Ian Jelf wrote in uk.transport.london on Sun, 9 Oct 2005 21:22:04
+0100 :

I think that the concept of cheaper fares on Pre Pay is something very
difficult to explain to the casual traveller.

This is, IME, very true. We've reached the conclusion that we're going
to have to get a couple of prepay Oyster cards to give to our
out-of-town visitors so they can get out and about with us.

Indeed, even the thought
of having to buy tickets from a roadside machine before climbing on a
'bus seems to put off many of my clients!

The arcane art of getting on buses has been something that seems to
elude even people who have lived and worked in London for most of
their life. One friend who has just retired regards the red omnibus as
the work of the devil, despite having a strong preference for public
transport in general.

I don't know why this is; until I lived in London there were lots of
things/locations I didn't know about, spending many a happy hour going
to Notting Hill Gate to take the Circle Line back to Paddington until
I discovered where Lancaster Gate was. But in the general absence of a
tube route, I was still willing to strike out and take a chance that a
bus would get me where I wanted to go, or at the worst that if I
over-shot I could get one coming back, without being eaten by a
lurking grue.

--
hike
- a walking tour or outing, esp. of the self-conscious kind
Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

In message , Dave Hillam
] writes
The arcane art of getting on buses has been something that seems to
elude even people who have lived and worked in London for most of their
life. One friend who has just retired regards the red omnibus as the
work of the devil, despite having a strong preference for public
transport in general.
When I was training as a guide, I always travelled around central London
by 'bus, unless time was such that I had to take the Tube. I did this
because I was having to get a "feel" for the geography of London.
Where buildings are in relation to one another, time taken to drive past
and - yes- for the pleasure of it!

All of my fellow students thought I was at the very least a bit strange
for doing this.
--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk

On Mon, 10 Oct 2005 22:54:50 +0100, Ian Jelf
wrote:

In message , Dave Hillam
] writes
The arcane art of getting on buses has been something that seems to
elude even people who have lived and worked in London for most of their
life. One friend who has just retired regards the red omnibus as the
work of the devil, despite having a strong preference for public
transport in general.

Trying to persuade some of my LU colleagues to use a bus when it is more
convenient than the Tube can prove somewhat challenging! "But it's a
bus?!"

When I was training as a guide, I always travelled around central London
by 'bus, unless time was such that I had to take the Tube. I did this
because I was having to get a "feel" for the geography of London.
Where buildings are in relation to one another, time taken to drive past
and - yes- for the pleasure of it!

You are me and I am you. That is exactly how I have put together my
mental map of London.

All of my fellow students thought I was at the very least a bit strange
for doing this.

*ding*

Back in student days -

friend - "where did you go at the weekend"
me - "Catford"
friend - "Why? where's Catford?"
me - "Oh South London, I just went to see what it was like and how to
get there on a bus."
friend - "on a bus? you must be mad"

or words to that effect
--
Paul C


Admits to working for London Underground!

Paul Corfield writes:
friend - "where did you go at the weekend"
me - "Catford"
friend - "Why? where's Catford?"
me - "Oh South London, I just went to see what it was like and how to
get there on a bus."
friend - "on a bus? you must be mad"

Now you expect us to believe that these mad peregrinations were not
limited to places that sound sort of like your surname? *Riiiiight!*

:-)
--
Mark Brader | "How do you know I'm mad?" said Alice.
Toronto | "You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn't have
| come here. This is, after all, a Bridge Club."
| -- Ray Lee (after Lewis Carroll)

On Tue, 11 Oct 2005 19:42:04 -0000, (Mark Brader) wrote:

Paul Corfield writes:
friend - "where did you go at the weekend"
me - "Catford"
friend - "Why? where's Catford?"
me - "Oh South London, I just went to see what it was like and how to
get there on a bus."
friend - "on a bus? you must be mad"

Now you expect us to believe that these mad peregrinations were not
limited to places that sound sort of like your surname? *Riiiiight!*

:-)

Catford sounds like Corfield?! You must be some sort of mad Canadian.
--
Paul C


Admits to working for London Underground!

