A visit that brought people together
Chloe Goodall describes the mood on the streets as the new King came to our new city
WHEN I arrive outside the City Chambers, crowds have already started to gather, it’s almost 9.30am and while the weather isn’t looking great, it’s dry and warm. Already, there’s a buzz of excitement in the air.
I head off to get myself ready for a long morning of work and when I get back, at 10am now, the crowd has almost doubled and I think to myself that this is a great turnout. I’m not expecting it to get much busier.
The King isn’t due to arrive until around 11am so I take a minute to have a look around the crowd, I don’t really know what to expect. Maybe some kids making trouble as they skip class to come down and see the commotion or people pushing and shoving their way to the front.
I’m surprised to see it isn’t like that at all, there’s people chatting away to each other. Someone stops to pet another person’s dog and they strike up a short conversation, other groups are laughing together as they make their way down the hill, coffee in hand.
It feels like one moment there’s only around 50 people gathered but the next there is hundreds. Every time I look around more and more people have trickled down the High Street.
While the sun isn’t shining, the atmosphere is bright. There’s no complaints from anyone as they settle in for an uncertain wait. Some have been there since nine, not sure when King Charles will arrive but happy to wait among friends.
I can’t help but feel like it’s a nice change of pace, seeing people enjoying the company of those in their community. The visit seems to have brought people together.
Before the arrival of the King, I take some time to chat to those waiting. They all have different reasons for being here, some to support family, some to witness a historic moment and some to welcome a new monarch. It’s incredible to see people come together, even though they all have different opinions.
The King’s arrival went by in a blur, the crowd were cheering and laughing and everyone was clamouring to get videos and pictures of the moment he climbed the steps of the City Chambers. People started to head after he went inside but a good few stayed to catch a final glimpse.
You really could feel the excitement of the crowd as you stood there, the way silence fell as King Charles got out of the car, the cheers and watching as young kids were hoisted onto shoulders to get a better view.
While waiting, ladies from the crowd start chatting away to me. One of them has been there since nine and tried to get as close as she could and while she couldn’t quite make it to the barrier, she was delighted looking back at her pictures and videos.
Two of the ladies, who came up behind me asking if I had managed to spot him, told me that they waited six hours to see the Queen’s coffin at St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh when she died and now they had come out to see her son.
We all agreed we had all witnessed a historical event