London when the sun shines (finally!)

Five months of grey can get depressing.

It certainly takes a fighting spirit to come out the other side of a London winter with a positive outlook. But then finally....the sun shines and everything changes.

Don't get me wrong, London in winter was definitely not as bad as I had anticipated. It only snowed once this year. And yes it did get bone-chillingly cold, but only for about a month.

But as the days begin to get longer, and the sun's rays finally begin to pierce through the grey cloud, you can smell the optimism in the air.

It's as though Londoners anticipate sunshine so much more that there's almost celebrations and dancing in the streets when it does stream through the window. The city breathes a collective sigh of relief.

And people change. London is fraught with "busy" people. Rushing through the streets, running to catch the bus, pushing in the tube stations.
But when the sun shines everything slows down a notch and people begin to enjoy the city.

Smiles are so much more abundant, and people talk to each other!

Here's an example: Yesterday the sun was out. My friend was running to catch the bus, which it was clear she would never make in a million years, but she tried anyway. There wasn't a single person at the stop, so theoretically the bus would just keep on going. But it did...it slowed down, came to a halt and the driver opens the doors just as said friend reaches the stop, "I knew you were going to make it" he grinned.
I wonder if that would have happened on a grey miserable day?

Another thing, the birds get confused.
The sun must be so bewildering after being in hiding for so long and the birds sing all through the night. Or maybe they're just happy the sun is out again too...
Imagine lying with the window open a crack and having birds lull you into a peaceful dream-land...

Of course there's the daffodils. My FAVOURITE. Daffodils everywhere, in Hyde Park, being sold by street-vendors, even stacks and stacks of them in the supermarket.
Nothing says "summer's coming" like a bright yellow daffodil.

In short, the first hint of spring in London is like a gold star for surviving winter.
Londoners are all the nerdy kids who have worked so hard but never get noticed, and then finally the teacher says, "I've noticed you trying so hard to get through this, you've done enough, this is for all your hard work". Then they enjoy the reward so much more because they've been waiting for it for so long.