Tag Archives: narrow

Oakland Has a Thin Building Too

B11I1835.jpgNew York has many iconic buildings.  One of the more famous buildings is the Flatiron Building.  At the narrow intersection of two streets, it makes use of the space available.  New York is not alone in having such intersections so it is not alone with buildings to fill the (limited) available space.  Oakland has a similar spot where Telegraph splits off from Broadway.  The building that sits there is so thin it is actually quite hard to show that it is a building rather than just a tower!

B11I1837.jpgThe city has just gone through a rebuild program to create a public space in front of the building and the area is now more accessible than it used to be.  From the statue in front the sides of the building can disappear, so thin it is.  At the moment the first floor of the building is vacant and available for lease.  I did find myself wondering what I could do with such a space but it does look pretty impractical.  I imagine that is why it is still empty.

RHDR

CRW_0294.jpgThere are plenty of historic railways in the UK but most of them are a tourist attraction and operate at limited speed to allow people to experience something from days gone by. However, there is a slightly more unusual railway on the Kent coast. The Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway runs along the Kent coast from Hythe down to Dungeness. It is a narrow gauge railway that, while popular with tourist, does provide a year round service. It is even contracted by the council to take kids to a local school.

CRW_0293.jpgThe railway has been in operation for decades. In the Second World War they even had an armored train for coastal defense. The service was restored after the war. Most of the locomotives date from before the war and are outstanding scale steam locos. These are a few shots I got of the trains from a crossing in Hythe about ten years ago.

CRW_0298.jpg