Rhonda Bracey: At Random

Before I forget, some thoughts on 5 days in London, a place I’ve only visited once before and then only for 1 day back in the early 1980s.

• For the number of people living there, the areas we saw were very clean, with little litter.
• We had some amazing weather. For most days, I dressed in a short-sleeved shirt (early October) and jeans—and got hot. We encountered only a shower or two of rain over the 5 days.
• SOOOOO many people, sooo many tourists, even at the start of the ‘off’ season, sooo many places of interest just packed with people/tourists, of which we were just a few (yes, I’m aware of the irony of being a tourist making observations about the number of other tourists!). I found the numbers of people just too much.
• Incredibly multicultural, and despite what you may read or hear on the news, everyone just seems to get on with each other and is accepting of each other. Of course, this is just an outsider’s perspective looking at a micro slice of a complex society of approximately 10 million people, but in all the interactions I saw, there was no indication of racism, sexism, etc.
• Getting around London by anything other than the Tube is SLOW. The Tube is amazing and quick and some of the trains were exceptionally clean (all were clean, but some of the newer ones just looked more clean). Everyone’s behaviour was great — people were just going about their daily lives and I saw no evidence of any aggro. And yes, we travelled the Tube at night for nearly an hour, on the way home from ABBA Voyage.
• However, the Tube has some serious shortcomings if you happen to have any sort of physical disability, whether temporary or permanent, or aren’t as nimble on your feet as others (e.g. the elderly). There are SOOOO many stairs and escalators but few lifts. I only saw a couple of signs for lifts and I believe not every station has one. And then the lifts are tucked away at the ends of platforms and aren’t convenient at all. Also, the gaps and height differences between the various trains and platforms would make getting around on the Tube almost impossible if you weren’t in good health and fitness. This is not a transport system designed for all—yes, a lot of retrofitting has been done to a system that was built around 150 years ago, but they have a LONG way to go to make it accessible.
• There are almost NO bins to be found on the street. You can end up carrying your trash a long way back to your hotel or home as there are few places you can dispose of it. I heard that this lack of bins is a hangover from the days when the IRA was active and placed at least one bomb in a street bin. But seriously, that was in 1993, some 30+ years ago.
• There are very few toilets, and often the only way you can access a toilet is to go into a café or restaurant and purchase a drink or similar and then use theirs. Places like the Tower of London seem to only have one set of toilets, and so the queues are long and the walk to get to the loo even longer. Yes, I understand that there would be all sorts of logistical issues retrofitting loos to places like the Tower and Westminster Abbey, but the situation now is not good. Not everyone has an ironclad bladder, and this lack of loos must be really daunting for anyone with bladder or bowel issues, or who forgets to go before they leave their home or hotel. A city like London is FULL of tourists, and whether we like it or not, all are drinking and eating, and at some point in the day (sometimes several times a day) they need to go to a loo. Often, a tour will last 4 hours or more, and tour buses typically don’t have loos either.
• Uneven pavements, no handrails etc. Too bad if you’re not fit and healthy and nimble on your feet, or if you’re wearing high heels. The uneven pavement on roads, footpaths, and in historic places (e.g. the Tower, where there are extensive areas of cobblestones; or in Westminster Abbey where there are uneven steps and often no handrails) is a fall just waiting to happen. You really do need to watch where you’re walking, which can detract from viewing these historic sites. Handrails are essential, especially with uneven steps, but not every set of stairs had handrails, even on one side, let alone two.

All in all London is a beautiful city with far more attractions than you could see in a lifetime. But it’s way too busy for me, so I doubt I’ll be back except perhaps to use it as an airport hub to get somewhere else.