Downscaling

For A Change, Dec, 2004 by Jessica Fleischer

I like to look at the big picture before jumping into something. So for several months before I came to work on For A Change, I had a map of the world on my computer desktop, with London circled in red. The distance from Mexico City could be measured in centimetres. My new life would be reduced to the area inside the millimetre-wide circle.

You might expect that for someone from one of the biggest cities in the world, London wouldn't be that impressive, but this city is full of so many superlatives that nothing I can write can do it justice.

When I first visited London, almost 10 years ago, I was impressed with the black cabs, the telephone boxes and all the historic tourist spots. The second time I came here, the pubs, second-hand bookshops, theatres and markets found a place in my heart. The next time, as a student, it was the parks that captured my emotions, these vast green areas that make London so much more liveable than Mexico City. This time I am keeping away from tourist places and trying to immerse myself in the day to day life of this eclectic city, full of magic and a powerful past. This time the little things are the ones that get to me.