London Fixation

Who would have predicted that the touchdown of my virgin long-haul flight on London Heathrow two years ago will transpire my London fixation today? Trapped at the window seat with British Airways for as long as the engine still propelled, I was at the brink of experiencing a thrombosis attack before I saw the resplendent jewel, splendid and shiny, indistinguishable between the adrenaline rush of a woman who steps into a Chanel store and fall in love instantaneously with the genuine leather boots posing elegantly on the squeaky-clean glass table, it dazzled deep into my core. London, I was finally arrived.

Unfortunately, London Heathrow remained as the only ‘tourist destination’ for me during that journey before I dashed quickly for my next flight to Oslo, Norway. Patiently waited for longer than a year, the name London was again surged in my mind. This time, instead of blanketing the City with contrail left by a speed of sound jet engine, I was amongst the millions cells that enjoyed unrestrained streaming in the veins of London.

It was challenging to illustrate the lifestyle of Londoners and the haste of the City through the ardent following of Choi Tuck Wo’s column back home. His London Log was undoubtedly an incontrovertible source of London feed for most Malaysians. But I truly reckon a £600 transcontinental return airfare is inevitable if one ruminates to cure his/her ridiculous obsession about London. It simply is utterly disparate reading it on paper and seeing it with your own eyes.

The initial intention to stay in the United Kingdom was to assess the compatibility of the Kingdom with my post-colonisation survival spirit from the far East. I wasn’t certain about my decision. However, several trips in the past year to the City, meeting with transformed Londoner – Fiona for a few occasions, and a couple of affairs with native Londoners later, I finally find no excuse for denying my addiction to London. This is where I desire to spend the major part of my remaining life. Settlement, an idea I detested profoundly in the past intriguing creeps into my soul.

It isn’t without challenge, and the challenge isn’t minor. Survival precedes settlement, and survival is the corollary of legality, reasons, and an exigent issue tightly linked to resources. The current economic climate surely is blowing disastrous headwind that tramples on my motivation to propel forward.

But I have decided, not without doubt, that despite the discouraging atmosphere, I am to gamble on my bottoming resources, betting on perhaps the most important game in my life, for the betterment of both material and emotional desires. London, I look forward to becoming one of your esteemed members.