Kevin Lynch and my image of London


Ideas


Given that I can’t get enough of Kevin Lynch’s “Image of the City”, I thought that I would start off my time in London by drawing my own mental map of the city. This map is based on my experiences after being in London for less than a week (so cut me some slack).

Unsurprisingly, my residence at Goodenough College features most prominently in my mental map of London. The Charles Dickens Museum, just down the street, has served as a handy landmark assuring me that I am on the right track when on my way home.

I find it most interesting to compare this new image of London with the image in my memory from when I was here as a tourist with my family so many years ago. I’m having a hard time rationalizing these two perspectives. Predictably, my tourist image of the city is dominated by key landmarks, such as the Big Ben, London Eye, and the Thames River. Given that I haven’t seen any of these landmarks since arriving to London as a student, I haven’t been able to align my memories of London with my more recent experiences.