Observations

Last week was the 65th anniversary of D-day, which for obvious reasons got some attention in this country. Of course, in Sweden, we have nothing like that to remember. I guess the closest thing we get is celebrating the death of Charles XII, who died fighting the Norwegians in 1718 (which happens to be pretty much the only year in Scandinavian history that I for some reason can remember). I am, however, using 'we' here in a very loose sense, since it has mostly been various 'nationalists' who have claimed the day as their own. Enough about that! But it is also interesting to follow the debates that have been in this country, whether the British should remember and commemorate the wars and their heroes more than they do. Personally, I'm not taking a stand in the debate, but I watched the memorial day service on TV last November, and was very moved. War is, luckily, for me such a foreign thing. (And I thought to myself that I can't even imagine living in a country which is in war - and then I suddenly realize that I do!) But I actually do appreciate all the memorial monuments that can be found across town. Take my bus trips into town, for example: If I take the no. 2 bus towards Marylebone I pass the Australian and the New Zealand War Memorials (for soldiers in the two world wars), the Royal Artillery Memorial, the Machine Gun Corps Memorial, the Animals in War Memorial, as well as the Wellington Arch and Marble Arch (for the Napoleonic wars). And if I'm on the no. 88 bus towards Camden I pass the Cenotaph, the Crimean War Memorial, and (my favourite) the Monument to the Women of World War II. It's quite a number, in other words. But I like them - they are part of the city's character and its history, but hopefully no new ones shall be needed.