One of my favourite things about London is that there is always something going on somewhere. Sometimes I am totally keyed in on it, and sometimes I’m completely oblivious to an event, until someone else mentions it. Over the weekend, I was meeting an old friend from drama school at the National after Sam’s show. And as I walked down from Waterloo to the Southbank I was overwhelmed by colors. It was awesome.
It turns out the the Southbank Centre is hosting the “Festival of Love” from June 28- August 31. The festival is celebrating the Same Sex Couple Act, but is exploring all the various aspects of love (filial, paternal, fraternal, romantic, etc). There are different events every weekend; pop up tents, a festival market, poetry readings and art installations. There’s even a big group wedding day towards the end of August.
I like the Museum of Broken Relationships exhibit inside the Centre (it’s pretty much exactly as it sounds). There’s the Tunnel of Love inside Royal Festival Hall. The Temple of Agape entrance makes me happy just looking at it.
But of course my favourite installation is the Sliding Gate, a series of slides that ALL members of the public are encouraged to ride (not just the kids) to remind you of the ups and downs of family life and love, and the plain old joy of being a child and the nostalgia that slides can bring back.
