View Full Version : Things you'd miss about London
If you left London what is the absolute number one thing you'd miss most. (Or what do you miss most if you have already left.)
Perversely I would miss the nature. I think London is full of amazing spots of natural beauty, real wilderness that I've never come across in any other city. I could never live in the country as it would drive me insane, but I love living in a city with pockets of countryside throughout it.
We mostly think we will move back to Dublin one day, but if we do I will really miss the variety of places to take our dogs for a walk.
Well, having been made redundant from my old job in London just over two weeks ago and starting a new job tomorrow on a trading estate just outside Southend (easier commute is about the only advantage!), I think there will be quite a lot I will miss about London. Things that I used to take for granted like walking just round the corner to a pub for a post work drink, the general buzz of the place, lunchtime shopping, the architecture, the huge variety of people...I could go on but I'm sure you will get the picture! Until you stop working in London, you never really appreciate what you had...
Minnie_the_Minx
09-04-2007, 13:23
Shops that open later than 8.00pm.
dessiato
09-04-2007, 15:28
Not lived in London for just over a year, things I miss: The Tate Members Room and the art, Marmite, affordable drugs (legal ones!), the museums and other cultural events, Fetish Fair, English pubs and beer, WHSmiths for the magazines (and I know I shouldn't), the supermarkets for the range of foreign foods and spices, F1 on tv without paying for it
Things I don't miss, the weather, the stress, the lack of good fresh ingredients to cook with, the long commute round the M25 every day, not having time to just sit and stare.
Overall life is better here, I can manage without the things I miss, and there are cheap flights so when I get really homesick I can always get there.
ohmyliver
09-04-2007, 15:38
The parks, the people, the cheap good places to eat out, the history, the street markets, the mulitcultural nature of it, the galleries, the clubs (well some of them) the gigs... the chaotic energy of it all... the fact that beause of its huge size and the impossibility of knowing all of it, everyone has their own london really
The free art galleries/museums
the range of people from all over the world, miss it and notice it when i go visit.
having lived there for over 15 years and moved back to Wales a couple of years ago i miss it less and less and it did my head in a bit this weekend tbh :(
Roadkill
10-04-2007, 08:37
Popstarz
Greenwich on a sunny afternoon
Apart from that, pretty much nothing.
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 10:39
My entire social group.
Yep, that. And clubs. And the people. And the bustle. The lack of narrow-mindedness. And, shock horror, the safety - yes, IME London is the place where you are least susceptible to random violence. Basically, everything about it.
It's 2am and I fancy a can of lager. No problem!
If I was somewhere else and fancied a can of lager at 2am, that's what I'd miss most.
Mostly the extent of the cultural life and also public transport that runs after 9pm and more than once or twice an hour! (Obviously, not always the case outside London, but often in smaller towns)
24 hour lifestyle
Mates
Traditions
Walks along the River
I'd be quite up for moving abroad for a bit actually but think I'd get homesick after a bout a week :D
I wouldn't miss the dirt and pollution, and grey bogeys :cool:
I miss... er..
hmmm...
Local shops that sell olives and other ethnic morsels.
Other than that - not a sausage.
Hmm...I'd miss the open-mindedness (it's more open-minded than anywhere else on the planet I reckon).
And the vast, nay, infinite amount of cultural life (museums, art galleries, gigs, parks, events, festivals). You could spend your entire life trying to do all there is to do in London and still not scratch the surface.
Then - there's the geography of the city. If you want to go for a walk or a bike ride, you will NEVER run out of new places to explore. There are always new places to discover that you have never fully explored - even if you've lived here all your life.
The people - one of the things I love about London is that you are always meeting new people (if you try just a little bit!). And yet there is still that community thing of seeing the same faces and knowing the people who live in your area.
I'd miss it alot! There are negative things that I certainly wouldn't miss (pollution, expense, lack of sea) - but they are massively outweighed by the positives that I would miss.
My bed. I have the comfiest bed in the world.
Tank Girl
10-04-2007, 15:39
the shops and jamaican patties.
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 15:40
Am I the only person in London who doesn't notice this pollution everyone's talking about?
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 15:40
the shops and jamaican patties.
