Leonardo at the National Gallery

 The National Gallery has pulled a blinder. It has laid out an exhibition of such beauty that it will be hard to beat for a long time. Nicholas Penny, the Director of the Gallery and Luke Syson the creator of the exhibition should be praised and thanked for their work and skills.

 There are only 15 paintings by Leonardo da Vinci in the world, and here are 8 of them. There are only 50 sketches, and here are 33 of them. OK the Mona Lisa has stayed in France but this is not such a loss – I have always thought that the name is more beautiful than the face and that Leonardo has painted many better pictures. One of them is the portrait of Cecilia Gallerani who is all over the catalogue and the posters. She was Ludovico Sforza’s mistress from the age of 15 and as she turns to smile you can see how she would catch any man’s heart in her hands. She was very beautiful and just 3 metres away is her very cross rival - Ludovico’s wife. There are many theories about why Leonardo painted her with an ermine including a play on her name and as a symbol of her purity This matters very little – take a closer look at her veil and her necklace and you could be looking at a model in a magazine today. It is a stunning display of Leonardo at his most human and most personal. He recognised that beauty is timeless and that it should be celebrated in art as well as in reality. This is a goddess painted by a god.

Towards the end of the show is a newly-discovered Leonardo called Salvator Mundi that emerged in America relatively recently. It is a mystery how it got there but there is no doubt that this is the genuine article owned by an unnamed syndicate of investors – a spectacular return on a relatively small investment. Quite a find! Almost as spectacular as Nicholas Penny’s discovery of a Raphael behind the door in the passageway of a Northern castle – it raised $40 million for the lucky Dukes.

I am afraid to say that if you do not have a ticket then you can only get in by queuing 3 hours from 6 am. Is it worth it? Yes. But if you are too cold for the queue then go for our Covent Garden walk.

The Bloomsbury Festival

Regular readers of this blog will now that Bloomsbury is one of my favourite parts of London. So I was very pleased to read about The Bloomsbury Festival which is happening this weekend (21st - 23rd October). The festival celebrate contemporary and historical Bloomsbury, featuring readings by poets Wendy Shutler and Stephanie Gera, a session on the Philosophy of Wine Tasting, and an evening of theatre and cocktails at RADA.

It all sounds like a lot of fun and most of it is free so do check it out. You can find out all about the festival here.

Afterwards, why not try one of our walking tours? Covent Garden is just around the corner from Bloomsbury and you can explore it in about an hour. Our walking tour can be found here.

The Shoreditch Vintage Fair

If you're a bit of a fashionista then this weekend's Shoreditch Vintage Far will be right up your street. There will be stalls there with clothes for men and women and you can get your hands on some real bargains. Plus, if you want to give your house a vintage feel you can pick up some great furnishings and homewares too.

Afterwards, why not explore the nearby City of London with our StrollOn Guide?


You can find out more about the fair here.

The Natural History Museum

Located close to South Kensington Tube, the Natural History Museum is one of London's most interactive destinations. If you've ever wondered about insects, bears, dinosaurs or butterflies, you will want to visit this magnificent museum. It's free to visitors and there are lots of must sees including skeletons of a T-rex, Brontosaurus and Triceratops and, in the mammals section, you can see a huge blue whale. If you want to know more about the museums highlights please click here. 

There are also several temporary exhibitions available to visitors and though there is sometimes an entrance fee these often offer you a rare chance to glimpse some of the more esoteric parts of the museum's collection. You can find out more about what's on here.

If you're inspired by the museum to take a walk around London please check out our site www.strollon.com where you can get your hands on the best audio tours of London.

The Scandanavia Show

If, like me, you found yourself addicted to The Killing (the original, that is, on BBC 4) you may be interested in The Scandinavia Show this weekend. Taking place in Earl's Court you will get to explore some of Scandinavia's best exports, including getting the opportunity to quiz the stars of The Killing (where does Lund get her jumpers from?). If that isn't your thing, you may want to visit cooking demos from Scandi chefs Signe Johansen and Trine Hannemann: the food of the north isn't all herrings and meatballs after all. You can find a full programme of events here Tickets start at £8 if you book in advance.

And, if you want to explore London afterwards do check out our site www.strollon.co.uk for some great walking tour ideas.

