Did you know that much of modern-day London is built on reclaimed marshland? In Roman times the Thames flowed through vast wetlands—possibly five times wider than it is today. London, which began as the small Roman settlement of Londinium, expanded rapidly during the Middle Ages, driven largely by farmers reclaiming marshes, building embankments, and, in some cases, property owners pushing into the river for coveted waterfront land. Yet, amidst the sprawling urban jungle, there exists a peaceful haven—a nature reserve that offers a tranquil escape from the hustle and bustle. Welcome to the London Wetland Centre.

The Waste Land by Thomas Stearns Eliot (T. S. Eliot), who came from the United States but lived in England, is often called the greatest poem of the twentieth century. Its 433 lines depict the London of 1923 in the fragmented form of an abstract painting. Scenes appear like shapes without title or outline. To celebrate the centenary of the poem, I have devised a walk through The City connecting locations mentioned by Eliot. The Waste Land was published as a single entity by Virginia and Leonard Woolf’s Hogarth Press as Eliot was associated with the artistic intellectuals of The Bloomsbury Group.