Jamaican patties are everywhere!
Am I the only person in London who doesn't notice this pollution everyone's talking about?
grey bogeys?? :confused:
Tank Girl
10-04-2007, 15:43
Jamaican patties are everywhere!no they're not :)
I'd never even heard of them, let alone gorged on them until about 4 years ago.
not a lot of call for jamican patties in the new forest ;)
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 15:44
Oh, I see - all cities have them though!
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 15:45
grey bogeys?? :confused:
Grey bogeys? Ooh yeah, I remember when they were green....
Can't say it bothers me too much to have grey bogeys!
Tank Girl
10-04-2007, 15:46
never come across them myself, I have tarannau to thank for the introduction to patties :cool:
Am I the only person in London who doesn't notice this pollution everyone's talking about?
Um...yes!
Go to Brixton Hill, on a hot sunny day. Stand by the bus lane. Breathe in deep. You will be dizzy with the fumes of carbon monoxide.
never come across them myself, I have tarannau to thank for the introduction to patties :cool:
They are lovely aren't they !
There's that place on Atlantic Rd, I forget its' name....myum.
Grey bogeys? Ooh yeah, I remember when they were green....
Can't say it bothers me too much to have grey bogeys!
but that shows you've been in a city.
Also you sit in a park and it's just not like the countryside cos you're by a road etc. the smog in summer can be quite bad too.
But it's just like any city really, pro's and con's innit :)
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 15:48
but that shows you've been in a city.
Also you sit in a park and it's just not like the countryside cos you're by a road etc. the smog in summer can be quite bad too.
can't say I've ever noticed
can't say I've ever noticed
How long have you lived in London? :confused: :D
Orang Utan
10-04-2007, 16:00
How long have you lived in London? :confused: :D
Nearly 13 years
Treebeak
10-04-2007, 16:13
Perversely I would miss the nature. I think London is full of amazing spots of natural beauty, real wilderness that I've never come across in any other city. I could never live in the country as it would drive me insane, but I love living in a city with pockets of countryside throughout it.
.
Strangely enough this is exactly what I was saying on Friday - you can be in the middle of the city - with every convenience and entertainment you could ever need and then on a massive open space sunbathing within minutes. And there HEAPS of places to go! I love that there are still new bits of 'green' london left to explore.
Oh yeh and being able to roll into a shop at 4 in the morning on a beer run aint half bad either :D
Oh yeh and being able to roll into a shop at 4 in the morning on a beer run aint half bad either :D
that is one of things i do miss about living in a bit city. i guess it just means you have to be a bit more prepared to avoid the need for a late night beer stop.
Ths buses
The dealers
The PEOPLE
The cityscape
The multi-culturalness (id hate to be the only black in the village :( )
camden
aldgate
shoreditch
soho
lewisham
oh i love london :)
the pubs. oh and the coolest fucking city in the world.
I wouldn't miss the dirt and pollution, and grey bogeys :cool:
Gah! I remember how bad my nose was when I first moved to London. I was constantly congested and my throat ached. I had no tolerance to the tap water, which has some chemical in it that I'm allergic to, so my whole mouth and throat were covered in sores.
And to top it off the speed and pressure on the Victoria line made my ears pop so much I got a bad infection in one of my ears.:(
pinkmonkey
11-04-2007, 20:01
I'd miss the variety of food you can buy, the transport system (although it's a love-hate relationship) and the ease with which I can do my job - I can go into town and do research quite easily. I don't think I'd miss much else, I only go into town if I really, really have to.
I would have moved away from London had we not moved to 'rural' Tottenham. We'd both had enough. Now our itch for nature is scratched, I feel the need to move no more.
art of fact
11-04-2007, 21:00
the parks
the thames
alot of free stuff
24 hr offies
but that shows you've been in a city.
Also you sit in a park and it's just not like the countryside cos you're by a road etc. the smog in summer can be quite bad too.
But it's just like any city really, pro's and con's innit :)
Most inhabited places in the countryside tend to be quite close to roads as well tbh... :p
Anyway the larger parks have plenty of secluded spots well away from the roads.
I'd miss:
Easy availability of cheap, high grade drugs (or possibly not as I need to cut down, but meh).
