Romance in the Strangest Places
Created | Updated Jan 28, 2002
What makes a place Romantic?
Not all the romantic places in your life are going to be everybodies cup of tea. A romantic setting is as much a make up of other constituent parts as well as the setting itself. Some places and cites are steep in our conscious as 'romantic'. Paris is the 'City of Romance', Rome 'The Eternal City' and Vienna 'The Waltzing City'. All of these are given the essence of Romance as much for their place on the Grand Tour1 and their historical settings. However for the writers of this article one of the most romantic palces in the world is a lowly railway platform at Waverley Station in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Why that platform? Don't get us wrong we loved Paris and plan to go to other of the great cities, however that lowly railway station platform is where a certain diamond ring was placed on a certain finger. So a place that is romantic can be determined as much by situation as much as location. So if it's the bike shed at school were you first met you spouse, or the grandest hotel in Venice where you shared a candlelit dinner it doesn't matter both can be romantic in you eyes.
Can anywhere be romantic?
As we said above it is as much to do with the moment as the setting, but a dingy back alley is far from a romantic setting in anyones book. A railway station or airport becomes romantic when one of the parties involved is arriving or leaving otherwise it usually is only that a point of transit. Certain other places remain romantic and that romance can be seen by many people not just by the few who are fortunate to have one of their most romantic moments on a paticular spot.
Parks, restaurants, building (especially historical or ruined ones) have the sort of ambience that never fades and even if they exist in an inner city location they can maintain and certain nuance of romance at all times to most of the people that know of that places exisitance.