10 Cases

If we were in Paris, we'd be spoilt for choice for simple wine bistros. In London it's a bit harder to find a spot to settle down in to enjoy a good glass of vino though and this is where 10 Cases have stepped in. Situated on Endel Street, near Covent Garden, 10 Cases has a very simple premise: they serve only 10 bottles of red wine and 10 bottles of white wine (there is a glass of rose and a glass of champagne available too) and they only ever buy ten cases of each bottle so when the cases run out they introduce a new wine to the menu. It's genius really because you get a great selection that doesn't swamp you. And, because you can buy by the carafe, you can try something quite different without getting stuck with a huge bill.

Though wine is the main focus here, there is also a small but very good selection of food available. There are three starters, three mains and three deserts so the choice is limited but that doesn't matter when the food is so good and, at around £15 for a main course, it's excellent value too. 

If you're on our StrollOn walk around Covent Garden, pop in for a glass of wine or a bite to eat. It'll sate your appetite and get you going again. Enjoy their wonderful selection of wine and grub and let us know what you thought below.

www.the10cases.com

The Globe

Shakespeare's Globe is without doubt one of my favourite parts of London. Located in Soutwark, on the Southbank, it's a few minutes walk from the Tate Modern and about 15 minutes from Waterloo.

This history of the building is fascinating. Firstly, it's not built on the site of Shakespeare's original globe but it's as close as it can be to that site. It took over a quarter of a century of fund-raising and research to see the current building open in 1997. It was the brainchild of American actor Sam Wannamaker who, unfortunately, died before the construction was completed.


The architects focused on constructing the globe using material and tools from the 16th Century - or as close as possible - so the roof is thatched and the lime plaster mix that coats the walls is made to a period recipe. Today you can enjoy the plays of Shakespeare in this wonderful setting. Each summer season the globe put on a selection of plays and you can either sit or stand to enjoy them. Standing will set you back around £5 and it will give you the most authentic experience. You can find out more about this years schedule here. You can also tour the Globe's exhibition which is packed full of information about the man who wrote such magnificent plays as well as Elizabethan theatre and modern theatre. In the winter, when the Globe itself is shut, it's a wonderful stop off.

If you're nearby to the Globe then, you might also enjoy our Southbank audio tour which will take you around the best sites in the area. You can find out a more on our website.

(Picture Nik Milner)

The City Of London

If you're visiting London for pleasure it's easy to forget about The City but it is a stunning destination packed with interesting sights and sounds. If you're in the area, for pleasure or on business, check out our walking tour of the area. It will take your around some of The City's most wonderful parts.

On your walk you can see the church All Hallows by the Tower which survived fire of London in 1666. It's stunning to look at with it's algae green spire. It is still open for ministry and you can sit quietly there if you wish.

Then there's the Lloyds of London Building (picture above). The building was designed by Richard Rogers and you'll notice that all the elevators, stairs etc are on the outside. This is supposed to create as much light indoors as possible and there are no corridors either. In other words, it's a pretty unique building. Oddly, Lloyds started in Edward Lloyd's coffee house where groups of business used to gather. They were able to insure ships and that is how it started. Today though it's an insurance market. Everything can be insured here and the Hollywood actress Betty Grable once insured her legs here.

One of my favourite parts of the city is near to Billingsgate market. Billingsgate used to be a fishmarket - you can recognize it by it's huge fish weathervane - but has now been turned into offices. Built in 1876 as London's main fishmarket, at one point it could handle 400 tons of fish a day. George Orwell, author of Nineteen Eighty-four and Animal Farm once worked there too. Nearby is Southwark with it's shops and restaurants. Have a wander around the area and, if you want to see some culture, you can visit the Globe or the Tate Modern.

Hopefully this will give you a taste of the City. It's an interesting place and we hope you enjoy spending time there. If you've want any other tours of London why not visit www.strollon.co.uk where you can find out a bit more about our walks.

The Glorious Tweltfth!

If you're in London this week you are in for a treat. In the UK August 12th is sometime known as The Glorious Twelfth because it marks the start of the shooting season and from then on shooters can happily hunt the Red Grouse, a delicious game bird that makes for a wonderful supper.

If you are in Covent Garden, perhaps on a StrollOn walking tour of the area, then one of your Foodie destinations should be Rules Restaurant. It's situated on Maiden Lane (chapter eight on our walk), a street famous for all sorts of reasons, not least its name which may mean that it used to be a dung heap! Rules is one of the world's oldest eateries. It was set up in 1798 by Thomas Rules as an oyster bar and has remained on the same site ever since. It's customers have included royals and writers, actors and politicians: many a famous face has sat within its walls and ate dinner at a Rules table.

