Our excursion around Bloomsbury led us to various public, private, and semi-public spaces of different historic and cultural significance. Areas such as Bloomsbury Square, Russell Square, Tavistock Square, and Gordon Square Garden are all examples of semi-public spaces, as most of them are open to anyone for most hours of the day, but close at night and are then gated until morning. These areas are very well used by the public, especially during the gorgeous sunny weather we had yesterday, with many people gathered both in groups and alone doing a variety of activities such as eating, reading, socializing, and just relaxing.
I have noticed much more green space here in London than at home, as there are squares and parks and gardens every few blocks that are quite large in size and very well maintained. These spaces are simply just green space, and there isn't any forced uses on the public that chooses to enjoy them- they are open and free and can be used in almost any way the public chooses. At home on JMU's campus, there is a large lawn area surrounded by classroom buildings and dorms, and it's the most similar comparison to the squares here. When it's nice at JMU, the Quad is full of students doing exactly the same things people did in the squares on nice days here in London. Our big cities, however, have green space, but much less of it and in much smaller and less public ways.
People mostly get around London on foot or by bicycle and much less by car. Public modes of transportation such as the underground and buses are always very heavily populated and used by all sorts of people, which cuts down on the amount of cars being driven in the city. Taxis are also much more common, and I feel like I've seen much more of them than actual personal cars. Because so many more people are on foot, the parks are much more popular, because they are easily accessible and free and so easy to find in any area of the city.
We ended our walk at the Wellcome Museum- a free museum. I had walked past this museum before, and was excited about the fact that it was free, simply because I want to see as much as I can in this city, and my money is limited. I think I expected it to be less impressive and smaller and not as interesting as museums I would pay a fee to enter and enjoy, but I was very wrong. This museum had very impressive and thorough exhibits, complete with audio guides and brochures, things to touch and feel, cabinets and drawers to open that were full of information and additional items on display, an extensive amount of articles and artifacts and items to view, etc. There was so much to see and it was very well organized and presented. After seeing the museum and both the temporary and permament exhibits, I feel like I could have paid a significant amount of money for the experience, which made it even more exciting that it had been free to attend. There were many ways that the museum engaged people- audio guides and brochures helped me to stay engaged, as I was given a steady stream of information that explained what I was seeing; the hands-on exhibits throughout were very good at giving me something to do that helped make it fun along the way too. The signage outside the museum was very simple but visually interesting and caught my attention yesterday when I first saw the museum and definitely made me want to visit.
"In the US, urbanisation is slowly succeeding. We've been a suburban culture for a long time and, broadly speaking, there's been a rediscovery of the virtues of urban living. What's exotic now is the city." -Alex Kriefer, Harvard professor of urban planning and design
I mostly agree with this statement. Especially from the perspective of my own life growing up in American suburbia, the city has always been a place that seemed unique and exciting and definitely exotic in so many ways. It's a completely different way of life and I think many young adults look to the city as a place for an independent adventure where they can find themselves. The city provides a constant stream of life and activity that I think a lot of young people, including myself, find very attractive.
From the walk around Bloomsbury as well as all my other excursions around the city of London, public spaces are frequent, well-kept, and inviting, and mixed in among private residences and business and educational institutions as well as semi-public spaces, they truly create a rich and diverse culture and atmosphere.
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