A Monday rush hour a week ago from today. It was the same time we usually set off for work before the virus took over. There are five tube stops from home to Waterloo. It was on the 18th of March when I last used the London Underground.
Being surprised was an understatement — if someone can be truly overwhelmed by extraordinary quietness, this was how it felt. From packed trains that defined our daily commute, it was possible to maintain more than 2 metres social distance inside the train during my travel that day. Even the escalators to the street were almost empty. There was a bit of sadness in my heart.
Having overestimated my travel time, I was about half an hour early for my appointment. To idle away time, I headed towards the river, to the London Eye, walked westwards to the Westminster Bridge and round the bend to get my work ID. This early Monday morning walk is no less than truly memorable.
The sky was blue, the sun was bright. It was a nice warm summer morning. As I walked along the ticket booths for the London Eye, I suddenly missed the many tourists that used to cover almost every space of the riverwalk. And as I moved a few metres more, I said to myself “London is superlatively beautiful”. I was a tourist of this place when I first saw it 20 years ago and that tourist persona has not left me at all.
With a smile on my face, I took my phone camera out. I directed the lens to capture the River Thames, the London sky, Westminster Bridge and behind it, the Houses of the Parliament; and then four red London buses appeared. Right at that moment, I felt London’s heartbeat. Despite the unusual silence, London is very much alive!
For now, Londoners are enjoying the capital without its tourists. Someday, people from all over will come again. But I will always have in my memory this moment alone with London, on a Monday rush hour morning during the COVID-19 Lockdown.
Here is the photo that I took on 06 July 2020.
Merry Tea 