At this time of year the restaurant comes into its strength for it serves some of the best game in London and from now you can get your hands - and your teeth - on delicious roast grouse, tender woodcock or a simple pheasant, all served with the usual trimmings: game chips, gravy and - hopefully - bread sauce! You can see the Rules menu here but it is worth noting that because the supply of game can vary it will not always be available. If you wanted to make doubly sure that you'll get some tasty game birds for your lunch or supper, call ahead.

And, if you need to work up an appetite for your meal, or perhaps walk it off, then check out our wonderful walking tours of London here. Enjoy!

Beach Volleyball!

What with the Olympics being less than a year away it is little wonder that our attention has started to turn to the games. As part of the London Prepares series, there are various sports going on in London over the next few weeks in an effort to introduce us to them and to work out any wrinkles. This week, at Horse Guards Parade, it is the turn of Women's' Beach Volleyball.

If you've listened to our Westminster walk, you will know that Horse Guard Parade is usually the site for Trooping the Colour but, next year, it will be transformed into a beach for the players. This week, to test this out, the Visa FIVB Beach Volleyball International is being held here. Over the weekend you can see the quarter finals, semi finals and finals being played. Check out the schedule here. It's sure to be a fun event and it's a great opportunity to see the sport up close if you haven't been able to get tickets for next year. And, if you're looking for something to do afterwards, try our Westminster Walk which will give you a wonderful walking tour of the area that is filled with history and insight.

Audio Posts: Da Polpo and The People's Supermarket

At StrollOn we specialise in giving you audio tours that are full and comprehensive. With this in mind I thought it would be fun to post by audio for a change. So here are two posts, the first about Da Polpo and wonderful Venetian restaurant in Covent Garden (with branches in Soho) and the second is about The People's Supermarket, a wonderful community run store in Bloomsbury. Both are wonderful stop offs after your StrollOn tour around Covent Garden. Enjoy!

Time to focus on London

The Naked Guide?  When I first met Monumental Adventure’s Flora Montgomery I was prepared. She was not your average former film actress - she had starred in Basic Instinct 2. Now I’ve never seen this sequel, but if it’s anything like the first I’m absolutely certain that there must be the odd bit of bare flesh on display.  Whether or not it’s Flora’s, I am relieved to be able to say that to this day I still don’t know.

But when we did finally manage to catch up I was aware that she was just the tonic that the world’s faltering Tourist Industry currently needs. Focussed and motivated but with an obvious and sometimes wicked sense of fun she has put together quite a company – there really is nothing else quite like it out there.

You see, what she’s trying to do is make us all more aware of the cities around us; the sights and sounds that we take for granted day in, day out. She has started by covering, in quite considerable quality and depth, London, New York and Beijing. She’s called in a few favours from the likes of Tracey Emin, Joanna Lumley and Tom Hollander and together with her team she had produced a unique collection of videos of world famous monuments, decaying cemeteries, colourful markets, medieval pubs and even a statue of a gorilla, and this is just in London.

The videos are beautifully shot and give you a taste of what the monument or location is about. Soon after my first visit to the website I headed off to the Whispering Gallery at St.Paul’s Cathedral followed by a rather morbid afternoon at Nunhead Cemetery. Both were fantastic experiences – it was just a shame that neither Flora nor Tom Hollander were there to hold my hand.

 

Which is where we come in, surely?  Surely. Because this is when there would be some considerable value in having an audio guide to hand. Most of these are not major attractions - certainly nowhere you’d find an on-site guide, either human or audio. How fantastic would it be to watch one of these videos and then, having decided where you’d like to visit, download the corresponding audio guides so that the experience could continue long after you left your computer?

We thought “very”, which is why we have setup a new in house initiative. Starting with London, we’re making all our audio content available as individual, site-specific guides. Essentially you’ll be able to choose what sites, locations and monuments you want to download onto your MP3 player, pick’n’mix style. No prescribed routes or set packages, you alone will be in charge of your own sightseeing destiny.

If you sign up to our feed or even go to our website and subscribe to our website we'll be able to tell you when the new service is available, which should be soon - very soon indeed.

In the meantime, StrollOn... 

