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outdoor terrace with a view out over the park. The men
simply change clothes in the pub as they drain a few pints
of beer. “It’s good for calming your nerves and it keeps my
throwing arm steadier,” one of the 30-something players
laughs, wearing his traditional white cricket uniform. The
matches at London Fields usually start at 1 p.m. and
during half-time, it’s time for beer and sandwiches with
the opponent. A cricket match can last up to four or five
hours, so as a spectator, prepare yourself for a long,
languidafternoon.
A story about the parks in London would naturally not
be complete without the city’s most famous one (and
another of its Royal Parks): Hyde Park. Perfectly
manicured, the grass looks like it was cut with nail
clippers, and the flowerbeds are always lined up nice and
neat. Park manager Jason Taylor tells me this is logical; a
lot is invested in the park after all. “We work with a team of
25 gardeners who are incredibly passionate about their
work, many of whom have been doing this for dozens of
years,” he says. “They make sure that everything grows,
design flowerbeds, keep an eye on the trees, and think
about where improvements can be made. They also pick
up trash. They don’t work for us, but for the park. That’s
how we see it at any rate.” Taylor recommends visiting the
meadows in the northwestern section of the park. “If you
want to get the real ‘I’m escaping the big city’ feeling that
is. It’s like being in the English countryside. You can also
see animals there and there are unique butterflies that
don’t live in the other areas.”
Unfortunately, I have to shatter the dream of anyone
who reads this and thinks, ‘Wow, London sure sounds like
a healthy place to live’. Even though London is one of the
greenest cities in the world, it also happens to be one of
the dirtiest. The air pollution in particular is terrible, and on
some days, the air is more polluted here than in Beijing,
China. Often referred to as ‘the lungs of the city’, the parks
are a necessity: Without these green spaces, the air quality
would be even worse. Which is plenty reason enough to
enjoy them each week, like I do.products come from.” This is precisely the reason why
local Brett Mettler loves coming here. “I do my weekly
grocery shopping at this market,” she tells me. “Everything
is organic and free-range. I love how the offering changes
with the seasons.” I ask her if she thinks it’s expensive. She
shrugs. “Yes, but I’m happy to pay for quality. I can really
taste the difference and I believe this type of food is more
nutritious.” She says that the market is also a meeting
place. “I am constantly running into people from the
neighborhood here, which is always fun. It’s also a typical
market for Londoners; there aren’t many tourists here. They
tend to go to the more famous Borough Market.”LONG, LANGUID AFTERNOONS
Once I’ve had my fill of treats at Victoria Park, I often
continue on to London Fields. The walk along Regent’s
Canal, with its eccentric houseboats, is in itself worth
doing. Whenever I have people visiting from the
Netherlands, this is usually the point at which they state
that London is really nothing like they thought it would be.
During the spring and summer months, London Fields is
the place to spot a typically English event: cricket. The
teams gather at Pub On The Park, a bar with a hugeSuse van Kleef moved to London, UK, from the
Netherlands three years ago and now works as
a freelance correspondent for several Dutch
media outlets. “The country has gone rather
adrift since I moved here,” she says. “The Brexit
referendum, the government crises and terror
attacks have all followed each other in quick
succession. These news developments,
combined with stories about cultural events and
sports, are what make my job so varied.
London is an amazing place to live: I never get
bored with the variety of restaurants, people and
crazy events. I always loved to visit the city and
now I feel at home here.”THE CORRESPONDENTTEXTSUSE VAN KLEEFPHOTOGRAPHYIRIS VAN NOORD