Poké-stop and smell the roses.

The last time I went to London, I went to the theatre for my sister’s birthday. We saw ‘The End of Longing’.

 I’m not going to lie to you; we went because it was written by Matthew Perry.

There was a gut-wrenching moment when I didn’t think he was going to come through, but he did. It was great, and we left feeling slightly more sophisticated for going to The Theatre Darling.

And that has always been my experience with London. You go see the sights, see the art or the theatre or the poetry reading, or even a rock concert and you come back feeling like you had fun, you are a bit more cultured now, but you didn’t see London. You weren’t part of London.

 

Who could be part of such a landmark city? Who could not stand on the periphery of tourist attractions and postcard streets?

On Saturday 23^rd of July 2016, that all changed.

The meeting point was outside big ben, the time was 13 hundred hours.

It was Pokémon go time.

My boyfriend and I went with battery packs full and mobile data pumping, our hats turned backwards. There was so many people, 5000 trainers all crammed in the same place at the same time, brought together by their love of something, innocent and fun.

The sun shone and to be honest we didn’t manage the 10 km routes, instead, we sat outside the houses of parliament and gazed at the multitudes of people milling past.

Some confused at the mass of Pokémon players, some bathing in the atmosphere of acceptance, and one distraught looking bride who thought a wedding photo shot outside Westminster would look great. Maybe I’m wrong, maybe she planned for the horde of Pokémon trainers in her wedding photos.

When we tried setting off we were completely blindsided by a thousand random bikes sailing past. What caught me by surprise wasn't the sheer number of cyclists, but the fact that the all appeared to be boys and I still have no idea what they were doing. Or why.

I guess I’ll never know.

We wondered through Buckingham Palace gardens, and up to Piccadilly Circus. We had a spot of lunch at Chiquitos.

And although we didn’t really do anything, I have never felt more a part of a city. I have never felt more welcome and involved.

I guess this shows that your opinion, your perspective, your own internal stereotypes can change at any time. You are constantly evolving.

Breaking the student stereotypes has never been so fun.