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Monday 30 July 2018

Please Look After This Bear

Paddington Station

Location: London, England
Address:  Paddington Station, Praed Street
Date: September 2015
Website:  www.networkrail.co.uk

  Michael Bond wrote A Bear Called Paddington in 1958.  In the book a bear was found at Paddington Station in London, England.  The bear was from Peru and loved marmalade.  He was very polite and wore a big hat and carried a suitcase.  He was found by the Brown family with a sign that said "Please look after this bear."  They decided to do just that.

A Bear Under The Clock.

   When we visited England in 2015 we also found a bear at Paddington Station.  He was bronze and wore a big hat and was seated on a suitcase.  He also had a sign that said "Please look after this bear."

Paddington Asks "Tell Me How Long's The Train Been Gone?"

   Paddington bear was named after the station where he was found.  He has appeared in many of Michael Bond's books through the years.  Paddington is much loved in England and around the world.  In 2000 this statue was placed at Paddington in his honour.


  Paddington dolls are also very popular.  Paddington bear is known to innocently get into mischief.  The doll above was getting into some mischief in Hamley's toy store on Regent Street.  Hamley's is the oldest toy store in the world.

Paddington For the New Millenium.

  In 2014 a Paddington movie was made.  Paddington had already had a stop-motion television series that was popular in the 70's.  The new movie featured a computer generated bear.

Bearing Up For The Pawprint Trail

  To promote the film various Paddingtons were placed around London on what was called The Pawprint Trail.  This Paddington above is sort of a blue velvet looking one.

Please Look After This Bear

  Paddington is such a sweet character and will be thought of fondly for many years to come.  We suggest if you ever find yourself at Paddington Station please look out for this bear. Thank you.


Map of Our World
Paddington Bear Statue
Paddington Station
Hamley's

Post # 222

Friday 20 July 2018

Brisbane & The Machine

Wintergarden Facade.

Location: Brisbane, Australia
Address:  Brisbane City Botanic Gardens
Date: May 2012
Website:  www.brisbane.qld.gov.au

  We found ourselves walking around Brisbane in the evening while we were in Australia.  The first night we were looking for somewhere good to eat.  We headed south and ended up at the Queen Street Mall.  It is a pedestrian only road with many stores and restaurants.  It also has a pixel light display above one portion of the street.  We were looking for somewhere nice to sit and relax and enjoy a meal after a long day.

It's Hungry Jack's Mate.

  One restaurant caught our eye.  It had a familiar logo.  This is Hungry Jack's and is the Australian franchise of Burger King.  Another hamburger chain was already operating as Burger King when the American company decided to expand down under so a different name was chosen.  We didn't really feel like a Whopper so we continued our search.

Jo-Jo's Over The Rainbow.

  We turned around and there were people enjoying dinner on a balcony.  A little rainbow lead the way upstairs.  This is Jo-Jo's and we decided to check it out.

Number 60 At Jo-Jo's

  We were given a number card on a stand.  We were told to put it on our table and then we could go to the stations to choose what we wanted to eat.  You had to pay at the stations and then someone would bring your food to you back at your table.  This was the first time we encountered this service, but it was common in many places around Australia.  We enjoyed our dinner and then took a stroll around Brisbane.

Number 11 Balcony Seating At Jo-Jo's

  The next night we didn't try too hard to find a new place to eat.  It was back to Jo-Jo's.  This time we ended up on the balcony and held card number 11.  We now knew how the routine worked.  After dinner we went for a little walk again.

Queen Street Mall.

  We walked out of the restaurant and noticed a lot of people headed south along Albert Street. We decided to head south as well.  We were curious where everyone was going.  As we walked we noticed more and more people.  Soon we reached the gates of the Brisbane City Botanic Gardens.

In The Park After Dark.

We decided to follow the crowds into the park and see where they would lead us.  It was very dark in the gardens and we could barely see the strange trees around us.  Maybe they were doing fireworks in the river? 

Old Government House.

  We went deeper into the gardens.  Some people rushed past us.  On the edge of the garden was an old building.  This is Old Government House.  It was built in 1862 and was Queensland's first public building.  We went a little further and could hear music.  Then we were at the gates of the Riverstage.  This was the end of the line for us and we would wonder no more.  The tables selling merchandise told us that British act Florence & the Machine were playing a concert that night.  Mystery solved.  We do enjoy the band's music and would have loved to stay for a show, but we had another busy day planned tomorrow and no tickets.  Instead we fought our way back against the flow of Florence fans and past Jo-Jo's one last time


Map of Our World
Wintergarden
Hungry Jack's (Brisbane) , Jo-Jo's
Brisbane City Botanic Gardens
Old Government House

Post # 221

Tuesday 10 July 2018

Sundial Folly

Sundial Folly.

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address:  25 Queens Quay West
Date: July 2015

  Sundial Folly is a large concrete ball which sits on the edge of Lake Ontario. It was created by John Fung and Paul Figueiredo and was installed at Toronto's Harbourfront in 1995.  A folly in architecture is a building built for decoration so maybe it has no higher function.  It is supposed to work as a sundial, but we couldn't figure it out.  These photos were taken at 3 PM if you wish to try.  Even if you don't know how to use it as a sundial, it is an interesting piece of art and you can actually go inside of it.  That is exactly what we did.

Sundial Folly Waterfall.

  We approached from the Ferry Docks and could see the small waterfall that flows into the lake.  The sundial was hidden behind the trees.

What's Inside That Concrete Ball?

  From the front you can see the ball appears to be split into two pieces.  There is rusted metal in the trees behind it.  This is where you have to go if you want to get isnide.

Water Polo Anyone?

  We walked around the ball and on the other side you can see it is sitting in a pool of water.

Guardian Of The Sundial.

  A red-winged blackbird chirped at us from the branches hanging above the water.  Red-winged blackbirds have a chirp that sounds like "Hey what are you doing here?"

Behind the Dial.

  We ignored the bird (after taking its photo) and we found ourselves on the metal structure attached to the ball.

Entering The Ball.

  We went along the walkway towards the sphere.

Inside The Ball. Looking Towards Toronto Islands.

   Inside the ball there was light coming through the crack in one direction.  This light would change as the sun moved across the sky.  The crack in the ball faces south so perhaps it does work as a sundial after all?  The crack curves up towards the sky.

Perring Through The Back of The Ball.

  We had to exit the same way we came in.  Afterwards we went  around and peered through the crack at the back of the ball.

Sundial Folly Pond.

  We then went around the front to see if there were any other creatures in the water or plants around the sundial.  Thankfully when we went inside the sundial we were all alone.

Toronto Islands Ferry.

  From the Sundial Folly you can see the Toronto Islands ferries as they bring passengers back and forth.

Sundial Folly From The Ferry.

  If you take a ferry ride over to the islands, you can get a good view of the sundial.  This photo above was taken from the ferry.

Sundial Folly and CN Tower.

  When you look at your photos of Toronto's waterfront again you will notice the sundial.  In our photo above it is tucked down beneath the condos in the bottom right corner.  We suggest you find the time to visit Sundial Folly.  We had a ball.


This location is near Queens Quay. Visit other Toronto TTC stations.

Map of Our World:
Sundial Folly

Post # 220