Writer's Block: Local Favorite

[mattp]

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As much as I like people, I generally hate crowds. I therefore tend to avoid the stereotypically touristy stuff.

A) Seven Dials in an interesting one, not just for historical reasons, but also because it's an located on an unusual road feature, namely 7 one way streets converging at a roundabout.

I also know a fair amount of trivia about the Underground and disused/half-built stations. Sometimes when travelling between places I'll make an effort to pass one of these.

B) If my guest is a UK citizen (or grew up in the UK) then I'll also consider showing one of the churches which feature in the nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons (St Clement Danes being the most obvious choice).

If I'm showing people around Manchester (which has happened on occasion) then I have two favourite places:
C) The <ahref="http://www.cbrd.co.uk/motorway/a57m/">half built exit ramp of the A57(M). Construction was stopped when the workers realised that it would send traffic onto a one way street — in the wrong direction.

D) Nearby to C is the Vimto casting. It's a wooden sculpture of the fruit ingredients for a semi-famous soft drink which was created on a nearby road.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?hl=en&gl=uk&ie=UTF8&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=105521496432279428721.00046cbbab018023e45cd
has each of these listed for those who care.

Comments

[marnanel.livejournal.com]

Seven Dials always makes me think of the line from “Spurn not the nobly born” from Iolanthe.

[tenshikurai9.livejournal.com]

If I was ever taken on tour by you, I would want you to show me where the disused/half-built stations are located.

[mattp.livejournal.com]

They are good fun and there's quite a number of them. It's insanely difficult to get subterranean pedestrian access, but that said active trains do pass through some of them, plus you can see many at street level.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_closed_London_Underground_stations has details