A Beautiful River

The tide is out

It is a cold morning and I cross the Waterloo Bridge from Waterloo station heading to Sommerset House where it all began: This is where the Courtauld Art Institute located. 

Beneath me, the River Thames flows East as the tide goes out, towards the North Sea. From now, low tide, the water will rise as much as 23 feet during high tide. 

London is uniquely intertwined with the river, similar to San Francisco and the bay: It is unimaginable to consider one without the other. Human habitation dates back to neolithic times; Julius Caesar was here in 54 BC. And of course Shakespeare.

The Thames tidal flow makes it both interesting and rejuvenating - it charges the city (for some, south of the river a no-go area; East London the new hot spot while the Isle of Dogs equals Canary Wharf) and sweeps away, at least spiritually, London's cares (no longer sewage, fortunately).