Boudica lends a hand to support the London Eye

This great bronze statue of Boudica with her daughters in her war chariot (was commissioned by Prince Albert and created by Thomas Thornycroft. It was completed in 1905 and stands adjacent to Westminster Bridge and the Houses of Parliament with the following lines from Cowper's poem, referring to the British Empire:

Regions Caesar never knew
Thy posterity shall sway.

(Thank you Wikipedia)

I waited a few minutes to get the shot of Boudica and the Eye free of traffic but with a garland of people around the plinth.

I had a grand day out (Gromit) in London courtesy of Apple and the Prison Service. Apple presented a Leadership Conference at the Kia Kensington Oval for the day. A lovely spring day with the cricket field a hive of activity as the ground staff prepared for the approaching season. There were some interesting shots to be had from the conference centre high up in the stands.

It was a good conference too, first event of this sort that I've been to since retiring from Greenwich. Good to see Apple focusing on learning and teaching first, foremost and last rather than flogging their techonology to the nth degree. Quite a change from my last contact with Apple. Good to have much of what you believed in education reaffirmed by speakers and school leaders.

Did a considerable distance walking today, from home to the station - a mile each way. London Victoria to the Oval (1.6 miles) then from the Oval to the Department for Education (1.2 miles) for a meeting with a company who manage the education programme for young offenders as our company, IES, has got a contract to provide a virtual learning environment for young offenders insitutions in the UK. From there to the Royal Festival Hall (1.3 miles) for a meeting about a bid to the Department for Education to provide teacher training on the programing and control aspects of the new Computing National Curriculum and finally back to Victoria (1.6 miles)

It was a beautiful day in London, warm, sunny and busy and it felt good to be walking the streets which somehow felt very familiar and good to be involved in the sort of stuff I was doing before I retired but without the pressure of working for someone - here, whatever I do it is because I want to do it, not because I have to do it. A great feeling.

Today is our granddaughter's 7th birthday, we'll not see her today but will tomorrow at her party.