big city, early morning

In early morning light, cities look different. I hopped off the bus in Baltimore early this morning for an optometrist appointment, and walked up Calvert and Light Streets, where I only walk occasionally. In the different light, the city seemed alien to me. Beautiful, but unfamiliar. I was a tourist in my own city. The slight chill made the air cleaner, fresher. I turned a corner to see the sky and clouds beaming at me in every other tier from a Baltimore skyscraper (which would be a regular building in Chicago). I could have wandered the streets for hours, but I had the appointment to meet before rushing to work. What would life be like if we could wander the streets without purpose and take in our surroundings as if we had never seen them before?