With the City Heat (sans Clint)

Last week brought the first hot sunshine (as opposed to autumnal chilly sun) of the year. 

The experience of summer in the city is markedly different from that in the countryside, for obvious reasons. In many ways, summertime in the country is when it really comes into its own. You can walk, lie in fields, go on bike rides and generally be gay: it’s the quintessential image we have of rolling fields and beaming glorious sunshine. There’s a reason Winston Smith went into the country to get it awwwwwnnnn. 

Conversely, winter-time in the country can have a deathly and oppressive air to it. The trees are barren, the insects are dying and everything curls up into a seasonal hiatus waiting for spring. 

Nice, but still not as good as the real thing

The city, on the other hand, is able to flourish in the winter because there is so much to do, both indoor and out. So, if the park is getting short shrift the galleries, cinemas and theatres aren’t. Nor are the shopping centres.

 

Last week the offensively mild climate gave way to real sunshine and beating the pavement produced that first feeling of real, deep-down heat – not just a bit of sweaty dampness here and there but so that the soles of your feet are steaming like a cow pat.

 

Heat in the built-up, concrete city creates a smell of fumes and people that gets into your clothes and reminds you of crowds when you get home and catch a whiff. The buses and, especially, the Tube, become travelling hot-boxes where people waft newspapers and remove layers – whilst there is always one nutcase who looks ready to scale Everest: coat, scarf, gloves, ski goggles, oxygen tank.

Dog homes, power stations and bridges

In honour of the sun I took advantage of some of London’s myriad open spaces, taking in Battersea, Hyde and Green parks in the space of Saturday afternoon.

 

These places are well used when it’s sunny. Drinkers, sun-bathers, footballers, power-walkers, drinkers, joggers and drinkers all decide they’ve spent far too much time shopping during the rest of the year, leave all their purchases at home and wear very little on the grass.

 

Here are the parks so far (I’ll try to visit them all before leaving):

 

Battersea

 

People on tandems, walking dogs and even one guy trotting around with a parrot on his shoulder. Unlike most of the other parks, it’s not just a big field, there’s a lake which you can pedalo and row on, a huge pagoda overlooking the Thames and a massive variety of gardens.

 

Hyde

 

One of the aforementioned big field parks. But not David Cameron’s Big Society big; actually big. It’s a behemoth, but none too interesting if you are already familiar with grass and a view of tower blocks and not a lot else. Look out for twats playing really organised games of rounders that look like no fun at all.

 

Green

 

Not the biggest but in prime location between Piccadilly and the Mall meaning that you have a nice little leafy walk between shopping and sightseeing. Basically the Queen’s front garden so never going to go to pot either.