Back to London after a brief detour to Dubuque yesterday. London doesn’t have to be expensive – when it comes to entertainment, I spend very little because like all great cities, all you really need to do is pick a neighborhood and wander. In London’s case, you can also pick a park and walk and sit and walk some more and sit some more. Beautiful gardens, long expansive lawns and people to watch who come from all over the world. (One time, when my kids were in grade school, we spent a few hours people-watching in Regent’s Park and became particularly fascinated by all the different types of veils we saw women wearing – full length, partial length, black, pale blue, yellow…)
So here’s my list of favorite parks on a day when daydreaming is a necessity:
– St. James Park – This is hands down my sentimental favorite. It’s a quick walk from Parliament where I used to work – and it’s right by Buckingham Palace and near Trafalgar Square and Covent Garden (and yes, A&N, Soho.)
– Kew (Royal Botanic) Gardens – This is a bit of an excursion, to southwest London but full of wonderful gardens and right on the Thames. It’s right by my friends F&R who live in Mortlake (near Richmond) – last spring we rode our bikes from Mortlake to Kew along a way-too-crowded footpath (my riding was further complicated by the fact that British people ride their bikes on “the wrong side” of the path, just as they drive on the “wrong side” of the road)
— Richmond Park – also a little out-of-the-way in southwest London. It’s bigger and wilder with more wild life (lots of wild deer) and a really cool almost hidden “ornamental woodland” garden called Isabella Plantation that London friends (who’d just discovered it themselves) were excited to show me last May. Also cool – Pembroke Lodge and Gardens (for tea) and King Henry’s Mound – a spot where on a clear day you can see St. Paul’s Cathedral – 10 miles away in central London. Check out the excellent website for Richmond Park. There’s also some nice pubs along the river in Richmond and near Richmond Green.
Hyde Park – Bigger, busier than St. James. Diana’s playground is fun place to watch kids.
Hampstead Heath – in North London! and near Louis Patisserie in the village of Hampstead (which does feel like a very posh English village or suburb, not like part of bustling London)
– Regent’s Park – I don’t know this one as well as I should but it also has lovely gardens and a theater.
TakeBetsywithyou 