Endless options for nightlife.
Endless cheap options for going out in the day.
Central London at night.
The view from Parliament hill.
My friends.
Museums etc.
The ability to buy practically anything you need at practically any time of day.
Public transport (ok so it has its problems, but anyone romanticising the countryside should try living somewhere where the nearest meeting place for anyone under 70 is a half hour drive away).
There're plenty of things i'd be glad to be rid of about the place, but I love it too.
Orang Utan
11-04-2007, 22:23
Gah! I remember how bad my nose was when I first moved to London. I was constantly congested and my throat ached. I had no tolerance to the tap water, which has some chemical in it that I'm allergic to, so my whole mouth and throat were covered in sores.
I remember that, but only cos you remind me, tis a distant memory now.
Monkeynuts
12-04-2007, 08:39
Nearly 13 years
And never noticed the black bogeys?
Perhaps you have very hairy nostrils which filter it out... or breath through your mouth;) :D
Monkeynuts
12-04-2007, 08:43
The ability to buy practically anything you need at practically any time of day.
Be good to have some sort of informal directory of places... there's nowhere down here AFAIK, I tend to stop off in Camberwell.
I can raise you a late night DIY shop for your all night offy though:cool:
Orang Utan
12-04-2007, 08:58
And never noticed the black bogeys?
Perhaps you have very hairy nostrils which filter it out... or breath through your mouth;) :D
I do have hairy nostrils actually but I have had grey bogeys - but if that's the only evidence of pollution, I can't say that it upsets me.
I'd miss having to get off the Victoria Line prematurely after being stuck in a tunnel for 30+ minutes and then getting to work 90 minutes later than I should. :( Tossers.
I love London really, just not this morning.
Monkeynuts
12-04-2007, 09:52
I do have hairy nostrils actually but I have had grey bogeys - but if that's the only evidence of pollution, I can't say that it upsets me.
I agree, better the dirt goes into your bogeys than your lungs I think...
Roadkill
12-04-2007, 10:09
Can't say I've ever noticed having grey bogies. :confused: One thing I do notice is that, if I leave my bathroom window open, dirt - it looks like smuts from a coal fire - accumulates quite quickly on the window ledge.
I'd miss having to get off the Victoria Line prematurely after being stuck in a tunnel for 30+ minutes and then getting to work 90 minutes later than I should. :( Tossers.
I got fucked by the Victoria line as well this morning. But I have just bought this (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160100374067&sspagename=ADME:L:AAQ:US:1) so hopefully that will be the end to my travel problems.:cool:
Orang Utan
12-04-2007, 19:29
Lazy!
Lazy!
You still have to cycle it to get it to work. That's way less lazy than getting the tube. And Marylebone to Tottenham is nearly all up hill.
The ability to buy practically anything you need at practically any time of day.
After 3 years of having innumerable 24 hours shops (most of which sold booze at all hours) within walking distance of where I was living, finding myself unable to buy bread at 4:30pm on a Sunday afternoon is a really fucking shitty experience.
I miss pretty much everything about London and every time I have to leave it to "return home to Coventry" (...eugh...) it makes me sad. Though rationally I know there's a fuck load of stuff I didn't like about it. I doubt I'd enjoy living outside zone 1 in London (was living 10 mins from russell square tube for a year and then literally a minutes walk from Euston station) yet living in zone 1 London left me in a state of perpetual over-stimulation which left me always wanting to be stoned. Plus it fucking smells: it really shocked me when I first walked down Eversholt street a month or two after leaving London and realising that I’d never noticed how distingusting a stench permeates that street despite walking down it 30+ times a week for the past two years. Also, the absence of any local boozer that you could get drunk in for less than £20 was a bit shit. Likewise, the traffic and over-crowding….
Ok maybe I don’t miss living in London. It really is impossible to articulate quite how much cooler it is than Coventry though.
<starts plotting a move back to Manchester>
I absolutely love the parks. I go to the parks very frequently, and every time I'm just astounded at how there is such a beautiful park plopped right in the middle of such urban mess. Makes it all tolerable.
The constant sense of adventure and the multiculturalness, of which the public transport network is an integral part.
