Well sad to say, I was totally unimpressed with the celebrations today in central London to mark the beginning of the Chinese New Year. It’s the ‘Year of the Dog’ and it’s also a leap year in the Chinese calendar. This means an extra month is added. It was bitterly cold, but nonetheless bright sunshine enveloped those of us brave enough to stand in the freezing wind. With a camera in hand it made it all the more difficult to stay watm. I did manage to shoot about 70-80 frames concentrating on the Parade and the area aound the National…

Chinese New Year is tomorrow and I’m off to London’s Trafalgar Square to watch the celebrations and maybe get some nice photos. There is a parade that begins at 11am that starts in Leicester Square, travels down the Charing Cross Road and finally ends in Trafalgar Square itself. It is rumoured that the London Eye will be turned red for the occassion so that will definately be a sight worth seeing.

Our Gordon (the Chancellor and PM-in-waiting) thinks that “liberty, fairness and responsibility” are the pillars on which we brits build our common national identity. High brow commentator David Starkey doesn’t agree. He believes English (note not British) nationalism is built on being first and best at everything. Really David? Perhaps this was true of the war generations or back in Empire days, but we younger Brits kinda don’t hold on to that much anymore, mostly because we have no idea of what we are best, and we certainly don’t come first in many races either these days. Personally, what I…