TENHO SAUDADE POR LONDRES . I HAVE LONGINGS FOR LONDON

I had a nostalgic day in London. I was not reliving any of the days past but was visiting places and remembering. In fact I did not specifically remember the emotions years ago when I had visited these places as a student.

My interest in architecture must have been born during my student days in London, I will not get tired of its buildings from various centuries. (I still can imagine walking past the buildings in Regent Street and feel like a colonial boy from Australia in the Big Smoke for the first time )

It still thrills me to observe London from the front seats upstairs of the iconic double decker, no more the Jamaican immigrant conductors with their thick accents. Gower Street, the book store, onwards towards U of London, School of Tropical Medicine, plaques declaring the residences of celebrities, past the British Museum on your left at the Great Russell Street.

Yesterday I looked for this centuries old Umbrellas shop couldn't find it but today I spotted it from the double decker.

At the begining of Oxford Street near the Tottenham Court Tube station, these buildings have stood the test of time. On my visit ever to London, walking past these buildings took my breath away. Today a duo of musicians were belting out reggae influenced music, much to the delight of the passers by

I will upload a video of the various faces of Londoners listening to the music later here. As Paddington Bear said: London is so full of so many different people, you can easily fit in 

There are associaton of Ethiopian Christians, Vanuatu association of UK.. just to give two examples..

Down the streets, I darted towards FOYLES the worlds best book store with multiple stories crammed with books. I used to spend some of my free weekends there and one such afternoon  I was browsing through the African colonial writers, which was my interest at that time. I was reading a book of poems by Okot p'Bitek, whom I had heard about in Australia, while he was teaching English at University of Papua New Guinea. I made a remark to a gentleman who was standing nearby, to that effect. He responded, I hear Okot is visiting London, would you like to meet him. I was thrilled at this possibility and he extended his hands and said: I am Okot p'Bitek from Uganda..
You can always expect the unexpected at Foyles: parents and children looking for age appropriate books, books on Anthropology or Medicine ( which was in the basement if I remember). 
I approached a gentleman and asked him which floor now houses the cafe. He gave me the directions and we struck up a conversation.

 Aly from Erbil in Kurdistan was relieving a friend of his today and thus found himself working at Foyles. We talked about Kurdistan, the greater Kurdistan which includes Turkish Kurds as well as Syrian and Iranian Kurds. Too much infighting for us to have a single country, he lamented. We both welcomed the warmth Kurds feel towards Israelis.
From Israelis we can expect technological advancements and from Palestinians, they ask for money to buy rockets.
Our conversation turned to Iran, a country that I am in love with (since my primary school days). Did you hear about the Iranian lady with a baby who went to visit her relatives in Iran and despite being British as well as Iranians is still in jail for being a "spy". Try not to go when these illogical Imams are in place, he counselled. He echoes the many people that I have met who advise me against visiting Iran as long as the Mullahs are in power.
One day I will bring my family to Cuba for a holiday he promised and I gave him my visiting card just in case!

Many of the familiar businesses have disappeared, the character of London at the time of my student days was the strong influence by the presence of migrants from its former colonies. Nowadays I cant even tell whether someone is a British Pakistani or Indian , as there is a accepted norm of dressing that gives unanimity and conformity. There is a particular lack of Hijabs, the ones wearing it are usually tourists or recent arrivals.

 When I was reading Anthropology, hardly a day went past without my arriving at the Bar Italia and savouring a Cappuccino. Recent Italian arrivals nurtured their skills under the watchful eyes of Rocky Graziano and the machine that has stood the test of time, since the 1950s of this little corner of Italy

I usually came by myself and as such there are no memories of great conversations and I cannot compare the tastes as I do not remember how it tasted all those years ago.

But I do remember listening to Chucho Valdes and his sister and his group at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club across the street from Bar Italia and next to Delhi Brasserie

 And  I do remember how Masala Dosai tasted at this South Indian Vegetarian Restaurant. Even on recent visits I had savoured the Masala Dosai here.

I was gratified to see BETRAYAL by the late British Jewish playwright playing across the street. I had seen it more than once in other venues during my student days.
Those times, without a great social base, I had much time to explore London or attend as many theatrical shows, as students with an ID had special rates.
I do remember the strong emotions while watching BETRAYAL at that time.

Nor would I forget crying copiously while watching THE SCHINDLERS LIST at this very movie theatre.
I said to myself: I am glad I am a Jew, I am happy to be a Jew.

On the left is the Haymarket theatre and I remember watching the British Jewish actor Sir Derek Jacobi there. To the right Her Majesty's theatre where I sat unimpressed with visiting Jamaican bourgeoisie eager to see the Phantom of the Opera which is still playing there . Right behind you see the High Commission of New Zealand Aotearoa .

Walking slowly I looked for signs of a vanished Ceylon Tea House, an airlines called Emirates which had opened offices, I am sure moved to more opulent space elsewhere and came upon this statue.

King George III with his nervous conditions who gave us USA! Now we know that his medical condition had been correctly identified as Acute Intermittent Porphyria.
On a recent visit to a distant clinic, I was presented a patient with Acute Intermittent Porphyia and she was more than pleased that her disease had brought independence to the USA. I also told her of the high rate of AIP in South Africa and the lady who brought the gene to the southern hemisphere aboard a 17th century ship.

One reaches the Trafalgar square the plaza of embassies: You can see Malaysian flag and next to it is the Ugandan flag, to the left is the Canadian High Commission. But the embassy that was in my world when I was a student was the South African Embassy where we would assemble on a regular basis with our Free Mandela tee shirts.
I distinctly remember one morning, I was carrying Free Mandela placard, and was a little scared when I looked at my watch. I turned to the man next to me and said 
Do you mind holding this placard, I have to go to Australia!
I left for Heathrow Airport (taking the tube from Picadilly circus) to catch my Qantas flight to Australia . On my final year as a medical student in London, I went home to Australia five times, do not have individual memories of the trips but always remember arriving at Tullamarine Airport to a certain euphoria.
During my medical student days I had mainly lived in dorms and rooms belonging to hospitals. But fortunes had changed during my Anthropology studies which I consider to be some of the best times in my life (from an intellectual point of view). I was living in a more comfortable place and had the opportunity to begin indulging in the capitals culinary scene.

Yes London is the only city which has been with me all through the trials and tribulations of this wandering Jew. Others came, seduced me for a while and rejected me?  Melbourne Australia, New York, NY to give just two examples. I had also been in love with Buenos Aires in Argentina (was it the tango? or Malbec?)..Many small cities came and went . Kingston Jamaica, Suva Fiji Islands 
But London has been a faithful mistress all through these meanderings..
Right now my life is divided between American, European and Asian continents..
But London is never far away from my heart..