Free hugs, anyone?

I was in London last week after a long gap of 20 months (this time as a tourist taking my mom and wife around the places). On the very first day we landed in London, the first place I took them was to one of my favorite locations in London – Trafalgar square. Being a Saturday and summer, the place was bustling. When we were making our way through the energetic crowd to find a place for us to sit, we bumped into a group of Free Hugs campaigners.

A group of 12–15 campaigners held up the placards inviting the passers-by for a free hug. It was fun to watch people’s expressions and reactions (most of them being tourists). Old ladies were the most responsive ones. They almost ran towards a hugger when they saw the placard. Most of the elderly men with cigars just shrugged off their shoulders and looked at them suspiciously while walking past. Most of the girls usually in small groups went on giggling till they lost sight of these fellows, while some of them hesitantly agreed for a hug. The funniest set of people to watch were the couples. While the guy wanted a hug, his girlfriend/partner would drag him out of that place.

While I was trying to capture these wonderful bunch of people, this nice lady caught me clicking their photos. She demanded for a free hug, and I had no choice but to oblige. 🙂