In message , Paul Corfield
writes
Trying to persuade some of my LU colleagues to use a bus when it is more
convenient than the Tube can prove somewhat challenging! "But it's a
bus?!"
I turned up to a training course north of Wolverhampton by 'bus once.
No-one else on it could believe that I'd done so. It was as thought
I'd just announced a breakthrough in nuclear fusion. No one wanted me
to go back by bus though; everyone felt obliged to offer me a lift!
*ding*

Back in student days -

friend - "where did you go at the weekend"
me - "Catford"
friend - "Why? where's Catford?"
me - "Oh South London, I just went to see what it was like and how to
get there on a bus."
friend - "on a bus? you must be mad"

or words to that effect

I tried to entice a group form North London (for whom I used to do a lot
of offbeat walks) to do one in Kennington once. You'd have though I'd
suggested an afternoon wander around the Kalahari.......
--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk

In message , Ian Jelf
writes
Trying to persuade some of my LU colleagues to use a bus when it is more
convenient than the Tube can prove somewhat challenging! "But it's a
bus?!"
I turned up to a training course north of Wolverhampton by 'bus once.
No-one else on it could believe that I'd done so. It was as thought
I'd just announced a breakthrough in nuclear fusion. No one wanted me
to go back by bus though; everyone felt obliged to offer me a lift!

I get that too when I appear at places. Even though I'm happy to use
the bus/train and get free travel too, people still feel sorry for me
and want to give me a lift.

They often get quite offended too when I say I'm happy to get home on
the bus/train too - even though I would be taking them out of their way
to do it.
--
Steve Fitzgerald has now left the building.
You will find him in London's Docklands, E16, UK
(please use the reply to address for email)

In article , Paul Corfield
writes
me - "Oh South London, I just went to see what it was like and how to
get there on a bus."
friend - "on a bus? you must be mad"

Some years ago I had a two-night stay somewhere in New Joisey. On both
evenings I took a train (PATH, more precisely) into Manhattan to meet up
with friends.

On the second evening the other person (a banker) asked me what I had
done the previous evening.

Me: I met up with a friend and we rode around the subway.
He: You rode the *subway*? For **fun**?!?

--
Clive D.W. Feather | Home:
Tel: +44 20 8495 6138 (work) | Web: http://www.davros.org
Fax: +44 870 051 9937 | Work:
Please reply to the Reply-To address, which is:

In message , Clive D. W. Feather
writes
In article , Paul Corfield
writes
me - "Oh South London, I just went to see what it was like and how to
get there on a bus."
friend - "on a bus? you must be mad"

Some years ago I had a two-night stay somewhere in New Joisey. On both
evenings I took a train (PATH, more precisely) into Manhattan to meet
up with friends.

On the second evening the other person (a banker) asked me what I had
done the previous evening.

Me: I met up with a friend and we rode around the subway.
He: You rode the *subway*? For **fun**?!?

Well he *was* a banker.......

Actually, talk of New Jersey has just reminded me of a story I may have
recounted here before.

In about 1993 I went with a group of Tramway Museum Society members on
my first trip to the US. While staying in New York, three or four of
us went early one morning over to Newark to ride on the then PCC cars
running there.

We were standing on an overbridge above Heller Parkway when a local (?)
lady came along and said, in a rather puzzled way, "Why are you
photographing the trolleys?".

One of us began his reply with "Well, we're from England and......." and
she said simply "Oh *right*" and walked off, as though possession of
English nationality immediately explained any kind of eccentric
behaviour.

It is a national trait of which I for one am very proud! :-)

--
Ian Jelf, MITG
Birmingham, UK

Registered Blue Badge Tourist Guide for London and the Heart of England
http://www.bluebadge.demon.co.uk