270114 Chelsea’s rus in urbe

By January 27, 2014 Uncategorized, zBlog Archives

270114_LRToday’s inbox delivered a phrase rather than a word, namely rus in urbe, which means: ‘The creation of an illusion of the countryside in a city; an urban building, garden, prospect, etc., which suggests the countryside’ (OED). So the obvious destination was the Chelsea Farmers Market. It’s a fun place to be when the sun is shining, but it bears absolutely no resemblance to any rural market that I’ve ever visited, although I guess that’s the point of a rus in urbe – it’s the illusion that counts, not the authenticity. And because London is so cosmopolitan, the market creates illusions of international countrysides – I’ve chosen a little Argentinian Hacienda for today’s pic, but it could have been the Cuban countryside selling the finest cigars, or the Italian countryside boasting La Pizzeria or the French countryside selling fine wines. Not a mud covered wellie in sight, although one or two Chelsea tractors did add to the illusion …

Day #27 of a 365 project, where the daily pic is informed by the OED word of the day.