London as a mirror of world civilization

Anatoly Strunin writes: “It seems that I have already spoken about London with enthusiasm and in superlatives. It really is an awesome city! The most amazing thing is that with each new visit, the colors do not fade, and the admiration for this city does not weaken. But little by little, the impressions become more balanced, and the perception of details becomes more pragmatic. You already stop walking on it, slightly opening your mouth. You begin to notice how well thought out and executed many things are here, whether it is paving slabs or the organization of public transport.

For example, there are no traffic jams in London. That is, in this huge and very important city there are no traffic jams - in our, naturally, Moscow understanding of them. During rush hour, general traffic in the city slows down, but never stops. It is always moving, and in a strictly calculated mode. It is regulated by thousands of traffic lights and a mathematical model created by smart and responsible people. At the same time, if we talk about public transport, for example, about the famous double deckers, then they don’t go here at all, but fly. The average interval between buses on important and busy routes is 8-12 minutes.”

(Total 53 photos)

Source: Journal/a-strunin

I noticed that if earlier I traveled around London exclusively by metro or by car, this time I went down to the subway only once in two weeks. The rest of the time I managed by buses, and I realized that it was very convenient. The most amazing thing is that the route, no matter how confusing it may be, you can fill in Google maps before leaving the house, and then just follow their recommendations, changing from one mode of transport to another, changing routes and directions ... Everything works smoothly and accurately like a clock on Big Ben!..

And London is an endless holiday. Not a day goes by without some kind of festival or premiere, concert or significant sporting event. And it's not just about the city center, about Covent Garden or Soho. Literally every district has its own parks or cultural centers where the local government or the public organizes fairs, theme parties, children's playgrounds with attractions. Moreover, such "cultural centers" can easily become a platform in front of a popular pub in the area, and the territory of a medieval church ...

In London, you feel equally comfortable everywhere, even though you have a camera in your hands. Here it is not customary to shush, to make disgruntled faces when they see that a person is filming. If someone does not want to get into the frame, he simply turns away. And you understand that you are delicately made to understand that your shooting is inappropriate. Well, when it’s human to us, then we are like people, right? ..

By the way, about people. London is a triumph of internationalism. What the Bolsheviks dreamed about, came true here. Such a hodgepodge of races and peoples on the streets of the city and in its public places you will not find anywhere else. These are both tourists and residents. How come they didn't come here. And somehow quite peacefully coexist. Of course, I assess this circumstance superficially, as a tourist who has seen a real, and not a poster "beneton". I fully admit that the native Londoners, the British of blood, do not quite like it. But that's the reality. And the Europeans went to it consciously, painfully overcoming both racism and xenophobia. In the same London, in one of the museums, I came across an old street photograph from the beginning of the last century. In the background of the picture, a poster was clearly visible: "Keep London for the Whites." This was also something to hide here ...

And once I was a witness to an Arab demonstration in the center of London. She walked loudly chanting anti-government slogans. And no one pushed her. On the contrary, a dense corridor of police officers accompanied three hundred demonstrators throughout the entire journey, protecting their right to this demonstration. And at the same time, I’m sure that the Dagestan guys from the Moscow “manezhka” could hardly hang out for at least an hour in a similar way somewhere in London in the Trafalgar Square area and allow themselves to show disrespect for others at least once ... The London police are tolerant, but business knows and does not improve his financial situation at the expense of diasporas ...

Are there problems in London? Of course, there is, as elsewhere - a wagon and a small cart. But they have a different order than ours. London, like other cities of the entire civilized world, has overtaken us and our two capitals (and we have no other cities comparable in scale) by fifty years. In all essential respects. It is an example of how to equip your life - beautifully and tastefully. In order, in the end, to live and not to settle scores with life - as more often and best of all we do it. My God, why are we doing this?..

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