Autumn / Winter Newsletter
/Hello friends,
I hope this newsletter finds you in good spirits - though in all honesty it seems unlikely given everything that's going on in the world - the ongoing conflict in Israel and Palestine which is escalating into genocide in Gaza, multiple earthquakes in Afghanistan and floods in Libya. It seems insensitive, almost pointless to send out a newsletter about exploration, stories, dreams, and connection at a time like this...
It’s difficult to know what to do, how to help, but for now I am following those who are praying and trying to be hopeful, those who are looking for reliable sources to get information and looking out for charities on the ground that are taking donations like Medical Aid for Palestine.
I was reminded by a friend recently, that in the darkness of such devastation we must resist the urge to be shrunk into paralysis and exercise and assert the freedom and autonomy we wish for others.
*
As I glance outside my window, leaves browning and light spreading, the arrival of autumn now almost visible, I take a breath. After over a year and a half of moving around – I’m glad to be back where I feel most at home – in London. I have lots of updates, stories, newly discovered hidden gems and recommendations to share. I’m also pleased to announce dates for upcoming wanderings! WARNING: this is a very long newsletter.
Book Lovers Wandering Tour
Throughout autumn and winter, I’ll be running my Book Lovers tour. Explore London’s hidden bookshops and libraries in this eclectic wandering tour. Starting off at the beautiful Daunt Books in Marylebone, we’ll wonder down to the London Library stopping off at a number of places along the way including the oldest bookshop in London and an iconic art bookshop. Along the way I’ll be sharing stories about hidden literary gems across the city and the colourful people that frequent them.
18 November – 11am - 1.30pm / 20 January – 11am - 1.30pm / 17 February – 11am - 1:30pm
Arts Foundation Futures Award: Place Writing Shortlist
Earlier this year, I was really happy to learn that I had been shortlisted for the Arts Foundation Futures Award for Place Writing. Anyone who knows me, knows that I have spent a great deal of my life wandering alone in faraway places, finding home in unlikely corners and family with nomadic kindreds. Writing (in particular place writing) has always been a big part of my life - to have been shortlisted alongside such accomplished and talented writers was unexpected, humbling and super joyful. To find out more about the award and the place-writing catergory click here.
Churchill Fellowship / Renegade Guides: the places we go, the stories we share
Earlier this year I was awarded a Churchill Fellowship! Churchill Fellowships offer a diverse range of people from all walks of life an opportunity to travel overseas for four to eight weeks to explore a topic or issue that they are passionate about.
I will be travelling to New York and San Francisco for two months next year to carry out my research project, Renegade Guides – the places we go, the stories we share.
In changing cities, where communities are being uprooted and places of social, historical and cultural importance are disappearing, guiding is a powerful tool to preserve stories and memories of people and place.Through my Fellowship, I'd like to explore the ways that we, as guides, can improve our practice to better serve local communities. I aim to collate my research and to produce a best practice handbook for guides - a resource that I hope will both inspire, inform and improve guiding.
Do you run a tour business? Are you a guide? I’d love to hear from you! Drop me a line at info@livinglondon.org
Goodbye Slow Ways
I recently left my role as Community Stories lead at Slow Ways, a CIC working to create a National Walking Network that connects all the cities, towns and National Parks in the UK. As part of my role, I worked with inspirational creatives, writers, explorers and community workers to share stories connecting people and place through routes. I clocked up hundreds of miles testing out walking routes mostly alone, but sometimes with volunteers (now friends), colleagues and strangers. My Slow Ways adventures took me to regions across the UK, from North East to the South West of England, the West Highlands to the West of Wales.
I often wrote about my journeys and below I’ve included links to my favourite stories.Treading uneven Ground, Ten Reasons why I love Walking Slow Ways, A Walk with Dima for Refugee Week, Hastings to Rye: a journey through photos, Soundtrack to Slow Ways: the North East, How NOT to walk, Canvey Island to Southend-on-Sea: a Slow Ways journey and Mountains, midges and secret lochs.
A Slower Way in Marseille
I recently spent a few months alone in Marseille in the South of France - working, writing and but mostly wandering around aimlessly. Marseille is an incredible city home to some of the warmest and kindest people I've ever known. My last story at Slow Ways was based on what a walking network in the city might look like. Click here to have a read.
