Although small when compared to the London Eye, which stands at 135 m, the new wheel will carry up to 240 people in 40 gondolas and allow riders to take in wonderful views of the city, the nearby St Paul’s Catherdral, the Iconic Tower of London and the Canary Wharf skyscrapers. Wheels are all the rage this year with the daddy of them all, the 165 metre Singapore Flyer set to be the world’s biggest.
French firm Sereno Architects’ design won the competition for the Eiffel Tower platform, it was announced today. Like the original tower itself, the design has been met with a mix of excitement and howls of protest. For a pic of the pretty stunning design see Design for Eiffel Tower visitor platform
Two things I learned today. There is such a creature as a "hexapus, " this being, (obviously I guess, ) a six legged octopus. Blackpool Sea Life Centre has one, the star exhibit in its "Suckers" exhibition having been caught in a lobster pot of the Anglesey coast.
I also discovered that if you wish to travel by train during the month of April in Japan on the Iga Tetsudo line you travel for free if you are dressed as a ninja. Presumably this also applies to genune ninjas too. This is in celebration of the city of Mie’s annual ninja festival and apparently it is not uncommon to see whole familes dressed as nijas riding the trains.