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The Crowded City
Every city is different, not just from its historical origins, but also the very manner in which it presents itself to the world. The people within are different too: subtle changes in fashion; accents and regional dialects; awareness of local history; acceptance of outsiders. The list might go on for several pages, if we put our minds to it, and not just from the things that we see as long-time residents or regular visitors, but also the characteristics which remain in the minds of those who come as tourists, no matter how briefly....
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It Isn’t All Tourism
When I visit a new town or city, I tend to spend hours just wandering round the streets randomly, looking at the people, the shops, the architecture, the little things which come together to make a community within a city centre. I note the people standing in front of churches and museums, town halls, ornate buildings with a long history which contribute to the whole atmosphere, posing with their cameras or, more often, their mobile telephones to either capture memories, or to prove they were there. I see people consulting maps and tourist guides, going from one well-worn area to another, queuing up at museums, pushing heavy doors open to…
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The Urge to Travel
The season has hardly begun, and in some areas the snow has barely melted from the roads, but the first motorcyclists are venturing out, letting the breeze blow - symbolically - through their hair as they blow the cobwebs off winter-stored bikes and warm leathers. I sit, almost every working day, in my commuter train and dream of places further afield, of packing a small bag with the bare necessities, and just taking off again....
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Waking To Destruction.
It is not as bad as I had expected. Ten years ago, walking out of my house in another, smaller, city on New Year's Day, I would be confronted by the debris of celebration littering the road, the pavement, the front of my house. There would be the remains of fireworks shot into the air, or exploded at ground level; empty drinks bottles and cans (prior to them being refundable); paper and other debris connected to the fireworks, such as the packaging.
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Lübeck: 17 August 2024
If there is one thing I have noticed about every single Christopher Street Day celebration / demonstration that I have attended over the years, it is the joy and pleasure of those taking part. Everywhere you turn there is a smiling face, there is music and people dancing.
