501 Places

Yesterday morning the online world was abuzz with a breaking news story about an air crash in Zimbabwe. We were reliably informed, by Sky News and BBC among others, that there had been an ‘accident’ involving a flight from London that had crashed while trying to land at Harare International Airport. Every major news channel carried  coverage of this story with some suggesting it was a drill while others confirming that an accident had taken place, quoting an official statement from the head of Zimbabwe’s civil aviation authority. We had news of casualties (some) and fatalities (none), although in his statement he told the world that he could not give any details at the time.

The ‘accident’ did indeed turn out to be a drill, and the head of the Zimbabwe CAA David Chawota admitted that he had deliberately kept journalists, other airlines and quite possibly some emergency services in the dark to see how they would respond in a ‘real’ situation. “All our systems worked perfectly” he said with a satisfaction that was probably not shared by anyone who had a friend or relative due to land in Harare yesterday morning.

The decision to fool everyone that this was indeed a real incident has attracted much criticism, and quite rightly so. Having worked in crisis management for some years and conducted such drills albeit on a much smaller scale, it is very clear that an initial priority in planning must be to avoid any misunderstanding that will lead to unnecessary distress and anxiety.

But there were other lessons that came out of this exercise that shed some light on how news of major incidents is now spread around the world in an instant. For example, the news story was flying around Twitter at an alarming rate. In the middle of the confusion the term Harare was being posted around 100 times a minute. Most users were resending the press statements from BBC or Sky, with a few adding their own comments and a few well placed idiotic and offensive remarks thrown into the mix. There was effectively a news vacuum coming from Harare and people were only too eager to fill it with speculation and rumour.

Did the major news channels play a complicit part in this feeding frenzy by adding more ‘breaking news’ messages into the Twittersphere to satisfy the craving of the masses for more updates? It would be interesting to hear from one of the major channels as to their policy for managing their Twitter accounts during such a news ‘stand-off’. What was apparent was that when the truth was confirmed about the exercise after 90 minutes of confusion, people still continued to re-send earlier messages suggesting the crash was real for some time. The rumour lived on well beyond the official ‘all clear’.

So what lessons emerge from this debacle? For airlines, misleading the public in this way is indefensible. For major news channels, as they are under an ever increasing pressure to report on stories when they have limited news, these mistakes are going to happen. The need for scrunity of facts is more important than ever, and being first is not always being the best, as this incident illustrates.

And what about us, the online public: do we have a responsibility too? In a post yesterday that every blogger and tweeter should read, David Whitley points out that as publishers we are all legally liable for the words we write and re-send; if the original writer has been libellous, then those who circulate that message may not be as immune as they think. And it goes beyond our own legal liabilities; there’s a matter of personal credibility and responsibility too. It’s so easy to resend other people’s words on a whim, often without even reading them. I suspect many people retweet based on the originator of the message and their wish to be associated with that person, rather than the message itself. A potentially risky approach.

The internet and the world of social media has created hundreds of millions of publishers. Just because we don’t all have the training and knowledge of those who call themselves publishers doesn’t make us any less liable for the words we put online, wherever they came from. The Zimbabwe air crash hoax showed us how easily a false message can spread. It should remind each and every one of us that just because others have said it, whoever they are, doesn’t mean we should believe it. And if we don’t believe it, should we really be spreading that message to the world?

Going round in circles?

I’ve been on the point of starting this post for over an hour now. I’ve checked my messages, read the news, had a look at the latest sports stories, decided I needed a snack from kitchen, watered the plants while down there, tidied up the recycling box, observed the neighbours returning from their shopping trip, and then come back to the PC and checked my messages and read a bit more news.

I had no concept of what procrastination entailed when I worked as an optometrist. My working day was divided into 20 minute segments and each one was filled with a task (testing a patient’s eyes) that would take approximately 20 minutes. No time to waste, rest or contemplate a higher meaning to my existence. I wondered why people would take years to write a book: you want 100,000 words? Write at least 750 words an hour (easy); that’s 6,000 in a day and the book done in 3 weeks. And you even have your weekends.

Since those days I’ve discovered that procrastination comes easily to me. I have a wandering mind, get bored easily and have always found difficulty concentrating on small details and repeating monotonous work. I guess that’s why optometry was never going to be my dream job.

But I wonder: amid these hours spent waiting for a spark, where nothing seems to get done and the day’s to-do list remains untouched, is there something of value actually occurring? Or is it really just wasted time? Those unproductive hours certainly don’t provide a sense of achievement. Contrast them with the days when my list is long and the deadlines are immediate, when I need to focus on nothing but the task at hand and produce those 2000 words before a 5pm deadline. Does it feel good when it’s done? Of course. Do I enjoy my evening knowing that I have completed what was a sizeable project and sent it off in time? Naturally.

