Had a day out today with my friend Natasha. It was London Open House this weekend when a number of buildings of architectural interest that are not usually open to the public open their doors. We decided to visit the Ismaili Centre in South Kensington. It's a kind of social club with a prayer room for Ismaili Muslims. The Aga Khan himself helped to design the building which is really beautiful. It's an amazing place and forms the heart of the Ismaili community in London. We removed our shoes and visited the prayer room where we learned about the history of the Ismaili religion and were able to ask questions. The speaker was very eloquent and patiently answered some rather rude and inappropriate questions.
Afterwards we went for lunch in an outdoor cafe and then visited the Serpentine Gallery. I wanted to see the exhibition Uncertain States of America and Natasha wanted to visit the Koolhaas/Balmond pavilion before it's removed in October. The exhibtion was OK but there were a great number of works that seemd to have no concept or craft and left us both cold. There were some great video works that saved us though and the giant hazelnut meringue we shared in the pavilion topped the day off nicely.
Afterwards we walked through Kensington Gardens and I stopped to take a photo of the Peter Pan statue for Tobes. It was lovely to see Natasha and to learn something new.
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