Leon in London

Feeling pretty bushed from my wonderful day in London (click the link to see the full set of pics).

The 10am train was delayed by an hour and we were all turfed out at Stratford, where the Olympic site is, but that was fine as it was only a 10-15 min train journey into the centre of London and it meant I could have a reasonably close look at the Olympic site: 2 stadiums, the Anesh Kapoor sculpture and a ginormous Westfield shopping centre. The shopping centre dominated the scene, making the two stadiums look a bit, well, municipal. I've seen more impressive looking football grounds.

So: first stop for me was the Annie Leibowitz 'Pligrimage' exhibition in a very nice gallery - Hamiltons - in posh Mayfar. My walk from the tube took me through Berkeley Square and I spent a while looking at the plaques on the benches, some of which were very moving. The peace of the square was destroyed, though, by the actor Bill Nighy bellowing his displeasure at an art installation that was in the square.

The exhibition itself was fabulous. I've seen some of her work before - the pictures of her family, of her partner Susan Sontag as she was dying (and dead) and am familiar with the work she's done for magazines such as Vanity Fair. This show comprised 26 images, some of landscapes or seascapes but the majority was what I would call 'stuff': a dead bird, the hat that Abraham Lincoln wore the night he was assasinated, Georgia O'Keefe's pastels and other items - oh, and Pete Seeger's garage (a bit of a tip actually). It got me thinking, as I have come across many very striking images both on Blip and elsewhere - what is it that puts a price tag of a starting price of 9,500 US dollars on a small print (1 of 25)? I've never got my head round how prices are put on pieces of art ....

Duly inspired, on leaving the square I had to pass the rather posh Claridges hotel which had a fantastic water sculpture in front of it so I got a bit carried away and took loads of photos of the water sculpture before getting back on the tube to head for St Pauls and Occupy LSX. The camp is extremely neat and well organised, with a well stocked library and programme of events. Had a chat with some of the folks there and yet more photos. I was really impressed by the solar panels they have at the side of their 'Tent City University' tent.

Over the Wobbly Bridge, picnic time outside Tate Modern, then stroll along the river past the Oxo Tower and Coin Street, an extremely interesting community development project that I'd love to spend a day nosing around.

It was on the South Bank where I snapped this pic. It's the lid of a box used by one of the many booksellers there. The bloke that it belonged to smiled at me then started speaking to me in rapid, fluent French. When I said I wasn't French his cheery response, in a lovely un-French accent was: 'Well, dressed like that you should be, love'. I just had my jeans, jumper, black leather jacket, red beret, red lippy and specs on .....

London, as ever, looked beautiful particularly as the full moon rose and it was great to renew my acquaintance with her without having to dash like a mad thing to get to this or that meeting. It was a real struggle choosing which of my pics to post here, though.