Trying to keep dry in Venice

Exactly a week ago I left Istanbul to return home to London. It was a sad moment as I had just enjoyed one of my most entertaining weekends away for some time. From being serenaded by my enormous, hirsute masseur in the Turkish Baths to standing in the middle of the cavernous Haggia Sophia as the afternoon sunlight angled through the slatted windows spilling out onto the floor below, there was something for every mood and occasion. 

Unlike in Venice. For as I was wandering through the grounds of Topkapi Palace in 20 degrees celcius I had a couple of friends who were spending their weekend away on the first floor of their Hotel, huddling around the radiator. I though that they were painting a rather over imaginative picture of their weekend as I received their texts until I got back to the office on Tuesday morning - until I found this email from our guide in Venice:

"Hi all,

Thought you might like to see these images of Venice during one of the worst floods since records began.

I had a very interesting morning trying to find a route that didn't have water above knee level, but was stumped, so had to go to a dentist's surgery and ask if I could take off my tights, then waded through knee-high murky and freezing canal water to get to work.

I then washed, dried  off and put my immaculate tights and some boots other than wellies on! However, the water continued to rise, reaching thigh-high levels, meaning that I was trapped at work

(without electricity or heating for a couple of hours). 
The local boat company workers were also on strike yesterday, meaning that the city was completely paralyzed and isolated.  
The good news is that nobody was seriously hurt or killed; the bad news is that  lots of people had their homes and businesses ruined by the salty lagoon water. Life went back to semi-normal in our lovely city today.  

Hope you enjoy the images! 

Best Jo"

It's clear that not every city is perfect for exploring all of the time, least of all by foot. It's why we believe our Hotspots are so good.We developed them for the citystroller to use both before and during your his/her stay. If they'd at least taken our 60 Minute City when them my friends would have left with a vague sense of what normally goes on outside. But who knows, maybe Italian television was particularly good last weekend.

Venice flood photos will be uploaded on the website shortly. Might even be able to sneak one or two of them onto the blog. 

...in the meantime, StrollOn.

The Future of Audio Guides

Trawling through the internet, looking for comments on Audio Guides and the future of the industry I stumbled across the below, an article written on FTJ, The Family Travel Journal. The author highlights the trend currently taking over the travel publishing industry. The likes of Lonely Planet and Rough Guides are uncertain about the future of the 1,000 page guide of Western Europe? Is this too much information to have on you at any one time and is this the best way to access the necessary information? The result has been that "these publishers are starting to sell stand-alone chapters ready for download to a PDA or other text-friendly device."

The motivational force behind this trend is the increasing demand for convenience and customization. Travelers want site-specific information that can be easily stored and discretely used in bite-sized chunks. They want and expect to have access to relevant location specific information when they want, where they want. The author goes onto explain where this market need and expectation has come from: the worldwide web, modern technology and travel. This will enable the 21st century traveler to download site-specific information from the ether onto a mobile device where he can read or listen to it as he stands in front of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona.

The emphasis here is on "will" - "this will enable the traveler to download...information onto a mobile device". Sadly for you those of you without a Nokia N95 or iPhone you will struggle with this bit, the ability to download audio tracks straight onto a PDA or mobile device because you are unlikely to have free internet access. Unfortunately very few cities currently provide free wifi access and the mobile networks only really afford free internet access to people traveling within their home country. So, consumers, you need to be patient and wait for mobile networks to drop international roaming tariffs and open up web access, free of charge, to everyone. Or do we?

The signs are that handset manufacturers are willing to enter the audio-information arms race. If this is this case, this could halve the time that consumers have to wait until they can download and listen to location-specific information in situ. The information would be pre-loaded onto a your handset and uploaded onto a map of the city. Then, upon visiting the city you can use the map to guide you around, learning about the sites and attractions as you go.

But the fact remains that this is not yet available to the mainstream and certainly the information is not downloadable in audio format, allowing you to really experience the city sights around you. So in the meantime we would ask that you monitor StrollOn, follow our progress and give our "Sixty Minute City" a trial when we start selling it on the website within the next couple of weeks. We are using popular technology to provide you with important and entertaining information - technology that is meant to be plugged into your ears as you move around, unlike your PDA or mobile.



In the meantime, StrollOn...

