Like a Tourist

Yes, I am indeed a Londoner. Born and bred. No, I’m afraid I cannot point you in the right direction of Big Ben.

This sad fact came to light when a few weeks ago I alighted at Waterloo station in order to find a friend’s hotel that she described as ‘opposite Big Ben’. Big Ben eh? - a fairly substantial landmark, and pretty famous at that. In fact, many would see Big Ben as the emblem for London, along with red phone boxes and double decker buses. And yet I found myself at Southbank looking out to the dark and silky Thames and pondering a rather awkward dilemma – which way to Big Ben? I had a vague inkling that left was the way to go, as I knew the Tate Modern was to the right, but confidence in my sense of direction is shaky at the best of times (and with good reason you may say). Turning to the nearest passerby for help who, unsurprisingly, was more of a tourist than I am, confirmed that my sixth sense was correct and Big Ben was indeed to my left and, ridiculously, only about  200 yards from where I stood. It was in that fleeting moment – whilst caught in a crossroads between Big Ben and the Tate Modern – that it hit home quite how much of a tourist I really am in my own city. Time to remedy this I feel. And so begins operation Like a Tourist. My mission? To dive right in to my hometown and delve right out, with the unadulterated enthusiasm of a Japanese tourist, those obscure (to me at least) bits of London that I have neglected for long enough.

And so I embark, feeling a bit like Theseus wandering through a vast labyrinth of faceless streets, into the depths of this ever throbbing and hustling and bustling city we call London. I know not where each elusive corner will lead, but luckily I haven’t come across a Minotaur yet. Quite the contrary in fact, I have stumbled upon gem after London gem and an insatiable hunger to discover yet more has taken hold.

I have always heard tourists rave about how much they adore London, and while I have swelled with Londoner pride at their compliment of my home town, I have never fully understood their sense of wonder. Until now. I think this transformation coincided with my own transformation from part-time Londoner – returning only in the holidays from University and more intent on saving money and catching up on sleep after a draining (both economically and physically) term than exploring far off corners of London – into fully fledged Londoner – resident, employee and general girl about town. Having always lived and gone to school in West London my social circle was mainly restricted to fellow west Londoners who knew more or less the same parts of London as myself. Now, having acquired an eclection of friends from University, work and elsewhere, I find myself surrounded by people who live, work and play in all corners of this city, each of whom have their own distinctive spheres of influence, knowledge and experiences within this mighty metropolis. Now I intend to utilise their knowledge and gradually make it my own.