A Man Tired of London…

It never occurred to me that I could become tired of London. Yet, many people get tired of living in a big city. I lived in a little town, and even though I love the countryside, I wouldn’t dream of leaving Paris now, no more than I dreamt of leaving London while I resided over there.

Why grow weary of London?

A Man Tired of London...

‘Is a man tired of life‘ as the saying goes. I never grew tired of London. I didn’t choose where I was born, but i did choose to live there. It must mean something.

A Man Tired of London...

But you do choose where you live. This is the place in the world I have always wanted to live in and I was very lucky to live there for 4 years.

24048185940_abfe681084_k

London is a very energetic city, one where options are always open, where the world is always at your doorstep. A lot of the time I was jumping on planes and travelling the world. 

A Man Tired of London...

Not far from where I lived.

24048197580_9eb20e969b_k
Brook Mews North, W2.

My dream as a young man was to live in a mews flat. and I did. 29B (now 30) Brook Mews North where I used to live. I never find where the brook was by the way, one must have buried it under the road. The “No Parking At Any Time” sign is my doing and it’s still there 34 years later.

24261278001_cab29f850f_k

A classic view of London

hiapparition

Apparition. A poem by Stéphane Mallarmé.

hieiffel-finie

I never grew tired of London, which was a constant source of inspiration for me. 

40365350115_7424b9d6fb_k

One day I had to get back home however. I didn’t want it to happen like that but circumstances were such that I settled down for good, you know where. Another source of inspiration. A man tired of Paris is also a man tired of life.

As a young man people would ask me in London whether I preferred London to Paris and they would immediately add: ‘of course, you prefer Paris, goes without saying…’ and that used to drive me potty. Much as I like both, people, I prefer London. And the sudden surge of jingoism over there will do nothing to change my mind nor the good memories I have from my time in England.

Yann Gourvennec
Latest posts by Yann Gourvennec (see all)
Yann Gourvennec
Yann Gourvennec

I'm a photographer and watercolourist. I have practiced photography since childhood and digital photography since 1995. I turned it into my main occupation in 2021. I own a photo studio in Paris, France.
------------
Je suis photographe et aquarelliste. Je pratique la photographie depuis l'enfance et la photographie numérique depuis 1995. J'en ai fait mon activité principale en 2021. Je possède un studio photo dans le 15e arrondissement de Paris

Articles: 965

7 Comments

  1. I agree. I’m lucky enough to visit London often, and. I relish discovering lesser known corners of this city. Still, this little Country Mouse is glad enough to get away from the hurly burly after a few days!

Leave a Reply

Discover more from Yann Gourvennec - Photography

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading