I love the idea of walking flâneur style anywhere especially somewhere new including in museums and galleries. A guided tour or an audio tool spoils it for me. Your observations of the US and Canada's attitude to walking is interesting. I led a group of teachers on a study visit to Canada some years back . We were looking at rural schools many of which were out in the middle of nowhere. We commented on the lack of any local shops but the response was always that shops etc were in retail parks. Some folk we met seemed amused by the idea of shopping locally. You got in your car and went to the shopping mall. Lovely trip and we did visit some beautiful towns with actual shops and streets to wander around. As to the screen obsession is it possible to put the genie back in the bottle. I feel sad when I see people out with their kids or babies and all their attention is on their screens with none for the kids.
That all sounds grimly familiar! One of the reasons I love living in Europe is that walking is just a part of life here. As for the screens: I think the backlash is finally properly on and that we will find ways to strike a balance between being online and offline.
Couldn't agree more about the joys of urban wandering. I'm a Londoner too, and I agree that it's pretty acceptable in most places here, although I quite like pushing the boundaries by going somewhere I'm not meant to be, for example walking round an industrial estate or slipping through a gate left accidentally open...
I love wending my way round London, or any city, for that matter. Walking in the general direction I need to go in but zigzagging randomly along the way, choosing each new turn on a whim. And I'm definitely partial to gates left accidentally open. Perhaps we should walk together some time? The Ambient City meets the Slow City...
I love the idea of walking flâneur style anywhere especially somewhere new including in museums and galleries. A guided tour or an audio tool spoils it for me. Your observations of the US and Canada's attitude to walking is interesting. I led a group of teachers on a study visit to Canada some years back . We were looking at rural schools many of which were out in the middle of nowhere. We commented on the lack of any local shops but the response was always that shops etc were in retail parks. Some folk we met seemed amused by the idea of shopping locally. You got in your car and went to the shopping mall. Lovely trip and we did visit some beautiful towns with actual shops and streets to wander around. As to the screen obsession is it possible to put the genie back in the bottle. I feel sad when I see people out with their kids or babies and all their attention is on their screens with none for the kids.
That all sounds grimly familiar! One of the reasons I love living in Europe is that walking is just a part of life here. As for the screens: I think the backlash is finally properly on and that we will find ways to strike a balance between being online and offline.
Couldn't agree more about the joys of urban wandering. I'm a Londoner too, and I agree that it's pretty acceptable in most places here, although I quite like pushing the boundaries by going somewhere I'm not meant to be, for example walking round an industrial estate or slipping through a gate left accidentally open...
I love wending my way round London, or any city, for that matter. Walking in the general direction I need to go in but zigzagging randomly along the way, choosing each new turn on a whim. And I'm definitely partial to gates left accidentally open. Perhaps we should walk together some time? The Ambient City meets the Slow City...
Glad you're partial to open gates! I've been thinking about organising urban wanderer meet -ups - will keep you posted.