Where were you 10 years ago? - Ennen oli ennen, nyt on nyt

Ten years ago, when Princess Diana died, we were out on a trip somewhere in Belgium. I can't remember who was driving or even who were in the car, but at some point we drove through a small village and passed a Nato troups' area where flags were flying at half mast. There should have been some sort of fair that day but nothing much was going on, the mood was really somber. Who has died, we wondered - must be a Nato general at least to create this effect. We didn't stop and didn't hear about the accident before returning home in the evening.

And this is how her former home, the Kensington Palace looked like last Sunday. Went to London for the weekend and wanted to see how the tenth anniversary was affecting the place.


Niin se aika kuluu. Kymmenen vuotta sitten oltiin likkojen kanssa sunnuntaiajelulla jossainpäin Belgiaa. En muista, kuka ajoi; en edes sitä, keitä oli mukana, mutta jossain vaiheessa me ajettiin pienen kylän läpi ja ihmeteltiin, kun liput oli puolitangossa. Siellä piti olla jokin kesäjuhla Naton alueella, mutta hyvin oli hiljaista ja vaisua. Me sitten vaan keskenämme ihmeteltiin, että kukas nyt on kuollut, täytyy olla joku Nato-kenraali, mutta ei edes pysähdytty siellä eikä kuultu koko onnettomuuden yksityiskohtia ennen kuin illalla kotiin palattua.

Nyt tarjoutui sitten tilaisuus käydä katsomassa, miten tämä kymmenvuotistapahtuma näkyisi rinsessan vanhassa kodissa Kensingtonissa.



There were plenty of flowers, photos, newspaper cuts, toys and teddybears plus various other memorabilia attached to the railings. And it seemed to be a real place for venting one's feelings: there were photos of Camilla and Charles as well, and Camilla's eyes were gauged out. I really wonder what would have happened if she went to the remembrance service as originally planned.

Palatsin rauta-aitaan oli kiinnitetty kaikenlaista kamaa: eniten tietysti valokuvia ja lehtileikkeitä Dianasta sekä kukkasia mutta myös pehmoleluja ja muita esineitä. Oli pilakuvia kuningashuoneen edustajista, ja Camillan ja Charlesin kuviin oli ilmeisesti kohdistettu kuumimpia tunteita: Camillalta oli puhkottu kuvissa silmät ja viestit ei jättäneet kyllä mitään arvailujen varaan. Mitähän olisi tapahtunut, jos se olisi mennyt sinne muistotilaisuuteen kuten suunnitelmissa oli?


The rest of the trip was mostly spent on the Tube, travelling from one (closed) yarn shop to another. I had a couple of new yarn shops on my 'to do' list - wanted to check those before the Knitting and Stitching show in October. I'm still kicking myself for not taking photos of Stash Yarns. Just take a look at that yarn list! (and please stop drooling)

The next stop was I knit London, then Loop and finally, on Sunday, All the fun of the fair. Quite a program, quite a challenge not to buy any (or should I be honest and say 'not too much') yarn. Did quite well. Will show you in the near future what I bought. And it's not much.


This trip didn't include any museum tours, neither any art exhibitions. This is the closest thing to a piece of art - it's the window of Selfridge's. A skirt with dozens and dozens of leather applications in different colours, all in the shape of a cross.
Details.

and the hemline
Almost like autumn leaves, isn't it?
And here's proof that even though I may have wanted to buy some yarn, it was made impossible. The note on the window says that they had a stand on the near-by fair on Regent Street, but I never found them. Oh well, there's always next time.
Didn't find the 'Yarn forward' magazine anywhere else, and this one was behind closed doors.
The shop is situated just off Carnaby street and there are lots of other small shops.
And Regent Street was packed full. Didn't get any closer this facade but it looked like the Finnish artist Anu Tuominen had been set free once again.