Re-Appearing London

Image c/o Wikipedia Commons

I noticed an odd thing on my Boxing Day drive to Norwich – there was a strange patch of dark green on the Satnav screen. On closer inspection outside the car, my suspicions were correct – there’s green stuff outside of London.

Forests, scenery, horizon… it was lovely! All of a sudden I felt a million miles from home on that stretch of the A11. And I liked it.

I love London – I’ve lived here for 7 years now and I honestly do miss it whenever I’m away for a few days. Some things do get you down though, mainly the point that you can never see more than 20 foot in front of you at any one time. Sod never being more than 3 metres away from a rat (if you believe the legend), I’m constantly never less than 3 miles from seeing a horizon.

I envy the dwellers of Muswell Hill, Primrose Hill and Alexandra Palace – the views from those places looking back at the City can be incredible. It’s breathtaking at times, and shows how much you miss when you’re a mindless automaton constantly shoe-horned in between buildings and careers in a quest for greasy-pole remuneration.

It’s one of the main reasons why cities such as Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh are so appealing to me as an alternative. You never feel too enclosed or shut in, and a horizon or a hillside is only a turn of a shoulder away.

Times are changing in the City of London though – despite many construction companies kicking off numerous building works in the Square Mile, the majority are currently in the demolition phase and the results can be quite striking.

Walking out of Liverpool Street Station, through Bishopsgate Church Yard, and up to Houndsditch previously presented you with nothing but a drab grey building in a traffic island. But with this building gone, the view is quite a sight for your average City dweller.

All of a sudden the corner of the City’s busiest street has a sense of scale, impact, a presence, a scene. It really is a lovely view looking down that quiet, tree-lined alleyway into the bustle of the City. Unfortunately, it’ll be a building site again within 3 months for the next episode of poorly architected tat.

Make the most of it while it lasts – I know it’s ‘not the done thing’ to stare at anything other than the pavement the moment you leave the house, but in a City that has grown so organically over time you’ll be amazed what you might see today…