Having spent a fair amount of my time in the city recently (London to be precise) I have started to realise these subtle, and not so subtle, differences between the city atmosphere and the town or country atmosphere. Apart from the obvious differences in the surrounding environment, I feel differences in the entire life form of the two places.

When I'm in the country I feel part of the natural world; I feel as though I am living amongst the trees and the animals, a member of the community of "life", wandering through an everlasting ever-changing natural world. I almost feel like a visitor, or a nomad, passing through the territory of the plants and animals (or the fields at least). I can see the stars move above me, the ground alive beneath me. From this extreme I head back to the town, where I have spent most of my life.

From here I can see green hills on the horizon, and when I walk up to them I can see the town below me in the valley. It looks as though it has taken control of it's land, but I can still see the fields and trees surrounding it, almost observing the town and its inhabitants, aware that one day these squatters will pass on and it will take control again. Here Nature always feels as though it is in control.

In a city this all changes. As I walk through the centre of London everything I see is man made. Even the parks and trees and developed and managed by humans, the squirrels and pigeons are there by our grace alone. Instead of feeling a member of Nature, I feel a member of Humanity. I feel as though I am in a human world, part of the human race and all that that entails. At night, I don't imagine the trees gently swaying, I imagine the cars, and the people on the streets, the buildings and the shops, all alive, prowling or sleeping. I feel safe (from nature at least), as though this land has been conquered by humanity, and nature is only allowed in with our consent.

I had never really appreciated this difference before I spent a significant time in a city. I imagine that if I lived in an urban area for an extended period of time this would have a massive effect on me, and how I view what is going on in the world, especially with regards to nature. I am glad that I have grown up in the semi-country; it has given me a better understanding of our position in the grand scheme of things, and helped me appreciate more why it is important that we preserve the natural environment that is around us.