London Underground does really care about it's passengers, not only for safety and transports efficiency, but they also care about our feelings, our mood.

I was taking a look at some random issues about the Tube, just for curiosity, and I found, with great surprise, that on the tfl web page there is a space dedicated to artistic activities and a section titled "Poem for the day" where, every day, they upload a poem from various authors.
Here is the poem of today:

Poem for the day

At Lord`s

It is little I repair to the matches of the Southron folk,
Though my own red roses there may blow;
It is little I repair to the matches of the Southron folk,
Though the red roses crest the caps, I know.
For the field is full of shades as I near the shadowy coast,
And a ghostly batsman plays to the bowling of a ghost,
And I look through my tears on a soundless-clapping host
As the run-stealers flicker to and fro,
To and fro: -
O my Hornby and my Barlow long ago!

Francis Thompson (1859 -1907)


With love, Transport of London.

London Underground, The Logo

In a big city like London, get lost is pretty easy, but, even if you have no clue of where you are there is always a light of salvation, the big logo of London Underground that indicates you the nearest station, your salvation.

The Tube logo is one of the most popular and easily recognizable thing in London and, probably, all over the world.

The story of this logo is quite old and long. It first appeared in 1908 and then it just kept on changing style till the roundel version we all know now. It was basically to make clear the stations' names, in order to facilities the passengers, that it has this rounded shape, with the blue stripe across the red circle.



London Underground logo, or roundel, is now one of the symbols of London, the core of Transport of London and even if it is pretty old fashioned, people will never get tired of it.

This morning I went to King's Cross St. Pancras to take the Piccadilly line towards Holloway road where my University is.

Taking the Tube is always the same, boring daily torture, going this order:

1: being squeezed in the lift with that annoying "STAND CLEAR OF THE CLOSING DOORS", which goes on for ages till there is no more oxygen in the lift and people give up, waiting for the next one.

2: getting, or at least trying, to get to the platform before the train you need to take leaves, doing a slalom between those tricky people who stand stuck in the middle of the stairs, talking about the weather and stuff, making you arrive at the platform just 20 seconds after the doors have been closed!

This is pretty annoying, and the worst thing is that it happens every single day, but today, something new, an unexpected event made my day in the Tube.



I was standing at the platform waiting for the train, staring at random advertisements, still half asleep, when suddenly the scream of an apparently terrified woman helped in waking up, definitely.

At first I thought: "ah, freak people...never mind", but then, when two huge rats passed close to my feet, I screamed as well. That is that kind of emotions that you don't want to feel early in the morning at the beginning of a very stressful day, it doesn't help you at all!

That was the first time I have ever seen a rat so clearly and closely, but apparently, is something I need to get used to as London Underground is populated by those huge rodents.
You see, many people think that the Tube is boring and depressing, but actually, there are some exiting emotions, like this one, that only the London Underground can offer.

Certainly the Tube is not the cleanest place in London and the fact that it suits rats so well makes people think that there might be something unhealthy and unsanitary.

I have a question now, a big doubt: if rats are well known as inhabitants of the Underground along the network and sometimes also take the trains through it, shall they have their Oyster card or are they generously funded by Transport of London?

Mind The Ghost

My gym at Russell Square Station

Some time ago, me and my friend M. were seriously planning to sign up for a gym....seriously!as the summer is never too far and there is the "bikini test" to pass.
The reason why our good purpose failed is that, ignoring the high percentage of laziness which obstructed us in finding a good gym,we don't have enough money to pay a good gym for the long period we need it to get fit!
London Underground Service is the solution!

Arriving at Russell Square station on the Piccadilly line,the lifts to the ground floor are always overcrowded,full of tourists and those kind of huge space ships which are called prams that actually should have their own lift.
Imagine you,being in a hurry, getting at the lifts finding that probably you will not even reach the famous "closing doors" in less than one hour...the only other way is the stair case,175 steps.



The poster says: "Take the stairs only in case of emergency" but you take them anyway, at your own risk.

After 15 minutes you get at the ground floor, sweat, tired, out of breath but glad that you survived such a hard test and that, taking all those 175 bloody steps, you might burnt off a huge amount of calories and fats!!!!!!

So,thank you London Underground for providing such a good, effective and cheap gym service, all included in the oyster card price!