Tuesday 4 June 2019

London Musings


One thing I found strange about Saturday was how much I enjoyed London.  This I did not expect.  In my mind it was still overcrowded, pushy, selfish and far too busy, which indeed it remains but even so I found I quite enjoyed it.
One problem I always hated, increasingly as time went by, was the sheer distance you have to travel sometimes to get somewhere.  While public transport is generally good it takes for ever to get about.  When working in North Finchley it could take nearly two hours to get home, travel at night via the 'tube' could take just as long including changes on the way.  For one day it was OK but to do this regularly does my head in.  I suppose the travel being straight forward on Saturday eased my little head in this.  I also found the train busy but not too much so that helped, bus travel might have been slower with traffic problems.  
London does offer a great deal however when living there work interfered with this.  Having spent a week amongst the miserable workforce the thought of trailing out somewhere lessened somewhat if distance or rain or cost was involved.  The need to eat, buy food or other essentials all cut into the time available, this along with the need to pay for everything lessened the enjoyment of London.
At the weekend I began to think how much of me remains in London.  Possibly, like so many others, I remain in 'my London' not the one that actually exists around me.  It seemed to me living there was not such a bad idea after all, there is so much to do, so many places to go, a huge city all around.  
Reality however demands half a million for a poky flat, huge costs to live, and then the reality of Londoners themselves.  Daily life in reality is not like that in the imagination.
London however does make this area look boring even if we can actually see the sky! 

 

3 comments:

the fly in the web said...

I enjoyed London when I worked there...but lived elsewhere. The commute was long but I was free at odd times when working and could go to a market or an exhibition, do my food shopping in Soho and in the evening, if I did not mind the rush for the last train, could go to a concert or the theatre.
I like visiting London too...as I stay with a friend who seems to know London backwards forwards and inside out and always knows when something interesting is going on...I still wonder how we ended up at a garden party at Lambeth Palace!

Dave said...

I wouldn't / couldn't live there now but like you, I thoroughly visiting and walking or cycling around. It has so much to offer.

Adullamite said...

Fly, Lambeth Palace! How the mighty live!!!

Dave, I'm with you.