I spent some time in London last week, and it was another fantastic trip. I better not talk about the train trip to and from London, as that wasn't that good, but at least I made it safely to and from London. This trip was another eye opener for me. London has a lot of monuments. I never noticed that, but this trip I was in the company of a dear friend who has some interest in these monuments. Ofcourse everybody knows the Cenotaph (for the people who fell in wars) and Monument (the Big Fire of 1666, but there are many more monuments in London. They are everywhere and usually I pass them without seeing them, but thanks to this friend, I found some that were very interesting. The one that intrigued me most can be found at Park Lane, close to Speakers Corner at Hyde Park. It is a little trapped between the busy traffic, but easy to reach. This monument is for Animals in War. What lots of people don't realize is that a lot of animals were/are used during wartime. I was one of them, but seeing this monument made me understand that there were lots of animals that suffered and were killed during wartimes. Not only horses, but also donkeys, dogs, elephants, and many more animals. The monument shows a wall with an opening. On one side of the wall there are some animals that carry artillery and can hardly walk, through the opening of the wall you see a huge horse and a dog. They run to their freedom. I am a keen horse rider and I have always loved horses, and this horse made a huge impression on me. It was so life like. The donkey that is behind him looks really in pain, and the whole monument makes you forget the traffic all around you. It is one of the most beautiful I have seen in London. Next time there is a memorial somewhere I will not only think of the men and women who fell, and still fall, for our freedom, but also of the animals that fell and fall for our freedom aswell. I recommand to see this monument and then see a play called War Horse. Then you get the real impact of what happened to animals during wartime. At least, I did.
