"From this moment on I know,
Exactly where my life will go.
Seems that all I really was doing
Was waitin' for love." - "Real Love", John Lennon
I think the song above totally sums up my feelings when I was in London. There's no other way to describe my feelings for London, except that its just 'Real Love'.
This is my third time visiting London and at 4 weeks, the longest I'd ever stayed there. Considering the fact that I'd already visited the city twice before, I was worried that I'll get bored visiting the British capital again. After this trip, I realised that I probably won't ever get bored with London. There's just something about the place that revitalises me; everytime I step out onto the streets of London, I feel this 'fire deep inside, something bursting me wide open, impossible to hide' (LOL, a line from the song "Electricity" featured in "Billy Elliot: The Musical") But yeah, London has this quality to it that just reinvigorates me. Maybe its the architecture, maybe its the cobblestone streets, maybe its the way the British speak, the way they hold themselves with so much dignity and grace, maybe its the air, maybe its the weather, maybe its just a mix of everything, but London just has this great quality to it that makes it so attractive to me.
What do I love most about London? Probably the atmosphere of civility. I love the fact that the Brits are not the most friendly of people, but they are polite, reserved and civil. Classic stiff upper lip. They aren't as exuberant or unabashedly-in-your-face like the Americans, which totally scares (and sometimes irritates) me. Its the right kind of balance between minding your own business and respecting personal space, and being friendly, helpful and civic minded only when there is a need to. The Brits are like that - they offer to help only when you really seek their help, they speak to you only when they are spoken to, they are friendly to you only when you approach them in the first place; otherwise, they are just politely minding their own business, carrying on with their own preoccupations and their lives. I think I'm like that. Some people are so outgoing that individual boundaries no longer remain. It becomes scary, like an invasion of privacy. America tends to be like that - its a country of extremes. Britain and its people are more moderated - yes, that's the word. Moderation. Moderated civility. Just keep calm and move on. Its such a classic British approach to the world's problems, one that's practical, pragmatic and that I personally admire and would hope to adhere to. When there's something getting you down, just shut up, suck it up and move on. No point complaining and whining about it. A simple phrase that speaks volumes.Another thing about London that I love, is that, just like New York, its a cosmopolitan, multi-ethnic city that doesn't isolate you, but its lacks the feeling of intimidation and claustrophobia that New York has. New York, with its endless sky scrappers, can be a lot to handle and grow used to. London doesn't have that feeling at all - its low rise buildings are quaint and personable in nature, never as intimidating as the towering sky scrappers and apartment blocks of New York. On top of that, cosmopolitan London never loses its unique sense of Britishness, which is something I feel that both New York and Singapore don't quite accomplish. The latter two cities are cities whose identity is sort of an amalgamation of the many ethnicities that inhabit them - if you strip away the layers, you'll realise that at the end of the day, there isn't much identity to talk about. London doesn't seem to suffer this problem. Its cosmopolitan, yet beneath all the many layers, it remains an essentially British city. It makes it very very unique - a city with so much depth and character and history, so many layers to explore but with a heart that's solidly British. Amazing.
This trip also made me realise how much I actually regret not being able to pursue a tertiary education in the UK. I think studying overseas would have drastically changed the way I am today as well. Granted that studying in medicine has probably had some degree of influence on the way I am today as well, but I think I would have benefited much more from an overseas education - not necessarily in terms of content, but in terms of developing independence and my global outlook and stuff. I do feel a certain degree of envy for my friends who had the opportunity to study abroad. In some sense, they are living the life that I had dreamed off when I was in secondary school, a dream that was derailed when I had that sudden inspiration in JC to get into medical school. If only I didn't attend that open house trip back when I was in J1 - I would probably be in a university in the UK now. Its amazing how the smallest of events and decisions can forever change the path of an individual.
I enjoyed my one month in London tremendously. This one month has forever sealed my love for one of the most cosmopolitan, yet distinctly unique cities in the world. Its my home away from home. I'm definitely going back to London for more visits in the future, and if possible, a longer stay there. Maybe I'll work there, maybe I'll live there for awhile, I dunno. But one thing is for sure: this love affair with this city will forever play a part in the remainder of my life.
