London’s Manner

Live like a local, grow like a global citizen.

When I arrived in London in the early morning, London was still half-sleepy, half-awake. When I took off from the subway, emerge up to the ground, the rain was drizzling, the light and shadow were mixed, fewer pedestrians, the majority of shops were not open yet. Walking around the street which was quiet and chilly, I’ve had a traditional English breakfast, with flat white coffee, and sandwich in a small restaurant in the east suburb region in which my hotel is located, recharging myself, preparing to live like a locale, touring, learning and growing for the upcoming weeks.

London Tower Bridge as a symbol of modern city: London Bridge has spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark, in central London. Historically, the London bridge has been built quite a few times, from timber to stone to concrete to steel. Tourists can walk around the river bank, seeing the bridge from different angles; they can also climb and walk across the bridge, and catch the bus to tour around. With drizzling rain on the day I arrived, the bridge with a blue color theme looks very bright in the shadow of a cloud, visitors watch it over admirably, seeing the river of Thames flowing forward endlessly. The bridges, skyscrapers in the background, water underneath, clouds above, people surrounding, London eye spinning around, all things mixing together, make the great scene.

Natural gardens and modern cities are blended into a unique scene: The garden scenery is natural and fresh: London is the city mixing the old and new, nature and human-made. The gardens lie in the center of the city; and after you immerse yourselves into the nature green, smell the fresh air; you could walk through the other world in a few minutes- entering the contemporary modern city center full of glamorous brand stores; warm coffee shops/restaurants; after entertaining a bit, you can also stop by museums or libraries, learn and appreciate quintessential cultural heritage. Still, nature stands out as the unique scenery here, the park across the park, the plants bearing the colorful fruits surrounding the city even in the winter season, that make all things become more coherent and peaceful. Kensington Park, Hyde Park, Holland park, etc, are all in the center of London, bringing freshness and natural beauty.

I also visited Kew garden- one of the largest botanical gardens in the world. There are a breadth of plant views, a multilayer of greens, and beautiful birds flying around. There are gardens inside the garden; pigeons flying down toward your foot, search for the food. When you take photos of them, they are not shy away. Tourists walk around, locals exercise, they slow down their pace, appreciate all the great mixing things here-pretty creatures; art galleries, music concerts, etc. When you get tired of the crowd, you can always come to the park to relax a bit, refresh yourself, communicate with birds and lakes, observe nature, and enjoy the surroundings.

London’s Manner: When you see things in order, everything works smoothly in such a big city- neat and modern, appreciate the collaborative efforts behind the scenes, in the deep night or early morning, many workers already start their days to work, including robots, to run such a complex city, make it fully functioning. Londoners are polite and friendly. When I visit the British library in the early morning, people line up automatically, a very long line, but not so intimidating, as when the door opens, the line moves up very promptly, people enter the library to start their learning day, demonstrating very professional manners. When people take the bus or other public transportation tool, they line up, up or down one by one, thanks to the driver, taking all those daily activities in an order. So the city has high population, but does not feel so crowded.

It’s often wet weather in late October, the day becomes shorter and chilly in London, but you could find charming places to fit your styles and enjoy a day here. Either sipping coffee, doing exercise, wandering around in the gardens or shopping around in the streets, you need to be comfortable to blend yourself into the diversity of people and dynamic of metropolitan styles; you need to be comfortable to learn from each other; either being an insightful inquirer or a friendly helper, you are part of the city scene, You should be also comfortable to be who you are and who you want to be. So you can focus on your set of activities, without getting lost, without distracting yourself too much. Live like a local, grow like a global citizen.

Posted in: Global Perspective,Global Trips