James Scantlebury
@turini2
Planning Policy at LB Newham. Transit, Urban design, Politics, Motorsport. EG tea drinker, Briton. (he/him) #DFTBA Posts are personal, usual t&c’s apply
Because you’re not legally allowed to directly advertise drugs or to doctors here - all the ads at Custom House are [pharmaceutical company name] + [generic slogan]
In the final stages of wedding planning - the number of people who filled in the "I have an allergy" box with n/a is non-zero. (Design by @alys-creative.bsky.social of course)
Bananas. It’s why this tweet from Cameron during the 2015 GE campaign is so funny - I’d have preferred “chaos with Ed Miliband” than Brexit, May, Johnson, Truss, Sunak…
So... this is our new summer normal? 10º above the previous averages? This is dangerous, honestly.
Very much enjoyed the Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration. The excerpt from @cashbrowns.bsky.social in the Queer Comics exhibit made us laugh, and @alys-creative.bsky.social did some art!
Then an easy flight home back to City - stunning views of the Alps and the Thames estuary on the way. What a trip!
Dash across Rome for an early lunch of fresh pasta, and then a 3 hour train to Milan!
A stroll around Rome on a Sunday morning, gelato from Frigidarium (I had mixed berry sorbet, amarena & ricotta pistachio)
Well, back in London now - just to recap the mad last day rush back home - 7am Frecciarossa to Rome, and then straight to the Colosseum
Headed back to Airbnb to pack - passing some kids playing cricket (did not expect that!) and finishing off the trip with a Negroni. One more day tomorrow!
My favourite I think was Universitá - colourful, bold, varied but with a similar theme. Even a bit of pink and yellow liminal space too!
The neon at Vanvitelli is broken, the exit I wanted at Rione Alto was closed (looks like a Fosterito dupe!), but the sleeping Fiat 500s at Salvator Rosa are cute. You can really see the deep drop away from Salvator Rosa station platform!
I liked the bold bright theme of Materdei at platform level, the surface mosaic on a water theme less so
Duomo didn’t do it for me, half the lights didn’t seem to be working. Toledo “the most beautiful station in the world” … well, maybe - but I’m not convinced.
I liked the wooden arched roof at Centro Direzionale by Enric Miralles and Benedetta Tagliabue, the platform made me think that the 1970s had escaped!
Headed out for stroll to explore some metro art, passing a cute delivery truck. Naples did itself no favours in this regard. 1) Line 6 closes at 3pm *every day* 2) infrequent / irrational service, sometimes 15 mins 3) some stations look worn despite being less than 10 years old... a lack of love :(
The fine detail of the mosaics as astonishing … it would take us nearly 1500 years to learn how to do still life like this again. A glimpse into a world long ago.
Final day in Naples today - started with the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli. Stunning mosaics, frescos, sculptures and objects from the Roman and ancient world. Amazing how we can nail down the date of a dedication in Marble to an 11 year period … 2000 years ago!
Exploring Naples Metro art this afternoon - I’ll share later, but … missed out on line 6 because it shuts at *3pm* 🤪
Yes, just got woken up by the biggest pail of thunder I’ve heard for a while!
On the hunt for pizza, we found some metro art and Jesus Christ blessing Maradona (who Neapolitans clearly hold in similar regard!)
Back in Naples - Metro and some escalators to the top of the hill for a view at dusk, avoiding the rain! The city is hyper dense, people on top of each other. I love it!
On the terrace under olive trees, homemade lemonade and chill as Alys painted. Ice cream for the ferry journey.
The castle was really cool, well worth a visit and lots of history (and steps). Yes, @alys-creative.bsky.social shirt says “très fatigue”
Friday in Ischia - after a “Ciao” to a street cat, we had a rough SNAV boat ride before boarding a breadvan bus to take us to Castello Aragonese (@yindee8191.bsky.social suggested pizza van and @railwaydave.insanity.tube suggested Focacciavan)