But what about a month of days like these, one after another? Perhaps those dreamy days may be necessary in another way. We all need time to think in our work. Some of us have more control over this than others, and as a freelance writer I know that I can determine my own work schedule more than at any time in my working life. Those bouts of ‘thinking time’ often yield ideas for new topics and suggestions that trigger an immediate urge to revise posts or articles that I thought I’d finished. Whether I’m randomly reading other people’s blogs, poking around in the garden or raiding the chocolate stash in the cupboard, allowing that opportunity to think creatively is something I wouldn’t want to lose to an all-consuming workload. After all, for me the pleasure gained from a creative idea is greater than that from a deadline made.

So while procrastination can be a negative force in getting a job done, I’m pretty sure that removing it entirely can prove even more destructive.

Anyhow, that’s enough of this. I’m off to check what’s in the fridge. After I’ve checked my Facebook page again…

Some of my travel guidebooks

The sources we have at our disposal to help us with our travel planning are growing by the year. We can now watch videos, listen to podcasts or audio clips, access special apps on our smartphones, view blogs, wikis, review sites or forums; we can tweet people who’ve been there, follow people who live there, ‘like’ the places we might stay in, and even view a webcam of the building or street that we’re most looking forward to seeing. Bewildering isn’t it?

In all this mass of content, is there any remaining use for the guide book? Or is the printing of these travel companions now a waste of trees when all the information could be provided in a far more interactive,up-to-date and environmentally sensitive format?

I have a confession to make. I still buy guide books. More than that, I’ve never used the vast majority of the above list of innovative tools. If I’m heading to a new place, I’m still more likely to plan my route with the help of my guide book than any other method. It will still get packed in the bag, and return home to a place of honour on our bookshelf, perhaps with frayed edges but certainly with all pages intact (I understand why some people choose to rip out pages as they go, but I could never bring myself to do it).

So why, as someone who spends far too much of my time online, am I still sticking to an old-fashioned book instead of embracing the new technology and all the functionality that it promises?

At the most simple level, I enjoy adding another book to my travel bookshelf. It’s far from comprehensive, and when I recently saw a fellow traveller’s impressive library of travel books I realised I’ll never have more than a modest collection. But it’s still a visible reminder, whenever I walk into our living room and glance at the books, of the places we’ve been and the places we’re planning to visit.

But there’s something more fundamental; something that’s difficult to put into one  sentence. From flicking through the book for the first time, seeing the beautiful pictures and saying “I have to see that”, to thumbing through the book in front of the TV on a lazy evening and building the excitement of the upcoming trip, the guidebook offers a small but important part of the overall travel experience for me, and has done for nearly 25 years.

Can an app on an iPhone offer the same experience? For some perhaps it does. I can only speak for myself. In my mind there is no substitute for the feel of a proper book and the joy it brings. I don’t have to plug it in or worry about its batteries. Nobody is going to eye up my Lonely Planet book and immediately think of mugging me to get their hands on it. And by the end of the trip, I feel I’ve got to know those authors a little bit. Usually I’ve disagreed with them about more than one issue, but they’ve nevertheless become a part of the journey.

Even though the book is retired to the bookshelf on our return, its work is not always done. Because when friends come to visit and ask us about their next destination, it’s always a pleasure to pull out a book and send them away with it, knowing that a good guide book can serve its function more than once.

And as those books age, they take on another role, serving as custodians of a world that no longer exists. Whether it’s revolution, earthquake or tsunami, events can rewrite the facts and observations about a place and render a guide book no longer valid. I have, for example, a guide book that tells me how to cross the Berlin Wall to visit East Berlin, and one about central America that was published just before Hurricane Mitch devastated the region in 1998. These books have become historical accounts of unexpected relevance, detailing the often mundane details about a world that no longer exists.

So let’s not herald the demise of the guide book just yet. Amid the rush to create the next new travel gadget, I’m pretty sure that chunky block of paper will still make its way into many backpacks for years to come, however fancy the alternatives.

La Vieille Bourse, Lille

Planning a day trip from London? 90 minutes from the capital by train can take you to some interesting cities: Bristol, Southampton, Winchester, Canterbury, Stratford are just a few options. Until recently however, you would not have considered a French destination.

All this changed with the introduction of the high speed line that takes the Eurostar from London St Pancras to a long black hole under the Channel in less than 40 minutes. Lille is now perfectly accessible as the first major French city on the Brussels line, and is reached around 30 minutes after emerging on French soil.

La Grand Place, Lille

Lille is the centre of an industrial region and does not rank highly among the French tourist hotspots. While it may lack the surrounding beauty and interest of southern France, the city of Lille itself has enough to keep a visitor entertained for a day and probably a weekend. It’s a laid back city, and having been three times and arrived each time in mid-morning, it seems to me that the city doesn’t really wake up until somewhere approaching lunchtime.

