London Diary

Down the Tube

Londoners faced a 48-hour nightmare when the lifeline of the capital, the Tube, came to a halt last week. The strike was scheduled for 6pm on Wednesday and offices began emptying out by 4.30 pm so that people could get home, but that resulted in overcrowding at most tube stations which led to shutdowns at several stations well before time. It was the worst tube strike in 13 years and to add to the woes of commuters Great Western rail was also on strike. I have never seen such endless queues for buses. Despite adding 200 extra buses streets around Paddington, Oxford Circus and Liverpool Street were gridlocked. In an otherwise orderly nation that is known for queuing up, police had to be called in at places to maintain order in queues that snaked around streets. I saw people coming to blows for the last available seat in a bus.??

Uber Blues

By Thursday evening 42,996 Boris Bikes, the public bicycle system set up by London mayor Boris Johnson, were hired compared to 21,439 the previous day. Additional cycle hubs were put in to cope with demand. Some of us walked miles to get home, as black cabs were scarce due to the demand. Mini cabs were booked out with waiting times going over five hours. In this backdrop, guess who was making the most of it? Uber, of course. The Uber app tripled its prices during the strike. And Londoners took to Twitter to vent their frustration. Uber ought to be careful, given it's been banned in France with Brazil and Spain joining the fight against the cab company, and it is also having trouble in Johannesburg. We haven't forgotten what happened in India either. The tube strike not only affected commuters, London's nightlife too came to a standstill. Soho restaurants were rather quiet. A number of exclusive restaurants which normally see three-month waiting lists were open for walk-in trade. But the happiest lot were the tennis fans at Wimbledon. They were told to say thanks to the striking Tube staff as the usual queues to get into Wimbledon had vanished.

Stars of Wimbledon

The 2015 Wimbledon championship saw a procession of stars from India. Javed Akhtar and Farhan Akhtar were at Centre Court to support Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis and Leander Paes and Hingis in their respective finals and winning the championship titles. Now the winners have gone home but the constant star of Centre Court cannot be forgotten. His name is Rufus and he is the tournament's ultimate protector. This is no ordinary player because he surveys the skies above SW19. And tennis fans wishing to experience an unparalleled view of Wimbledon can survey the skies through the eyes of Rufus, the Harris Hawk. Since he was four-months-old Rufus has had the responsibility of scaring away pigeons and ensuring the grass on Centre Court is always green. This special member of the Wimbledon team is employed to keep all 42 acres of the championship courts pigeon free. Rufus now has another feather in his cap. A drone has replicated the hawk's flight path and footage offering a unique 360 degree view of the famous grounds is included in a new app named Perfect Flight. Rufus, who took over from previous hawk Hamish and embarked on an intensive training schedule called manning is treated to a very tasty diet by his handler Imogen Davis and exercises and enjoys a bath everyday. This star sure knows how to work hard and play hard!

Wimbledon Goodies

Other than Rufus, Wimbledon comes with its own share of glory, apart from the championship itself. Classic SW19 goodies are enjoying a surge in global popularity. More than 130 nationalities enjoy summer favourites served at Wimbledon — British strawberries and cream, Pimm's and lemonade and Gin and Tonic (G & T). In 2014, over 1,000 tonnes of British strawberries and 33,000 tonnes of Cornish clotted cream were exported to 56 countries worldwide. Tennis enthusiasts at the event devoured 28,000 kg of strawberries and 7,000 litres of cream — all washed down with 450,000 glasses of Pimm's and lemonade. Pimm's is also a hit across the globe with 3.8 million bottles believed to be produced this year, reaching tennis fans in the US, Hong Kong, Australia, Singapore, Germany, Belgium, France and Italy. In 2014 the UK exported enough gin to make over 1.6 billion gin and tonics, with the USA by far the biggest market. 

No (unwanted) gifts, please!

Most married couples will remember the nightmare of unwanted gifts after their marriage. Apparently, newlyweds sell two-thirds of their unwanted presents online — with £25million wasted by friends and family every year. I am always happier when the to-be wedded couple gives online gift options for guests, it makes life much simpler for invitees.

Debenhams Wedding Service, smartly decided to carry out a research and found that the most unwanted gifts was artwork, followed by ornaments and kitchenware and the average gift costs guests about £44 — an unnecessary waste of money. The report says that there is a growing trend for couples to set up a honeymoon fund or request vouchers or cash contributions towards a more expensive collective gift, with around two fifths mentioning these as part of the wedding gift list. When asking for vouchers or cash, most couples listed what the money would be used for. In today's day and age that surely is a practical view to wedding ceremonies.