My NYE in London

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

UNITED KINGDOM | Thursday, 4 July 2013 | Views [290] | View Larger Image

Show Time With ten minutes to go, we focussed on The Wheel, poured another glass of mulled wine and got ready for the action. 20 minutes later as the last fireworks died out (and we had also been joined by some of the staff of the Savoy) we decided to pack up and head on to the next location.

The Battle of Waterloo
With midnight fast approaching we decided it best to find a good viewpoint to watch the show. Of course, trying to get anywhere in London - even at the best of times - is a mission in itself. Thanks to a bit of research and planning we quickly came upon a set of stairs in a back alley and, after waiting for the right moment, ascended above the crowds on the street. After many flights of stairs we found ourselves on the roof of the Savoy Hotel with a wonderful view of Waterloo Bridge (so packed with people that I thought it might collapse), huge amounts of boats on the Thames, The Houses of Parliament, The London Eye and Millennium Bridge. We were ready to enjoy the show.

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Visitors
The final visit and also part of the journey home was to be one of London’s oldest rivers, The Fleet.
We had decided earlier on that the only way to get away from the crowds on a busy NYE in London, would either to be up high or underground - as we had already spent half of the evening 12 stories up, there was only one option left...
The River Fleet is London’s largest subterranean river, and gives its name to Fleet Street which runs from Ludgate Circus to The Strand. It rises in 2 places in Hampstead Heath and flows approximately 4 miles to the Thames. In Roman times the Fleet was a major river, in Angle-Saxon times it was still a free flowing river and joined The Thames through a marshy tidal basin. Many places in London have derived their names from wells situated along its banks, such as Clerkenwell and Bridewell (Bride’s Well) and the waters were reputed to have healing qualities.
By the 13th Century its waters were considered to be polluted and in the years up to 1780 it slowly became more of a sewer and dumping ground than a river. Eventually it was covered over and now is mostly used for rain water relief in very wet weather. The works to cover the Fleet were carried out during the Victorian times, with proposals from Sir Christopher Wren (architect of St Pauls Cathedral) and as expected the Victorian works are incredibly ornate, especially for structures that were never intended to be on show.
Whilst being underground has its inherent dangers, the Fleet is considered relatively safe due to its predictable flow and position so close to the surface which leads to good ventilation. At times it is only 2 feet below the road’s surface.
So concludes the story of our evening, hopefully it is something a little bit different. In a world that is increasingly safe and secure (at least in Surrey), I think it is important to try get some adventure wherever you can. We all do it in our own way and in whichever way we can afford, but I hope that this shows a willingness to explore and hopefully enough of a talent to be nurtured by Jason!
This really would be a wonderful opportunity and something I really think I’m ready for!
Thanks for readin my journal
Alex McMillan

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My NYE in London

My Scholarship entry - A 'place' I have visited

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