol. However what I found ironic was that in the Waldorf-Hilton Hotel lobby directly opposite this controversial symbol lay several copies of the Jewish Chronicle.

( Just four more pics )

Click image to enlarge. If you zoom in you can see a blurry London skyline to the left and Canary Wharf to the right side of it. The match on the screen is between Rafael Nadal and Andreas Beck, a first round clash.

I started using Autostitch a couple days ago and it's absolutely amazing!!! It's a small download, free, so easy-to-use and stitches images like these in just a matter of seconds. I can't believe I didn't discover it earlier. But I suppose better late than never. Not surprisingly I've since gone nuts with it and am working my way through all my photos dating back to 2005, searching for potential panoramic material. This one's from June 2008.

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Page Summary

Durham and its Cathedral
English Bridges
The best beer in the world
"The only time an Australian ever walks is when his car runs out of petrol." -Barry Richards
"There are two seasons in Scotland: June and Winter." -Billy Connolly
"For the game is everlasting only insofar as we keep returning to it..." -Neville Cardus
Tonight's Twilight
Photostitch #3 | Lord's Cricket Ground
The High Commission of India, London [2 Jun 2011]
Wimbledon Photostitch of Henman Hill (Aorangi Terrace)

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Entries tagged with uk pics

Durham and its Cathedral

English Bridges

The best beer in the world

"The only time an Australian ever walks is when his car runs out of petrol." -Barry Richards

"There are two seasons in Scotland: June and Winter." -Billy Connolly

"For the game is everlasting only insofar as we keep returning to it..." -Neville Cardus

Tonight's Twilight

Photostitch #3 | Lord's Cricket Ground

The High Commission of India, London [2 Jun 2011]

Wimbledon Photostitch of Henman Hill (Aorangi Terrace)