London has been the dream tourist destination for a long time, and for many people.
Yet the image and the details regarding this city stop at a single word: tourist. The city through the eyes of a tourist, of a wanderer, curious to discover the culture and the
eye-catching twinkling lights on a famous street, is always filtered and altered by the excitement and the idea briefly encountered in movies.
eye-catching twinkling lights on a famous street, is always filtered and altered by the excitement and the idea briefly encountered in movies.
Have you seen the grand Buckingham Palace or Westminster and St. Paul's Cathedral? These are stickers usually associated with the dreamy life in London, where a chance of rain is the usual and where Sherlock Holmes decoded mysteries.
As it is and as it was, the events roll out relatively smoothly: the visit of a few days which becomes the base of wonder-filled stories and pictures capturing the idea in front of the layer of fog.
As it is and as it was, the events roll out relatively smoothly: the visit of a few days which becomes the base of wonder-filled stories and pictures capturing the idea in front of the layer of fog.
A layer of fog which clouds the true life of the weary resident you see rushing down the street, who doesn't get the chance to get quickly to the airport for the type of vacation the tourist benefits from.
The soft anxiety enveloping the idea of the plane ride, during which you may flip through a couple of guides or you may just wait and see what this adventure has to offer, goes away as fast as sound.
However, once you get off the plane and are outside the busy airport, if you are a little bit like me, you get taken-a-back by the speed and the fight for the journey;
A journey back home or the final gap between you and the ever-dreamy city of London, which is far larger than you previously imagined. A bus, a train or maybe a taxi and then what you've been waiting for awaits. Between those steps however, you can probably fit in a couple more emotions depending on your journey and whether or not it is your very first time in busy London. If you had the curiosity of experiencing a ride with the tube at rush hour then a pinch of helplessness probably stumbled across your doorstep. And once you get to your desired destination you may take a breath of fresh air (which I won't guarantee the quality of). The night ahead seems like the unnecessary time spent with your eyes closed- yet you can't wait for tomorrow.
The morning after the journey? Then the individual becomes a spinner waiting for walking every street and corner. The landmarks which make people feel like they belong in that movie you saw when you were a child are to your left and right, just as all the many people rushing on with their lives. Trafalgar Square? For sure, lets head on and inside the National Gallery- the moment you step in the atmosphere of dark colours and old forgotten times seems to be brought to life for a split seconds. Fortunately, you can spend hours getting lost in different rooms of different eras. You might be fooled to think that sometimes life in London is all museums, the thirst for culture and not for the little taste of freedom.
Then, maybe it's Covent Garden with it infamous Royal Opera House silently inserted into its premises. Or the British Museum or the little colourful houses in Notting Hill. You might fancy a quick lunch at a nearby restaurant or the usual 5-o'clock tea. Nothing but a life sprinkled with fairy dust and filled with the chatter of the nearby table. Too many things to do and soo little time, just look outside and observe the darkness slowly setting over the high buildings. Other things fill your schedule and secure the ever-charming story you tell your friends over the phone, and which you continue during your next meeting with them. Then, at some point, you get home. The tiredness begins to be felt and it surely leads to well deserved good night sleep.
At least... that's how some parts of my journey looked like. And I admit, they were mesmerising Christmas moments filled with carols, beautiful Christmas trees and smiley faces carrying the heavy gifts in both hands as they made their way through crowded streets.
However, I did not linger in the forever of those moments and did not stay in luxurious apartments close to some kind of theatre.Thus, I had the chance to watch out, maybe from a certain distance, the other side of the wall of happiness. The wall that falls over those tired souls, which may fall asleep as they go back home early in the morning. The houses missing out the glamour and the sparkles were shining brightly as we passed by on the transit.
This might surprise some people, especially those who live in bigger cities across the world. Those who might now tell me: "You've seen nothing!". I silently accept the truth. I agree that what I've seen is just a little part of the world which might be nonexistent for the dreamers of the far-away lands. However, when I first travelled to London I expected to be able to accept this slowly. Yet it hit me on the first ride, early in the morning, waking me up from more than just one single dream. The glamour and the life that I experienced myself is just a gone time- too many people have no idea what it feels like. The apartments which have a soaring price, the rent which continues to grow every year, the job with awful times and pay, together with the time you spend chasing something take much out of you. Are they warm when they go to sleep? And the people which only ask for a cup of warm tea early in the morning, because they've spent the night on the streets, will they be warm the next day if they receive this gift? This view got soo much of myself and my energy that I began to wonder what life is like in its simplest form for people passing the street besides me. Because sometimes it scares me, the fact that people can either be one or the other: well or struggling, good or bad.
At least... that's how some parts of my journey looked like. And I admit, they were mesmerising Christmas moments filled with carols, beautiful Christmas trees and smiley faces carrying the heavy gifts in both hands as they made their way through crowded streets.
However, I did not linger in the forever of those moments and did not stay in luxurious apartments close to some kind of theatre.Thus, I had the chance to watch out, maybe from a certain distance, the other side of the wall of happiness. The wall that falls over those tired souls, which may fall asleep as they go back home early in the morning. The houses missing out the glamour and the sparkles were shining brightly as we passed by on the transit.
This might surprise some people, especially those who live in bigger cities across the world. Those who might now tell me: "You've seen nothing!". I silently accept the truth. I agree that what I've seen is just a little part of the world which might be nonexistent for the dreamers of the far-away lands. However, when I first travelled to London I expected to be able to accept this slowly. Yet it hit me on the first ride, early in the morning, waking me up from more than just one single dream. The glamour and the life that I experienced myself is just a gone time- too many people have no idea what it feels like. The apartments which have a soaring price, the rent which continues to grow every year, the job with awful times and pay, together with the time you spend chasing something take much out of you. Are they warm when they go to sleep? And the people which only ask for a cup of warm tea early in the morning, because they've spent the night on the streets, will they be warm the next day if they receive this gift? This view got soo much of myself and my energy that I began to wonder what life is like in its simplest form for people passing the street besides me. Because sometimes it scares me, the fact that people can either be one or the other: well or struggling, good or bad.
Am I allowed to speak of such things in such ways? Considering the fact that I was just the unexpected and uninvited observer. Hopefully I am wrong and at least some people are happy. Happier than I was while looking from afar, in a frozen bus or warm inside a cafe.
And I also hope that Christmas will bring warmer days- to me and you and everybody. Because we all deserve more than violence and worrying news in our lives, and a new year better than the one that was.
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