StrollOn in Amsterdam

This page is for feedback and discussion on Amsterdam, the city, and StrollOn's coverage of it

StrollOn in Prague

This page is for feedback and discussion on Prague, the city, and StrollOn's coverage of it

StrollOn in London

This page is for feedback and discussion on London, the city, and StrollOn's coverage of it

StrollOn in Paris

This page is for feedback and discussion on Paris, the city, and StrollOn's coverage of it

StrollOn's First Press Release

StrollOn - a new way to experience old places

Welcome to StrollOn, an innovative producer of entertaining and professional audio city guides for your iPod.

21st century travel is dominated by the Internet, which offers a vast choice of information that all travellers want and need. At the same time, audio-entertainment is dominated by the 150 million iPods sold worldwide. When the two are brought together, you have a new way to experience old places.

StrollOn stands out in this fast developing industry for the quality of its content and production. We work with experienced guides, expert sound engineers and the best actors to bring each city’s stories and secrets to life. We aim to entertain as well as to inform. We produce our guides not only for tourists, but also for the locals wanting to see and hear more about their city.

When you visit our website at www.strollon.com, you will see the choice of city guides that you can download. Our library is expanding rapidly into other European cities and into other types of guide. We currently offer audio walks that take the listener away from the crowds, off the beaten track. We will soon be bringing out individual, stand-alone guides around each city’s major sights and there will be overviews of cities, giving visitors a chance to feel more like a local. All our products are easily downloadable onto your iPod, giving you a personalised tour that you control - you go when you want and you see what you want.


Notes to Editors:

• StrollOn has focused on iPods because they are the most common and user-friendly MP3’s, but the city guides can be played on any MP3 including some mobiles
• At present, all StrollOn’s products are recorded in English. The company intends to make progress in this area.
• StrollOn currently offers 6 audio tours in London and 2 audio walks in Paris for £4.99.
• The overviews and individual sight-specific guides for London and Paris are now complete and will be downloadable shortly and for free.
• On our blog, www.strollon.co.uk/blog, we offer commentary on StrollOn, its products and the industry, and welcome feedback and opinions on each.


For further information contact:

• Nicholas Craig Harvey: ncraigharvey@strollon.co.uk
• George Broke : gbroke@strollon.co.uk
• Telephone : 020 7340 9611

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We released this, our first press release, earlier this week. After much tweaking and fine tuning we thought that this gave journalists and industry critics a good idea of what StrollOn is about. Currently, we are undergoing a period of change, both in terms of product range and destinations covered. We are expanding both and are really very excited about what we have managed to produce for your city sightseeing pleasure. We'd advise you to expect a few more releases over the coming weeks as the website changes to accommodate our new audio walks and audio city guides. We're looking forward to hearing what you have to say abou them so long as it's positive. If not, you still know where to come and slate us: here, to our faces...

...in the meantime, StrollOn...

iTunes backs StrollOn. Sort of.

On 18th June I opened up a discussion as to where I thought that the industry was headed, that is the mp3 city guides industry. Click here for a more detailed and long-winded definition of the mp3 city guide industry. Already, after further exploration and investigation on the internet I have found some interesting development. These will undoubtedly excite the technophiles out there whilst striking fear into the heart of all you technophobes. My findings enable me to say this, that the travel industry is fast embracing all aspects of mobile technology.

Before I try to cover this in as brief and as interesting a way as possible, I would like to applaud one particular development on behalf of Apple and, more specifically, iTunes. After a good couple of years of striving for confirmation that the mp3 city guide industry does present another popular way of using an iPod, iTunes have actually said as much on their website. The boys from Cupertino, California have created a new section, ipodtours, where they have promoted the mp3 tours currently available for Chenonceau and Versailles in France, SFMOMA museum and Berlin's Jewish museum. Unsurprisingly the only other guide that they currently mention is the Disney Cruise Line iPod, which is preloaded with the relevant tours for your journey and ready to play. And more surprisingly they then supply an online guide on how to make a good a ipod tour.

Whisper it softly, but it looks like Apple are starting to agree with us, that the ipod lends itself to guiding and advising tourists and city visitors as well as it does to music listening. Have we turned a corner in professional and public perception? Well, certainly the professionals are beginning to value what we are doing and why, so it is now time to gain the trust of you, the disbelieving public. Over the course of the coming weeks, when we discuss several occurrences and changes within the industry, I am certain than you will start to have faith as well.

In the meantime, StrollOn...