Hurrah – my favourite day of the year since living in London has arrived. The last time I have to push and squash myself onto a busy bus, tube and then walk briskly to get into the office through the Victoria crowds. This year’s commute has been equally crap as last year’s and I’m definitely ready to give it a rest for nearly two weeks.
Commuting in London is tough for everyone – the sadness can often linger hours after stepping out of the sardine can vehicle as can the frustration and the disillusionment. There are moments of shared joy where humanity makes the long journey down to London’s bowel, but they are usually reserved for afternoons and evenings.
When you’ve had a tough commute, it can feel like you’ve used all your energy up before even arriving at work. On those mornings – where everything seems to go wrong – I long for the cycles to work I used to have in Aberdeen where I couldn’t feel my hands on arrival and my hair was always windswept and interesting.
Put together with MG, commuting in London can feel impossible when you’re having fatigue days. You feel like crying when someone nips ahead of you to get the last seat and you barely lift your arm up to hold on. Most days I get a seat after a few stops but sometimes it can be half an hour of standing which in the heat and the huddle is tiring.
Today, transport is quiet as London evacuates for Christmas so I’ll get a seat. Nonetheless roll on 2 weeks of calm Edinburgh and Dublin transport.
