Categories: uncategorized
Date: 11 September 2004 20:39:33
Today I was supposed to be meeting a friend up in town, but he wasn't able to make it in the end sadly :( But I decided to go up to town anyway, as I needed to go to John Lewis' (thankfully 3 out of the 4 couples whose weddings I'm going to in the next few weeks have lists in the same shop, so I got it all out of the way), and I also realised that today was realistically the only day I'd have where I'd be able to do any culture this month. In the end I really wasn't in the mood for wedding outfit shopping, and central London was way too crowded for it to have been any fun, so my bank balance has been let off for the time being.
So - culture. I decided, having recently done a few smaller more obscure places, to go for one of the big famous museums that everybody's been to but which I've never got round to, despite living here 14 years. So the Victoria and Albert Museum was on today's hitlist, one of the big 3 (along with the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum) in South Kensington. It's London's main design museum, and I had really high hopes. But to be honest, I found it a bit disappointing. I liked some individual bits, like the ironwork (which was fantastic) and some of the Korean ceramics, but I thought the garden and cafe were really not very impressive, and I got so cross with the map I gave up on it entirely, it made absolutely no sense whatsoever and I found it impossible to figure out where I was. It is actually a really really impressive museum, and I'm glad I can now say that I've seen it, but it just wasn't really my cup of tea, and I'll not rush to go back any time soon, though I would still recommend any visitors to London to check it out if they get the chance. However, rather than go home straight away I decided to hop over the road and into the Natural History Museum (one of my favourites) - I didn't look round all that much of it as I've been so many times before, but I did have a wander round the Life Galleries (avoiding the creepy crawlies as usual - once really was enough) and had a cup of poncey tea and a chocolate brownie in their (far superior) cafe.
After that I decided on the spur of the moment that as I was up in town and on a tube train which stopped at Hyde Park Corner, I may as well get out there and check out the Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain while I was at it. Diana was somebody I was always pretty ambivalent about, to be honest, but as well as being curious as to what the fountain was like after reading all the hype, I also thought that as this was the 9/11 anniversary a memorial fountain would be as appropriate a place as any to stop for a while and take stock and remember. It was a longer walk than I realised it would be, through crowds getting ready to go to the Prom in the Park which is this evening, but when I eventually found it I found it to be a really tranquil and peaceful place, despite all the tourists. Sitting by some running water, watching the patterns of the water and looking out across to the Serpentine lake and blue sky beyond, I was able to be still for a bit and pray for peace in this troubled world. God only knows we need it.