Things I miss about London

Whenever I talk to friends and family, they eventually ask me what, if anything, I miss about no longer living in London. When I first moved here, it was such a relief to get away from it all, that I used to reply that there was nothing that I missed at all. This is not true of course. You cannot spend sixty years in the city of your birth, without regretting a few things left behind. I have been given to reflection lately, and thought of a few things that I really do miss, so here they are.

The view from Waterloo Bridge

This is possibly the best aspect of the river in London. All the ‘best bits’ are visible from this bridge, though in itself, it is an unattractive, concrete monstrosity. It does nonetheless provide the perfect viewing platform for anyone interested in the sights of London. They are not all there. There is no view of Buckingham Palace, or the parks, and some may argue that the real London, of markets, housing estates, and busy arterial roads, is not represented. It doesn’t matter. Standing on this bridge, day or night, can only ever leave you feeling uplifted, and glad, at least for a short while, to be a Londoner.

Bar Italia, Soho

This coffee bar, at the heart of one of London’s busiest, and buzziest districts, is an institution that has endured the invasion of Starbucks and Costa. After a late night out in the capital, or a visit to Ronnie Scott’s jazz club opposite, there is nothing better than to grab a table outside, in any weather, and watch the busy life of Soho unfold before your eyes. Free entertainment, at least for the greatly inflated price of a double espresso. Worth every penny at 3am.

24 Hour Buses

You will always hear a lot of negative stuff written and voiced about London Transport. The reality is, that they provide an excellent bus service, that in most of London, certainly in the central area that is ‘open late’, runs for 24 hours a day. You can go for a long night out, and get home again, for less than £4 (at the last price I paid). There are issues around this, of course, though they are the fault of your fellow passengers, not the bus companies. There may be drunks on the bus, and there may also be vagrants, travelling in the warm, for the price of a ticket (or not!). Despite this, the vast majority of journies are safe, reliable, and a real reason to be glad you live in such a huge city.

Restaurants

I have written about this before, in other posts, so will not go on too long. There are almost endless restaurants in London, the choice of cuisine vast, and you know that you can always easily walk to somewhere for a good meal, often with no need to make a reservation. I don’t know many other places like that in the UK.

Walking

Elaborating on part of the above, I miss walking too. Not the kind of walking that involves donning wellington boots, and grabbing the dog’s lead though. Walking around the city, in busy periods, and quiet ones too. Despite my familiarity with London, I never failed to discover something new, when walking. An alley never seen before, or a quirky shop, that I never realised existed. You can still walk in the countryside here, but the irony is that you have to drive somewhere to do it. In the most open environment I have ever lived in, there seem to be less areas that are actually accessible, due to fences, farms, and land ownership. You can try walking about down the peaceful country lanes, though I would not recommend it, as the traffic gives little thought to pedestrians. The best option here is to head to the coast, though that involves driving, finding a car park space, and making sure that you are not going to need a toilet!

Choice

Living in a city like London, choice is something that you take for granted. Choice of restaurant, choice of bar, choice of shop. You can choose which museum, attraction, or concert to go to, and even choose how you will travel there. As a Londoner, not having these options never occurs to you. They will not be taken away, if anything, just added to. The old saying, ‘spoilt for choice’, must surely have originated in London. Living in semi-rural Norfolk, choice becomes a luxury. It is something that you have to travel for, at least as far as Norwich. Even there, it only exists on a very small level, compared to the metropolis. If anyone ever considers life away from a big city, they should contemplate the removal of choice, and how much that may affect them.

So, just six things missed, though some of them are pretty big. There are at least as many things that I don’t miss, so the balance is in there somewhere.