Sloane Ranging!

Tuesday 23 July 2013

About 5 years ago, I landed a job that was only 3 stops away from my home on the train line. 15 minutes on the train, 40 minutes door-to-door. When you live in London, commuting is king. I used to work with someone who commuted from Portsmouth (2.5 hours away, that’s 5 hours of travel every day). 2 hour commutes are actually quite common. For suburb living, not having to use the tube is nearly unheard of. I knew I had it real gooooood! The difference a shorter and more scenic journey to work made to my life was monumental. I had time in the mornings to do the washing, prep dinner and vacuum. I had time in the evening to relax. Our office was based in a large converted house in Sloane Square and if you have been to London but have never been to Sloane Square then be prepared to get back here immediately and rectify it. The tree lined streets, the regal walk-ups and the spectacular shops will keep you busy all day. Over a year and a half ago, we moved offices - I was gutted, my bank balance was not.

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12 comments

  1. so beautiful pictures! love London!
    ciao
    Nicky

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  2. I know exactly what you mean about commuting, I know so many people who have to commute over 1.5 hrs - eeek!. Beautiful pictures! /Niki

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  3. I could NEVER do a long commute! I drive 15 minutes each way. Spoiled, I know. But my husband drives 5 minutes each way. Even more spoiled!

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  4. These pictures are so iconically London! Good on you for documenting them so you'll always have a reference when you move down under. My commute is about 35 minutes door-to-door with two modes of transport, subway and bus. I love it, it gives me ample time to read or doze, while allll my coworkers drive in (I'd say 99% of them have never used public transit!) and spend an hour each way. No merci!

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  5. It's fascinating how much history there is seeing Chopin's marker and the buildings exude a timeless appeal. Lovely place to work. I used to drive 2-3 hrs each way to work for four years (depending on the amount of traffic) and to avoid it, I had to leave at 4:30AM to sleep in the office parking lot. Nowadays, I'm happy to have 30 mins drive each way.

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  6. What a lovely place to work; one of my favorite parts of London.I used to have a 1.5 hr drive to work. Then I moved to Spain where I walked to work in 10 minutes. I am back in London now and don't think I could ever do the long commute again.

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  7. i am such a baby when it comes to commuting but part of that is probably being from such a small city where a 30 minute commute sounds like a long time. luckily now i work from home and i only have to commute from my bed to my living room. the down side is i don't get out and about everyday and i am sure i miss out on seeing so many things in the city.

    these images are gorgeous! and i love that door knocker.

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  8. I really enjoy Sloane/Chelsea area, one of my favourite shops, (anthropologie) is situated there and the Bluebird is absolutely awesome. Not heading back to London until November but these photo's made me miss it, just a little X

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  9. Ooh, I see I have to go back to London, the last time I have been there is probably 15 years ago and I only did some shopping, as we were only visiting for a weekend. This area looks so quaint. Commuting time is so important! I used to commute two hours each way. Now even though I am so close to were I work it still takes me an hour because of the traffic.

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  10. This brings me right back to when we went to London for our honeymoon ..... it's so funny because a lot of the names that you guys have over there, are here. Canadians certainly share a lot of history together.

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  11. It's beautiful. I'm always blown away by the incredible architecture you feature in your posts. So much history in Europe, we are so young here in NZ. Thos travelling times are insane! My husband takes the scenic route to work here in Napier. That way he can stop at his favourite cafe on route and it takes 8 mins instead of 3! :) x

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  12. I kind of love those little blue historical markers that seem to be ALL over London. And I cannot imagine a two hour commute. But then, think of all the reading I'd get done!

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