Straight from a Richard Curtis movie?

Christmas Eve and head to the Bournville Village Green carol service. Bournville is the 'village' created by the Cadbury Brothers and the chocolate factory still looms large in the area. There is a village green and across the road is the local primary school - where I went in my earlier days - which for some unexplained reason has full carillon of bells. Each Christmas Eve the local churches have a carol service on the Green with the bells providing the music. 

It's a slightly strange south Birmingham institution. Never advertised it is well attended, and there is always the hilarity of just how out of time the singing can be with the bells due to the laws of physics and the speed of sound. Sometimes in a single carol the singing can be both behind and ahead of the music...

With the village green, the tree, and the community signing in the snow it can appear to be something straight out of a Richard Curtis movie...

The geeks shall inherit the earth...

Been a busy week at work and wanted a Saturday completely off. On the train last night an advert for the London Film and Comic Con caught my eye. Well, although I'm a bit geeky this would be differentand so I headed off. Was a bit worried whilst queuing as some people in front were dressed as Harry Potter - there was also the obligatory stormtroopers.
Didn't know what to expect but was pleasantly surprised - various stands from comics to how to build your own R2D2, some talks, and opportunities to get signed autographs from various cult and sci-fi actors, like the two in the picture.

A couple of things did intrigue me. Numerous people dressed up - not just as stormtroopers but as Dr Who and assistant, as manga characters and even as Jessica Rabbit. Not something I'd do but fair play to them - they'd spent a lot of time and effort on the costumes and it's a safe environment in which to dress up; the worst that'll happen is people will want to take your photo. This is linked to the second thing. It wasn't just Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons types who were there, or indeed dressing up. In fact there were very few Comic Book Guys. The crowd was surpringly young - like at the Bon Jovi concerts I was 'above average' in age - and I'd guess 40% were women, including those in costume.

Stereotypes were suitably dented and a very enjoyable couple of hours - I'll be back.

And for those who don't know the photo is of Kenny Baker (R2D2 in Star Wars) and Dave Prowse (Darth Vadar and the Green Cross Code Man).

New York - day 1

So I made it - and they let me in the country! For a few years I've been wanting to do a trip to the USA and combine visiting New York City and Washington DC. Finally, this year I actually got around to doing something about it.

A few initial observations;

• Terminal 5 at Heathrow is nearly excellent. Check in and security were swiftly dealt with and there are numerous shops and restaurants. But it does seem to be a shopping centre which happens to offer flights, rather than a decent airport putting the passenger first. All that money spent, and still had to queue for the inadequate number of toilets!
• I really hope that the immigration officer's name on their badge is more an acquired name than their birth name - to be a woman called 'Mutt' would seem a tad cruel. And I'm not making that up - that really was her name on her badge
• JFK airport seems to have achieved the impossible and is actually more confusing and ugly than Heathrow
• they clearly don't have speed cameras in the USA. My transfer from the airport was by minivan. Having been driven around JFK airport and seeing it from all angles as the vehicle was filled, we headed off at breakneck speed. Speed limit = 50; we were going at 70 and once touched 80 as we undertook, tailgated and went right across all the lanes on the way to Manhattan, all whilst the driver seemed to be shuffling the paperwork to work out which hotel to stop at first! Good fun - but glad I arrived in one piece!
  

First impression - New York really is Gotham!

My hotel is right in midtown and just off 5th Avenue - room is smallish, but it's all location, location, location! I'm going to be such a tourist on this trip and I walk down to the Empire State Building. It's a beautiful building to look at, and the view from the top - well the 86th floor, to get to the 102nd is another $15 - is amazing, and slightly scary. However, the interior of the building the tourists see is tired and there is a long line to join to pay - though not as long as it could have been judging by the layout of the waiting area. Also, all the staff are dressed in ESB suits styled to allude to the 30s - but none of them seem to fit anyone. I've never seen such a large number of ill-fitting suits in one place. Makes you wonder whether is some deliberate and bizarre branding idea...

Anyway, the view is amazing and a good, though tiring start, to my stay.