Coming into Manchester from the East ..............

Anyone familiar with the songs of Arlo Guthrie will vaguely see the poor attempt to connect his song on arriving home in Los Angeles with my journey back into the city on the tram from Ashton.*

Looking out from New Islington, 2023

On a whim I had stopped off at New Islington, and before exploring the ever changing “new quarter”, I stood for a minute and recorded the view off into the distance.

New Islington, 1819

The new developments have just left a window which frame the glass and iron roof of Piccadilly Railway Station.

And yes, I am aware that technically New Islington is not a new quarter of the city, because it is listed as such on Johnson’s map of map dated 1819.

But for a while the name went underground.

Location, New Islington

Picture, Looking out from New Islington, 2023, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, and detail of New Islington  from Johnson's map of Manchester, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://digitalarchives.co.uk/ 

In the company of the birds, 2023

*Coming in from London, from over the Pole

Flyin' in a big airliner

Chickens flyin' everywhere around the plane

Could we ever feel much finer?

Comin' into Los Angeles

Bringin' in a couple of keys

Don't touch my bags if you please, mister customs man” 

Coming into Los Angeles, Arlo Guthrie, 1968