I’ve always had this vague feeling that Paris was like a holiday and that I would eventually move back to London. However, after my last trip there, I realised… I just don’t like it anymore!
“There are too many people. It’s too noisy. It’s too dirty.”
People either love it or hate it; and if they hate it, these are the typical complaints they make. I am now one of those people.
I’ve lived in Paris for eight months and, although there are still aspects which frustrate me, I have become accustomed to the pace and way of life. Strolling down the streets lined with cafés, boulangeries and beautiful architecture; idly cycling along the peaceful roads on a vélib. A stereotypical and romantic perception, maybe; but for the moment, that’s what I have.
London is the complete opposite. There’s a constant rush to get from A to B to C etc. Everybody is racing with everybody else; on the crowded streets, down the Tube tunnels, in the shops. The roads are busy with crazy bus drivers, screaming taxis and cyclists who, apparently, are obliged to ride anywhere. The noise and visual pollution is overstimulating. The streets are dirty. People are rude. There’s no escape.
Don’t get me wrong, my opinion of London isn’t actually this negative - but I don’t look forward to visiting as much as I once did. The one thing I do enjoy is seeing my friends (who live there despite agreeing that London can drain the life from you).
I still need to cross off some of my “Places to Live in the World”. I’m at the wrong end of my twenties now and I guess I’ll have to settle down somewhere soon(ish). But it won’t be in London.
Posted on 18th September 2008 at 9:53 pm