Tuesday 13 December 2011

DON'T YOU DARE TO HAVE BREAKFAST AT THE GHERKINS

On my return day from Venice which is 3 November, I went to London for a two-day trip.
I have always had this fantasy or imagination that the bullet building should be just by the south banks.
And that was saturday morning and I was starving, just got an sandwich (meal deal) from sainsbury which is everywhere.

I got lost a little bit, and after I arrived the Gherkin. I discovered that it was not by the south bank at all.  There was only concrets buildings, office people and a bunch of construction workers in doing some drilling job.
and I was tired and hungry, so I decided to just stand there and finish my breakfast, a package of fruits and a nice ham sandwich, and try to enjoy the urban landscape.
People were smoking next to me, they are white, they are in tracksuit or office costume.

There was one black security guy in front of it, he saw me, from eating my fruit until I start to eat my sandwichs. He didn't say anything.
As I proceed to my last half bit of sandwich, a white-security guard came over to a commercial board from a cafe close by and ask me "are you alright?" and then said something else but I didn't understand.

I happened to finish my sandwich, but it raised my curiosity about why would the security guy to come and check me out. I know ever since the bombing in London tube also the international brotherhood with America might effect a certain negative emotion towards UK. But why can't people just go there and enjoy a nice meal there?

Urban view is everywhere, why do people even bother to find a green place to look at and then destroy a thousand football play field comparable size of the rainforest in Brazil? Is architecture being create as a mean to alienate people? Why is the fact that I saw a guy's arm bleeding at 10pm in Dalston and then no body cares but somebody come to see me because I ate breakfast at 10am in the morning in front of the most common space in modern society?

      London is amazing, there are so many things happen in any hour, but _______________________.

It seems like there is a moral panic which is deeply inhabit in all the citizen's mind. Constantly searching for possible target to doubt, to suspect, to accuse. But somehow the folk devil is no long so easy to spot.  They are not as The Mods or Neds has particular dress code, nor has the specific working class background.  It is a state of mind that I imagine a solider would have when they are in the war zone.  Is the moral panic, or there is actually a traumatic effect rooted in all the British white collar (if this description still appropriate)'s mind. It is a constantly subtle fear towards life.
It's an rejection towards life and freedom, is the people in London actually live under a constant?
Such as concentration camp in a bigger genre, as the fear came from the uncertainty of the future?


View from the right hand side
View from the left hand side

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