A few of you have been asking where I'll be walking next week. The walk is a National Trail known as the Ridgeway.
It's said that it's the oldest road in Britain, having been walked by traders and travellers for over 5000 years. I will be posting my journal of the walk probably after I've completed it.
I have been feeling rough this week as I picked up a virus from the grandkids and so haven't been out walking so as it was a reasonable day today ( well it didn't rain!) I decided to go for an easy walk. I started in St James's Park then continued through some of the other London parks.
St James's Park has numerous flower beds as well as a large lake.
At the other side of the park is Wellington barracks and I could hear the band playing so I wandered over to have a look.
When I got there the band were playing La Marseillaise, the French national anthem so I assume they are rehearsing for a State visit.
The French guards were being put through their paces. I had to feel sorry for them as the British guards are drilled to within an inch of their lives and are accurate to the centimetre when marching.
Couldn't quite get all their arms in synch.
I left the marching guards and went into Green Park. This is the smallest of the eight Royal parks and is the link between St James's Park and Hyde Park. There are no formal flower beds here. It is said that Queen Catherine, wife of Charles II was so angry to discover that her husband had been picking flowers in the park for another woman that she had all the flowers removed.
I then crossed Hyde Park Corner and entered Hyde Park. A very popular park for cyclist and runners but stepping away from the main paths it is usually quiet.
The flower beds were stunning and numerous.
The Serpentine lake in the middle of the park. There is also a lido here and boats for you to rent. Close by is the Serpentine Gallery. It is a small free art gallery so I went in for a quick look at the exhibition. I was so glad I did as it was excellent. It was called Echoes of the Earth: Living Archive by Refik Anadol
This is Anadol's first major institutional solo exhibition in the UK. It is described as 'an immersive environment that utilises years-long experimentation with visual data of coral reefs and rainforests and showcases the creative potential of AI.'
It is difficult to show how impressive it is from photos. I did take a video but it wouldn't download. I'm sure if you would like to see more it will be on youtube somewhere.
One section of the gallery had large cushions/bean bags on the floor for you to lie on and watch the video on the ceiling. I could have stayed there for hours.
I left Hyde Park to continue my walk in Kensington Gardens, home to Kensington Palace. This art installation by Henry Moore has the Palace at its centre.
There are some wilder parts in this park as well as the formal gardens.
This is the Italian Garden. Today it was home to numerous artists who were competing in some competition. From what I could see, the standard looked very high.
I walked back through Hyde Park and then Mayfair.
I finished my 7 ml walk in Trafalgar Square which was hosting the Sikh festival of Vaisakhi. There was free food and Indian tea, demonstrations of martial arts and how to put on a turban.
My walk through some of London parks today turned out to be a great day with lots of things happening and at the end of the day it was all free.
You always find such interesting things to tell us about. Hope your Ridgeway walk goes well.
ReplyDeleteThe French musicians might not march as well, but they have a wonderfully rousing anthem to work with. God Save The Queen used to be a bit ordinary , then Australia got its own anthem.
ReplyDeleteThe marching parade is looking very cool
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful photos!
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed coming on your walk with you, I enjoy seeing the parks and gardens. 😀
ReplyDeleteMaybe the name Ridgeway indicates you walk along the tops of ridges and there won't be hills. The public gardens look wonderful with some many blooms on display. The video of the morphing birds is clever. Last time I lay on a bean bag type thing to look at a ceiling display, I thought my niece was next to me and I was chatting away but she didn't seem very responsive. It was a stranger. It wasn't given a name as I heard but there was a similar event hosted by Sikhs here last weekend. Take care when you walk and enjoy the experience.
ReplyDeleteAt this time of the year the parks look so beautiful ! what a good idea to do that ! I had to laugh that the French guards (I didn't even know that they have one, for Macron ??) replace the English ones and that to celebrate a date from 1904 ! They have a memory like and Elephant. I think Macron will wear his nose even a bit higher when he has English guards, watching over his life ! "My" park became green yesterday over night ! Just after the Easter egg hunting, and the Tulips and other flowers came out too !
ReplyDeleteAll this marching and banging boots on pavement is a bit of a mystery to me. I guess people enjoy it. It’s hard for me to imagine the mindset of the young men who are willing to subject themselves to such a regimented life.
ReplyDeleteYou have some beautiful parks to walk through in London. I hope you recover from your illness soon and can be back walking further afield soon. Take care. Enjoy the rest of your week, and thankyou for stopping by my blog this week.
ReplyDeleteYour photographs from your walk in the parks are beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI hope you are feeling better now and wish you good walking when you start the Ridgeway walk.
All the best Jan