Website Launch: Portrait of the South Downs
I’m very happy to announce that I’d now completed by Portrait of the South Downs project! During the spring and summer of 2022, I met, interviewed and photographed people from all walks of life about their unique and personal connections to the South Downs National Park as part of my New Perspectives project "Portrait of the South Downs." Discover these stories via photography, audio, writing and film on my project website here.
It was also super enjoyable to work with film-maker Luke Baker once again. Luke brought to life the story of Sussex-based artist and illustrator Pearl Bates through his short film which you can watch here. This project was funded by the South Downs National Park Authority and Campaign for National Parks as part of New Perspectives.
Living London Recommends
Read:
Solito by Javier Zamora
“We’ve been walking since noon. One p.m. Two p.m. We watch for police and soldiers coming down the road. Not the main highway we were on, a different route, fewer cars, fewer towns, Coyote said. We’ve been on this road for hours. It’s still asphalt, but there’s dirt on both sides, cactuses, bushes, but no trees for shade.”
A young poet tells the story of his harrowing migration from El Salvador to the United States at the age of nine in this memoir.
Crying in the H Mart
“If dreams were hidden wishes, why couldn’t I dream of my mother the way I wanted? Why was it that whenever she appeared she was still sick, as if I could not remember her the way she’d been before? I wondered if my memory was stunted, if my dreams were consigned to the epoch of trauma, the image of my mother stuck where we had left off. Had I forgotten her when she was beautiful?”
A memoir about growing up Korean American, losing her mother, and forging her own identity.
Visit
Fulham Palace Walled Garden - a beautiful garden to visit this time of year!
Goldsmiths CAA - Located on the campus of Goldsmiths, University of London, Goldsmiths Centre for Contemporary Art is London’s newest contemporary arts institution, and open to everyone.
Turkish Bath Hamam - my favourite place to unwind in the city.
ON BELONGING
My book is back in stock again! Thanks to everyone who has bought/ shared a copy! If you like, you can leave a review on Good Reads. ^_^
“I hugely endorse this book! I find the world of tour guiding fascinating! Saira has a unique and beguiling take on the subject (and much more besides)”
— Matt Brown, Editor, Londonist
On Belonging, Reflections of a Renegade Guide
Returning to Lahore after almost a decade, wandering guide and community worker Saira Niazi reflects on what it means to belong on both a personal and a universal level.
In a series of personal essays on topics including exploration, love, faith, transience, mental health and being a woman of colour, Niazi shares her strange and unlikely journey towards becoming a wandering guide. She draws upon the stories, experiences, and insights of the extraordinary people she has met along the way, from monks and mudlarks to storytellers and scientists, and celebrates the many different kinds of beautiful lives that exist.
COMMISSION ME!
Thanks to everyone who's come along to a wandering tour in the last few years! They've been few and far apart but I've loved working in partnership with UCL, Thames 21 and The South Downs National Park authority to deliver tours and experiences for lovely people!
I'm once again going back to freelancing - as such, I'm open to new projects and commissions in the areas of: writing, bespoke tours, social media, community engagement, research, photography, and more! Get in touch at info@livinglondon.org!
And lastly... I'm going back to school.....
AZIZ SCHOLARSHIP: MA Creative and Life Writing at Goldsmiths
This autumn, after over a decade, I’ve returned to Goldsmiths to study for a masters degree in Creative and Life Writing. It’s long been a dream of mine to explore my passion and to dedicate time and space to develop my craft.
I love writing and to be given an opportunity to spend a year creating new work, being part of a writing community, meeting and learning from authors from all walks of life, reading books and reconnecting with my faith in the place I first found belonging and sisterhood if the greatest blessing I could've been offered at this time in my life.
I’m so grateful to have received a scholarship from the Aziz Foundation to undertake this learning. The Aziz Foundation scholarships are aimed at those who wish to advance in their careers and bring positive change to their communities and beyond. I’m hoping this course will act as a catalyst for me to complete writing projects and to give back to my community through creating and delivering writing experiences which I hope will better enable people from all walks of life, in particular British Muslims/ BPOC to tell their own stories in their own words.
Thanks a lot for reading this too long newsletter. Hope to see you at another wandering soon!
Saira x
