London for ever - 20

Unlike Oxford Street, it was the evening the most intense time in Leicester Square. And if during the day the streets were simply trafficked, at night, at certain times, the human crowd proceeded like a sea tide, moving from one point to another of London by night, and  passing through the square, seemed for a moment to sway, in front of me, as uncertain whether to proceed or to go back. Then it resumed its unstoppable flow, like a river of lava that exceeds the elbow of a steep ridge, finally aiming at the valley.

These real human traffic jams occurred especially in coincidence with the conclusion of the performances of the numerous theaters that are located in the square, mainly from Friday to Sunday. Another topical moment, in which the streets were animated dramatically, was that between 23.00 and 23.45, that is at the time when, depending on the days, close the countless pubs in London.

Of that immense crowd, while I waited patiently close to the machines to fulfill any requests, I was amused to imagine the origin, the wealth, the cultural level, the reason why they were in London and in that square, at that time.

If they spoke to me, to ask for an ice-cream, a drink or even for some  information, then it was even possible to identify their exact nationality: each people, according to its mother tongue, has a particular vocal conformation that manifests its peculiar traits in the emission of sounds of the English language.

 Even the clothing and the way of handling money were elements  from which to derive, if nothing else in general, the origin of my patrons. For example, it was usual for an Englishman to pay you the amount of ice cream (which cost thirty pence at the time) by remarking the payment of the coins, while some Arabs preferred to pay with the bills, sometimes without waiting the rest. And if Westerners, in general, preferred to satisfy their thirst by buying a can of Coca-Cola inside the store that housed our machines, the Orientals chose to quench their thirst with the orange juice that I prepared daily, of which they could observe the contained since before the mix in transparent plastic cups, in plexiglass containers of the refrigerating machine.

The North Europeans consumed more, where the Mediterranean, a bit 'for the climate (however, and increasingly stiffer than theirs), a bit' for the unfavorable exchange, consume less, with the necessary exceptions, of course.

From my ice cream station I was surprised to observe, not without some admiration, the discipline with which the English stood in line at the box office to buy tickets for the various shows. Two other things struck me in that context: the trust and impassivity that, even very advanced people of age, showed in the booking for events that would take place in a few years and the immovable determination with which the girls refused to get the ticket paid by their boyfriends.

20. to be continued...