Notre Dame de la Treille Cathedral in Lille

The city itself is filled with beautiful architecture that shows off Lille’s past as a major trading centre. The Vieille Bourse and the main square are worthy of lengthy exploration, and the Cathedral is a mix of the old and the modern, with a unique translucent front facade, offering a surprising appearance when viewed from within.

Little girl wonders through Lille street

Around the cathedral the narrow lanes offer a view of Lille from another time, and as with so many cities these lanes are now home to boutiques, craft shops and speciality restaurants. We had an excellent lunch at L’Assiette du Marché, and then treated ourselves to an oversized ice-cream by the main square. This region of France is well known for its waffle making skills, although by the time we were done with the ice-creams we were not in a position to take on a waffle. Always the way: too much food, not enough capacity…

Porte de Paris

There are a couple of museums worthy of note in Lille. The Museé des Beaux Arts is recognised as holding the finest collection of art in France outside of the Louvre, and it is well worth a visit. We arrived there at 4.45 and the lady at the ticket desk kindly gave us the €5 reduced tickets as they shut at 6pm. For someone who knows their art, you could easily pass half a day in here. The impressive building itself is well worth a look.

Place de la Republique, Lille

Another museum/art gallery that is worth seeing is the Musée de La Piscine de Roubaix. It’s a 20 minute metro ride out of the city, but it offers the chance to see a sizeable art collection in an old municipal swimming baths; not something you’ll get to do every day.

Musée de La Piscine de Roubaix

Finally, don’t miss the zoo – it’s an easy walk out of the city centre and situated near to the Citadel. Admission is free and they have a reasonable selection of animals, including a rhino and a couple of red pandas. Once you’re finished with the zoo there’s a pleasant walk to be had on the circular path around the Citadel itself.

Carving by the entrance to the Lille Zoological gardens

Lille is a poor cousin in terms of France’s efforts at promoting its tourism destinations, and perhaps the national tourist board should make more of an effort at the London day trip market. We left London at 8.30am and returned before 8pm, having spent over 8 hours wandering this historic and attractive city. It can be done for £49, which compares well with fares for similar distances in the UK.

Musee des Beaux Arts, Lille

Camambert in filo pastry

St Stephen Walbrook

After the Great Fire of London in 1666, Christopher Wren was instructed to design and rebuild 51 churches in the city. He was later knighted and would become the architect who, more than any other, left his mark on the city in a way that has survived more than three centuries.

Wren’s most celebrated work of course is St Paul’s Cathedral, but even within a half mile of this world famous building you can discover many of Wren’s masterpieces. You won’t find 51 churches anymore, as some were demolished when the population of the city declined in the 19th century, while many were damaged or destroyed during the Blitz.

St Stephen Walbrook

The church of St Stephen Walbrook claims to be ‘the most perfectly proportioned interior in the world’ and it’s easy to see why. It’s hard not to be impressed and feel a sense of peace as soon as you step into St Stephen’s.

The crypt of the church was also home to the first branch of the Samaritans, and a picture of the organisation’s founder Chad Varah can be seen next to the telephone on which he took those early calls.

The Samaritans' first phone, and their founder Chad Varah. St Stephen Walbrook

St Lawrence Jewry is so named as it originally stood on the eastern side of the city, which was home to the Jewish community in medieval London.

The church was badly damaged on the night of 29th December 1940, when the Germans attempted to create a firestorm in the city. It has been restored to faithfully match the original Wren design.

St Lawrence Jewry

St Martin within Ludgate

A church has stood on the site of St Martin within Ludgate since 1174, although it has been rebuilt several times. Destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666, the church was rebuilt in the early 18th century and thankfully received very little damage in the Blitz.

Now remarkably accessible, we were free to wander around and climb the stairs to the organ loft. There were even instructions left out to potential organists, although I’m sure it’s not intended for strangers to come in and play.

St Brides Church, Fleet Street

St Brides Church, Fleet Street

St Bride’s Church is perhaps the oldest church in London, with links back to the 7th century. A walk through the crypt reveals the old Saxon walls. This crypt was in fact only revealed after the church took a direct hit on that fateful night of 29th December 1940 and was severely damaged.

It has long had a link with the journalists of Fleet Street, and is indeed often referred to as the Journalists’ Church. So much so that the repair and restoration after the Blitz was paid for by the neighbouring newspaper proprietors. Now you’ll even find the editor’s designated seats in the choir stalls: seeing these seats filled would be a most unlikely sight!

St Brides Church, Fleet Street

All the above churches are free to enter and open during weekdays. with varied opening times at weekends. All rely on donations, so please do drop a pound or two into the box on your way out. St Brides also offers a guided tour once a day.