Tag Archives: 52

Oct 18 2021
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Daily Post, Transport

This is why it’s called Iceland

Sunday 17th October 2021, 6.30am (day 3,706)

Snow at Keflavik, 17/10/21

I have never seen snow falling anywhere as early in a year as 17th October, but Iceland lived up to its name this morning and duly delivered, as my first flight home returned me to Keflavik. This seems even to have caught Icelanders unaware, seeing as it caused my second flight to be delayed two hours while we waited, seemingly endlessly, for the wings of our aircraft to be de-iced (“Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking…. We are eighth in the queue for de-icing…. [45 minutes later] We are sixth in the queue….”). But I did get home in the end.

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Oct 16 2021
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Daily Post, Transport

King City, Ontario

Friday 15th October 2021, 6.05pm (day 3,704)

A trip out of the city. The suburb of King City is not as hick as this picture may make it appear, but I like this shot because it makes it seem like one of those tiny North American places with ridiculously grandiose names. You can almost see the weatherbeaten sign at the city limits: “KING CITY, ONTARIO (population: 47)”.

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Oct 15 2021
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Daily Post, Urban scene

On Yonge Street

Thursday 14th October 2021, 8.00pm (day 3,703)

Yonge Street, 14/10/21

Yonge Street is the spine of Toronto, defining the point at which the west side becomes the right side and vice versa. As it is the address of the nearest pub to my hotel, I’ve been hanging out there a lot in the evenings. This picture pleases me because it’s basically the one I hoped would come out when I took the shot. The guy sitting in the gutter looks enveloped by the red tail lights that appear to have passed on both sides of him.

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Oct 14 2021
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Art and architecture, Daily Post, Urban scene

Toronto mural

Wednesday 13th October 2021, 10.00am (day 3,702)

Toronto mural, 13/10/21

There are many good murals around this city — and this one is particularly fine. No further comment necessary.

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Oct 13 2021
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Daily Post, Friend, Portrait

Colleagues

Tuesday 12th October 2021, 2.50pm (day 3,701)

Ahmad and Dina, 12/10/21

These are the people I have come all the way to Toronto to work with — because we all decided, no, we are not going to sit and try to interact behind screens. We needed to work together. Ahmad on the left, Dina on the right. They look kinda happy about the prospect, as I was.

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Oct 12 2021
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Daily Post, Urban scene

Toronto whirlpool

Monday 11th October 2021, 9.35am (day 3,700)

Toronto whirlpool, 11/10/21

My destination on this long-deferred trip outside the UK is Toronto, the largest city in Canada. As the director of this movie about my life, I did consider going with the ‘establishing long shot’, but in a way I’ve already done that, as the Toronto skyline featured in August 2017, when I changed planes here on my way to Illinois to see the eclipse. So here’s a shot from this morning’s explorations; I liked this ‘whirlpool’ sculpture. In the background, Lake Ontario, or at least, an inlet of it. I am here until Saturday: some work to do, but y’know, it’s just nice to be somewhere else for a while.

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Oct 11 2021
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Daily Post, Landscape

A burned bit of Iceland (not the UK!)

Sunday 10th October 2021, 2.40pm (day 3,699)

Iceland view, 10/10/21

Yes folks, after 615 consecutive days on the island of Great Britain, I have finally left it. It was February 2nd 2020, in Bucharest, that this blog last featured anywhere outside England, Scotland or Wales. You know the reasons why. And yes, I appreciate travel can be seen as a privilege, and I’m grateful that I’ve finally broken the run, for all that the last 20 months have, at least at times, seen plenty of interesting sights.

This is not my final destination: instead this was taken on my first descent, into Keflavik airport, where I and the family were last seen waiting out the 12-hour flight delay that EasyJet (never, ever again) subjected us to in July 2019. I changed planes here and moved on. You can tell it’s Iceland, though — only that island has random burned bits like this, huge lumps of volcanic cinder that just seem here to be a normal part of the landscape.

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Oct 10 2021
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Daily Post, Urban scene

Leigh, Lancashire

Saturday 9th October 2021, 1.10pm (day 3,698)

Leigh, 9/10/21

Perhaps this shot is unfair on a place that I’d never visited before today (thus, it becomes place number 364 to feature on the blog), as Leigh seemed lively enough, but I just liked the decrepitude of these two buildings. Maybe these businesses are rocking on a weekday evening, but not on this warm and bright Saturday afternoon. But if you want to find out, well, the phone numbers are there.

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Oct 09 2021
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Daily Post, Interior

Vending at Victoria

Friday 8th October 2021, 3.25pm (day 3,697)

Victoria vending, 8/10/21

The end of another week…. and some snacks are required for the journey home. This is one of those where I just saw some good light over on the far platform and tried it out.

Following a negative Covid test this morning — but of course it was always going to be negative — this should be the penultimate shot of around 615 consecutive days in the UK. But on Sunday, I will be leaving for a week; if the clenched-up bureaucracy at each end of this journey does deign to let me through. Destination — well, you can find out on Sunday (or possibly Monday).

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Oct 08 2021
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Daily Post, Flora/Fauna

The wasp in the plum

Thursday 7th October 2021, 5.30pm (day 3,696)

Wasp in plum, 7/10/21

The last of the plums have finally been harvested off the tree. I’m leaving the rest for the wasps: this one’s already made a start on the bounty, as you can see.

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