SEVEN DAYS IN LONDON

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SEVEN DAYS IN LONDON

Seven days is not very long in the general scheme of things. Most of
the time history unfolds slowly over long periods of time, but
occasionally a series of events occur in such a short space of time
that you are enveloped in their magnitude. The week July 2nd - July 8th
was one such week.

Saturday July 2nd

It is Friday evening, the day before the Live8 concert which is due to
take place in Hyde Park on Saturday. On any other Friday evening I
would normally tune into Newsnight on BBC2 but tonight I will be
watching The Jonathan Ross Show, as Bob Geldof is to make a guest
appearance. As Bob walks on and makes an appeal for everyone to watch
"The Greatest Show On Earth" the enormity of the event begins to sink
in. I hadn't really given it much thought since I received the tickets
a week ago but I am now full of expectation and looking forward to
going with my fourteen year old Daughter, Georgina. After a restless
night with the lyrics of Sgt Pepper's Lonely Heartclub Band bouncing
around my head I arise and set off for Hyde Park with my Daughter. When
we arrive the queues are very long but we are soon inside the arena and
ready for the concert to start. The next nine hours or so are
absolutely wonderful, when will there ever be a line up of artists
assembled like this again, certainly not in my lifetime. We leave the
park just before Midnight in order to beat the crowds, this means
missing the finale but we are happy we have had a fantastic day. Our
journey home takes us through the Edgware Road. This area has a
predominately Arab population and the atmosphere is vibrant and buzzing
with life from the many middle eastern style cafes and shops. On the
final part of our journey home from Paddington station we reflect on
the day's events and both agree that London is a wonderful City to live
in.

Wednesday July 6th

I arrive at work on Wednesday morning on what could prove to be anther
momentous day in the history of London. We will learn today who will
host the 2012 Olympic Games. I work in an electronics retail outlet and
we have a large plasma screen television with surround sound which is
ideal for watching these type of events. Indeed I was told that a
sizeable crowd had watched the Live8 concert on Saturday! As we get
closer to the announcement the anticipation is building as it is now a
straight contest between London and Paris and the wait for the decision
is agonising, indeed one lady is almost certain Paris will win, but as
the President of the IOC utters the word London loud cheers ring around
the Store. What a week! can it get any better than this?

Thursday July 7th

After the excitement of the last few days I am looking forward to a
restful weekend and as I am pondering what to do a lady approaches me
and asks if I could change the television channel to BBC News 24 as she
has heard that there have been a number of explosions in central
London. The full horror of the tragic events is rolled out throughout
the day and the images will be ingrained in the memory forever, once
again a large crowd has gathered around the television, but in contrast
to the previous day's celebrations we are silent and full of revulsion.
I have lived and worked in London for thirty years but I cannot
remember a week like this
In the words of Ken Livingstone The Mayor of London we have been tossed
from triumph to tragedy in seven days. In spite of this both my
Daughter and I still agree that London is a wonderful City to live
in.

Patrick Fellows (An ordinary Londoner)
.