Flânerie

I was reading an article on Monocle Magazine about the joy of flânerie. I have always been a keen flâneuse – every time I’m in a new city, I love to walk around to really see what the city is like.

Baudelaire described the flâneur as “a person who walks the city in order to experience it”. I think this is one the greatest strengths of the cities – this possibility to observe many faces of the city and of the people, taking your time and using all of your senses.

Sometimes, the city is not made for walking – like Amman, a city clearly designed for cars, but when you reach the city center (the gold souk) and the streets are bustling (Laila, any thoughts?). Soham is in Freetown and described his flânerie attempt here. From my point of view, a good city is one that you can understand more of the local history and the culture by enjoying a nice and pleasant stroll. With pauses for food and drinks. And, maybe some shopping.

Mexico is a lovely place to flâner: the city center is a lively area, with beautiful old architecture, a vibrant commerce and a really Mexican flavor. Polanco (where I live), is a leafy neighborhood and I love the many restaurants and little shops that can still be found in the area (you can also find Louis Vuitton, Cartier and everything else, I just don’t find it that interesting). However, Santa Fé – where I work - is a flâneur’s nightmare: tall glass buildings, very little street commerce, everything is far away and most of the buildings look as any random corporate neighborhood.