I can't stand commuting by tube or bus everyday, but whatever you feel like doing on any given Saturday (or Tuesday), all you have to do is hop on a tube or bus or boat and you're there.
:)
(But the winter actually sucks. And the housing costs! And the stupid f*cking tube! and buses...and it's too crowded...and I'm so fed up of lugging shopping around miles and miles)
I'd miss the Thames.
Treebeak said this in a text last night, she was on her way home from her leaving do in a cab.
I LOVE going over the Thames, walking, in a cab, at dawn fucked out of my tiny mind or whatever.. I <3 The Thames
I LOVE going over the Thames, walking, in a cab, at dawn fucked out of my tiny mind or whatever.. I <3 The Thames
Yes! Totally agree.
My best Thames moment was after a night clubbing with my girlfriend.
We went to sit underneath David Blaine (it was his last night in the box) and we had a smoke whilst looking out to Tower of London (my favourite landmark).
It was such a lovely moment, I totally forgot that David Blaine was suspended in a box virtually above our heads.
Meltingpot
13-04-2007, 12:41
What I do miss (I've not visited the city since 1994); the bookshops and the vegetarian restaurants, especially around the Charing Cross - CentrePoint area, and Neal's Yard (in Covent Garden), which in addition to good veggie restaurants also has bread as good as I've had anywhere.
I'd miss the Thames.
Treebeak said this in a text last night, she was on her way home from her leaving do in a cab.
I LOVE going over the Thames, walking, in a cab, at dawn fucked out of my tiny mind or whatever.. I <3 The Thames
I always love it when I'm sitting in the back of the car and my parents are driving over the river at night.
I love...
the fact my commute can take me from listening to woodpeckers in the trees to watching the stallholders set up for the day in Brixton to people hurrying to parliament with a briefcase full of papers to tourists in the parks to strange gents smoking oversized cigars at 8am in Mayfair.
the fact my job often involves spending time finding out more about the city
the fact if I get 'city sick' I can be in rolling countryside in half an hour
that I can buy yummy turkish food from the corner shop and they let me pay later if I don't have enough change
that things change faster than I can keep up so I never run out of stuff that I want to do - there is ALWAYS a gallery or club or restaurant or gig
knowing my neighbours and having a bit of a connection to the local community
that SE London really feels like home
the way that completely different places nestle next to each other and that walking a few yards can take you to somewhere completely unrecognisable to where you were before
If someone could cut off a bit of Snowdonia and drag it round to Southend, I'd probably be able to live here forever.
beebo whoever you are i salute you
spot on
variety, change, everything's within cycling distance, opportunities,
randomness - it's the best!
And SE london - the STILL undescovered best.
also...
london + bicycle = heaven!
I can raise you a late night DIY shop for your all night offy though:cool:
Do they sell tables?
I remember a drugged up argument I had where I insisted there must be somewhere in London you can buy a table out of hours.
I knew I was right!
:D
spanglechick
13-04-2007, 18:42
Do they sell tables?
I remember a drugged up argument I had where I insisted there must be somewhere in London you can buy a table out of hours.
I knew I was right!
:D
ikea in croydon is open til midnight monday-friday...
I'd miss the wonderful friends I've made over here, having such a huge choice re the endless variety of things to do & see, plus despite feeling unsafe in my neighbourhood over recent times (eg. me being attacked for my bag & Paul Erhahon's murder... both at the end of our street :eek: :rolleyes:), I'd miss this area we've called 'home' over the last 6 years... esp. the people I've met in the community such as the old school Eastenders that run various shops/stalls, the Turkish guys that own our local mini-mart & the Polish people that work in the cafe around the corner from us. In fact I'd miss visiting that cafe, not only because of the friendly staff & great food but the locals that frequent it are top notch. I've befriended many of the old boys there & they often enquire about hubby, as they ask after me when speaking to him. Oh & I'd miss the open-mindedness & such a vibrant array of cultures & nationalities all thrown into the mix.
My London shitlist is a helluva lot longer though, hence why I'm glad to be leaving!
