The Prince Of Insufficient Lighting

One consequence of the nearly 17 hours of daylight we get in midsummer is the long nights in December. Right now, it's nearly 8 a.m. before the sun rises, and it sets before 4 p.m. Mrs. Werbenmanjensen only sees the flat in the dark (which, some would say, helps to disguise its aesthetically, um, challenging aspects).

The upside is that you don't have to be an early riser, or even ambitious, to see the sunrise. With the low sun, the sunrises have been rather colorful--even, sometimes, asserting themselves over cloud cover:


The natives, meanwhile, have chosen to light a single candle--or multiple candles--rather than curse the darkness.


This is, of course, the High Street in Highgate. When I first saw these lights 10 months ago, I hoped they would be lit year-round, but I've only seen them on in the past couple of weeks--probably just a holiday thing.