The streets are paved with gold

[kaberett]

... or at least with gingko leaves.

When I was applying to universities for undergrad, I applied to Imperial College London not because I wanted to go - I firmly intended to turn down any offer - but because my sixth form wouldn't let me apply to only three places. I hated London, I hated the idea of living in London, and I was entirely unwilling to seriously entertain the option. I felt like I had to wash for hours to scrub the Tube off me.

... six years later and in spite of myself I'm falling in love with the place. I love that people will mostly leave me alone in public; and I am exasperatedly fond of the bit where people do still ask if I need help. I love the ridiculous trains, and the trees outside the Natural History Museum wrapped in their cloaks of light, and the buskers and the art at Gloucester Road and the beautiful stations along my stretch of line.

I love my job. A lot: I think I've now stood up every single person I'm dating For Science. Of course that isn't intimately tied to London, except for how it is - how my group has parties on a boat on the Thames; how on warm days we have our windows open and so do the practice rooms at the Royal College of Music; how it's a five-minute brisk walk to South Kensington, and from there it's fifteen minutes to Paddington; and from there it's an hour on the train to Oxford. How quiet it is at two in the morning and six in the morning.

I could do without the noise and the rubbish bags piled deep on the pavements on bin day. I hate the way the buses work from the point of view of chair users.

I miss the stars.

And as far as absurdity goes? I think what I still find oddest - and perhaps most comforting - is the intimacy of living in a city; how close you get to people, and the pains you take to avoid communicating, because we are too fragile and this is the only way we can preserve the outward illusion that we are strong - and the worst thing of all/that you never confide/is that you're never quite as strong as you sound. The strange and wondrous vulnerability of people, really.

Comments

[calissa]

There was a wonderful poetry to this entry. For all that I am rubbish about writing them, I adore reading about the small details--the things like the Royal College of Music leaving their windows open and ginkgo leaves on the streets.

As an aside, my ginkgo tree seems awesomely happy in its new home and has been putting out new leaves at an impressive rate. I may have to move it to a bigger pot sooner than anticipated.

[kaberett]

I keep pushing myself to dare for lyricism in my prose; I'm never quite sure I manage it. Thank you. <3

[untonuggan]

I was going to make a similiar observation about how this entry felt like poety. So yay!

[kaberett]

<3 :-)

[rysmiel]

how close you get to people, and the pains you take to avoid communicating, because we are too fragile and this is the only way we can preserve the outward illusion that we are strong

And that kinds of sums up both why I was so very fond of London in my early 20s and why I find pretty much the same social construct much less to my taste now, at 40; the social protocols for general urban living in Montreal involve less active avoidance of communication and more acknowledgement, more smiles at small children and complimenting people on their bookmarks and getting into three-minute conversations at the bus stop (Unreal City vs. Divers/Cite) seems to suit me better now.

Also, I appear to have mislaid the communication in which you gave me a reasonable snailmail address for you for the nearish-term future, could I impose on you to resend to the usual email? Am doing European holiday cards this week.

[kaberett]

I think I'm mostly fond of it because I am so very aware of it happening and I sort of want to give them all hugs - I can see why they're doing it, I can see how dysfunctional it is, I wouldn't want to live here forever for this reason, and yet - people.

[glass_icarus]

I love love letters to cities, this is an excellent one. :)

[kaberett]

♥ Thank you!

[hairyears]

Thank you: thirteen years on, and I'm still learning London.

[kaberett]

Thank you so much for the prompt.

[swaldman]

I love, and miss, London, and this post reminded me of some of the reasons why.

You may find this old post of interest http://swaldman.dreamwidth.org/96889.html

[askygoneonfire]

This is just lovely.

Oh my goodness, I'm so excited about a month of posts like these from you and others.

[nanila]

I love London. I would especially love to be able to afford to live there with bloke & baby. But it makes more sense financially for us to be in our present arrangement. :/