RenegadeDog
20-04-2007, 15:49
After 3 years of having innumerable 24 hours shops (most of which sold booze at all hours) within walking distance of where I was living, finding myself unable to buy bread at 4:30pm on a Sunday afternoon is a really fucking shitty experience.
I miss pretty much everything about London and every time I have to leave it to "return home to Coventry" (...eugh...) it makes me sad. Though rationally I know there's a fuck load of stuff I didn't like about it. I doubt I'd enjoy living outside zone 1 in London (was living 10 mins from russell square tube for a year and then literally a minutes walk from Euston station) yet living in zone 1 London left me in a state of perpetual over-stimulation which left me always wanting to be stoned. Plus it fucking smells: it really shocked me when I first walked down Eversholt street a month or two after leaving London and realising that I’d never noticed how distingusting a stench permeates that street despite walking down it 30+ times a week for the past two years. Also, the absence of any local boozer that you could get drunk in for less than £20 was a bit shit. Likewise, the traffic and over-crowding….
Ok maybe I don’t miss living in London. It really is impossible to articulate quite how much cooler it is than Coventry though.
<starts plotting a move back to Manchester>
This is such a spot on post. I like my job where I am in china, the lack of commute, the cheap cost of living, but sometimes miss the groovy-funky-channel-27 nature of london, if only i could teleport to london for the weekends. Or at least every other weekend, and spend the other in the thai islands. :D
I miss teapea for some stupid reason
I also miss the endless supply of things to take photographs of
I miss the little curios that you only get in London like the Jewish Christian church
I miss the food
I could go on but the list of what I don't miss will always be bigger than what I do miss! My biggest complaint about London was it was a mission to get into an area where you're alone, you have to travel at least two hours outside of London to the likes of the New Forest before you experience some proper rural england. I'm born and bred in the country and as much as I hate it, I love it!
I LOVE going over the Thames, walking, in a cab, at dawn fucked out of my tiny mind or whatever.. I <3 The Thames
Yeah, man. Although I get shivers up my spine when I go over the railway bridge in Newcastle, crossing over the tyne and looking at the quayside.
<3 Newcastle for its bridges, they're as iconic to Newcastle as the Tower Bridge is to London.
Chairman Meow
20-04-2007, 17:21
Waitrose. Decent clubs. The Tate Modern. Soho, especially the Coach and Horses. That's about it really - I left three years ago and haven't missed it enough to visit in the last two. Last time I went back I noticed how grubby it all looked. I loved it for 12 of the 13 years I lived there - I'm more of a seaside person now (getting older :)). I'm glad I got out when it started making me miserable though.
I left London about 4 years ago, and doubt I'll be able to afford to return. I missed it terribly for the first few years, but just recently, I've begun to miss the place less and less. I still pop down a few times a year, and I've felt a bit weird and disconnected from it all. Seems too busy and noisy, which is what I used to love about it.
Now I'm living in a smaller city, I will say that I agree with the opinion that there is a general air of tolerance and safety that you have in many parts of London, that is absent from a great deal of England. Friday nights in the city centre where I am are well dodgy, which is something it took a while to adjust to (i.e. stop going out on Friday night!).
I do miss several pubs in London. There's some really classic boozers down there, hopefully the relentless drive of the gastropub and flat development won't render them extinct :(
The main thing I miss is having decent cinemas showing non-blockbuster films. London is stacked with 'em, in the provinces it is a little trickier.
Other than that, the cost of the place and how different it's become in the last 10-15 years - a playground for home counties snobs - just makes me angry now, so my love affair with it all is departing.
wrysmile
20-04-2007, 21:28
Riding my bike across bridges and looking out on the Thames and the south bank, Westminster etc on a sunny day, picnics in the park in summer, nightlife, the huge variety of places to eat, drink, party. Galleries and the amount of fantastic free stuff, architecture, the city's grand and amazing history that makes you proud to be a part of it and call it home. The loads of green space in central London, which sets it apart from most other European capitals - you're not even allowed to sit on the grass in a lot of them! The friends I've made, kept and the incredibly different types of people I've met and spent time with and learned from. As Han said earlier, the tolerance and open-mindedness of many (not all) people in the capital - the fact that mostly you can wear, do and say whatever the you like and no one bats an eyelid.
