During our seminar, we were set a task where we had to sit in a specific area and write down everything we saw, smelt, felt and heard. I decided to sit on a bench outside the Minerva Building looking towards the water which I felt was a beautiful spot to sit and take it my surroundings.
See- As I was sat facing the water the first thing I saw was the river along wide the swans on it. I could also see boats that were docked in the water. Above the water, which you could see reflected from the water, was many chain restaurants. I could see all of their names as they were all lit up with neon and from where I was I could inside the establishments. In my eyesight was also multiple trees. These trees were obviously feeling the force of Autumn as most of their leaves had been shed. I could also see multiple students walking to and from lectures. These students were mostly talking to their friends or walking on their phones. During this task, it started raining so I could see the raindrops rippling the water which made feel very peaceful at the time.
Smell- As I was sat on the bench I could smell a very earthy scent while I was there. I believe that this is due to the fact that it was Autumn so scents like this were very strong due to the falling leaves. Midway through my task, I got a sudden scent of citrus which I am not sure where the scent came from as there was not anything around me that would explain the scent.
Feel- When I started the task I felt very judged by the passer-bys. I think the reason for this feeling is because sitting in public on my own isn’t something that I would normally do as I feel like that would be an awkward and rather embarrassing experience however my view on this changed as within twenty minutes of this task being set I started to feel at ease and not worried about my surroundings especially the judgement of others.
Hear- Throughout this experience I heard many different sounds. Just across from me was a group of skaters who were doing tricks so one of the sounds I could predominantly hear was that of a skateboard hitting the ground. In the background, I could hear a constant chatting with the multiple people who walked past however their tones and conversations varied wildly. Some people that I heard were having a chat as they walked past and I heard a lot of laughter come from them. Which juxtapositions nicely with another group I encountered who seemed to be in the middle of a heated discussion filled with raised voices and cursing. Some of these people had luggage with them so I could hear the bag’s wheels connecting with the cobbled pavement.
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