to busk or not to busk

A few things I didn't mention from London:

(1) Sam and I were walking around a Tube station when we spotted a sign: "No Busking"

Of course, we both burst out laughing. What on Earth is busking? We hypothesized a few things; I was hoping it was synonymous with "basking" (as in, no sprawling on the ground?). As it turns out, a "busker" is a street performer; in some stations, they aren't allowed.

The buskers who *are* allowed to perform (at "busking points", of course, which would be a point where busking is permitted) are licensed, and are therefore very good.

(2) A lot of the newspapers in London are more like the Boston Herald or New York Post than the Boston Globe or New York Times. They have crazy sensationalized headlines which extend "below the fold" and take up nearly the whole front page. They are printed multiple times during the day, and are distributed for free next to the Tube stations. As a result, the Tube trains are covered in fish-wrappers, each of which is picked up and discarded by multiple passengers.

hmm, more later... my interweb time is about to expire. For now, I added some more pictures to Picasa. Here's the link. I'll insert the captions later. (Look for Jerome.)