created by Will Leach

Will explores his first impressions of our city

I would lay in bed, thinking of the cityscape,
just a country bumpkin dreaming of a bigger place.
A city filled with like-minded people,
the perfect place to film my sequel.
Twenty-one, keys in the ignition
to the city’s my decision.

I approach.
       I pause.
              I stand.

Gazing at the cityscape.
Bright lights shine through each and every window frame.
It glistens. Seemingly flawless,
harmonious like the most wonderful chorus.
It’s beauty from afar but it’s far from beautiful
the view gets marred when you march into it all.
Bits of it look nice from a distance
in the thick of it, you can feel quite different.

I wander as part of the cityscape.
Titanic towers can sometimes asphyxiate
car horns blast. “Take it easy mate
I didn’t see you there, I’ll be on my way.”
I don’t mind he had somewhere to go,
so does everyone so through this city I roam
till it’s back to my home, sit on my throne
Whoa. I’ve never felt so alone.

It’s hard in the beginning
you feel so insignificant
Nothing but a tourist in the city that you’re living in
I was a big fish, in a small pond.
Now I’m frogspawn in an endless ocean
in a shoddy shared house and the rents atrocious.
Insomniac city I can understand why;
it’s hard to sleep as strident sirens pass by.
You won’t see the stars in the night sky.
It hardly gets dark at night time,
the smog gets filled with a ghastly bright shine.

But it’s not all bad, believe…
I love how history paves these streets.
Countless cultures coexist in relative peace.
Okay, so we don’t smile at each other.
But most of the time we’re not aggressive at least.

Most importantly pints are five fifty
so if you’re to thrive then you better thrive thrifty.
Drive quickly.
Cityscape in your rear view.
Escaping the fears you, live by, adhere to.
So that’s my cityscape immigrate.
Isn’t great, but I’m leaving with a bigger brain.
Even if it’s with a thinner waist.

Will Leach moved to London from Plymouth in 2014.

Follow him at @WLeach5