I know there's plenty of shit things about London, but I love it more than anywhere else I've ever lived. I was just thinking about this the other day... I have such an abiding affection for London, that I don't think I've had for anywhere else - as a city, I mean. Quite simply, London rawks :) :cool:
Orang Utan
20-04-2007, 21:54
Yay!
Walking back across the river in the early hours after a club when spannered and watching the Sun come up
Fuck, just realised I'd already posted... I'm spannered :D
Riding my bike across bridges and looking out on the Thames and the south bank, Westminster etc on a sunny day, picnics in the park in summer, nightlife, the huge variety of places to eat, drink, party. Galleries and the amount of fantastic free stuff, architecture, the city's grand and amazing history that makes you proud to be a part of it and call it home. The loads of green space in central London, which sets it apart from most other European capitals - you're not even allowed to sit on the grass in a lot of them! The friends I've made, kept and the incredibly different types of people I've met and spent time with and learned from. As Han said earlier, the tolerance and open-mindedness of many (not all) people in the capital - the fact that mostly you can wear, do and say whatever the you like and no one bats an eyelid.
I know there's plenty of shit things about London, but I love it more than anywhere else I've ever lived. I was just thinking about this the other day... I have such an abiding affection for London, that I don't think I've had for anywhere else - as a city, I mean. Quite simply, London rawks :) :cool:
Pretty much sums up my thoughts exactly. :cool:
London is a brilliant place where you can do brilliant things with brilliant people. You learn so much about so many things.
I like going back to where I still call home in Ireland, but London is my home and I always love coming back whenever I've been away.
pennimania
20-04-2007, 22:48
Having lived in Skye for about 5 years , but still being able to return frequently until last year - when I rented my house...
I only miss - walthamstow market and relatively cheap restaurants.
mr mania misses the local pub.
I do not miss dirt, bad manners and overcrowded streets.
But I am rather middle aged :D
lunatrick
20-04-2007, 23:06
it's just a london thing......I miss the buzz you get from being slap bang at the heart of the known universe...I used to be able to see the London eye from my desk and walk around the southbank at lunchtime......then I was working in covent garden and so could stroll around soho in my lunchtime..........the world class clubs - all night long at the end being my favourite...the relentless buzz, and the feeling of history right below your feet. Famous iconoclastic images that appear in music and film time and time again. :cool:
brokenyolk
29-04-2007, 04:30
i do miss some of the oomph but i do not at all miss the urgh. until i left london i wasn't quite so aware of how much urgh there was.
when i get back in a few weeks time i shall be mostly going to the tate, eating a d.bess patty, window-shopping records at sounds of the universe and strolling through wonderful brockwell park. oh and going to offline at the albert. :)
i do miss some of the oomph but i do not at all miss the urgh. until i left london i wasn't quite so aware of how much urgh there was.
Nicely put :D That sums it up for me. When I go back now, I can feel my blood pressure rising, and not in the good way that I used to have when I lived there and say left for a weekend and came back. Now there's a taint of dread and exasperation, which is not good.
Having said that, it's alright once I get outside of central London itself, and in more kinda local-ish places. It's the crammed up-ishness that does me now.
Yossarian
29-04-2007, 17:23
I´m going to miss certain people, certain pubs, free festivals in summer, etc, but I can´t think of anything unique to London that I´ll miss except perhaps the range of live music on offer. I don´t think there´s another city in the UK I´d want to live in for long though...
I have been gone for 3 years now, sold my place and now live outside of the UK.
I now dont really miss anything, but the first couple of years I missed loads.
Sloshing
Friends
Drugs
Night life
Food
Notting Hill Carnival
Riding my bike
Certain streets
People
Shops
The River
Parks
History
London_Calling
30-04-2007, 07:30
The criss-crossing between hugely diverse social/cultural groupings. Totally unique to London.
dash_two
30-04-2007, 07:42
Born and raised here, what I'd miss would depend on where I was moving to. Probably decent food, you can get any kind here. If I could get a cushy little job in another city in Britain I'd probably move tomorrow. London is for young people and rich people.
vBulletin® v3.7.4, Copyright ©2000-2009, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.