Parks of London

One of the best things about London are its numerous parks. Wherever you are, there is one very close to you. A sanctuary within the city, but in some ways far away from it. A place of sun, water, green, food, relaxation and freshness! A place so close to nature, a place to go to when you want to clear your head, to exercise, to relax, to enjoy the sun, to meet friends, to paint, to sleep, to read - basically anything you want to do outside your house but within London:)!

There are loads of parks in London, each with its own identity and uniqueness. Some offer walks and some games; some offer large expanses of green while some offer colourful flowers; some are huge while some are just the neighbourhood small patches of green. But each of them leaves its own mark on your mind!

I love visiting these parks. Whenever the sun is out (and sometimes when it isn't!), its a pleasure to walk around the parks, taking in all the freshness! So I thought it would be a good idea to pen down my thoughts about the ones visited in recent years. When I am in a park, I don't take many photographs, as it seems so mundane. But now when writing the blog, I realied how few pics I have of them. Still found some pics of the ones close to my house which were visited more often ;-), so at least there is something to post!


Regents Park

Its the park next to my home, and I must be visiting it once a week for sure. Regents Park is one of the bigger parks in London and the best landscaped one in my opinion. Its located between Baker Street, St Johns Wood, Camden and Kings Cross, with a squarish shape. Its got rose gardens, cherry blossoms, landscaped gardens, walking trails, lakes, football and cricket pitches, the London zoo, running tracks, a theatre, cafes and I don't know what else! Its so green in summer,with colours so vibrant that you actually feel that you have come to the woods and left the whole world behind!

The 'Theatre in the park' is one of its highlights - you can watch plays there in summer in an open location, with the sun setting just behind the actors. I have seen two plays there, 'The Sound of Music' and ' To kill a mockingbird' and more than the plays what I remember is the setting and the amazing romantic experience it offers.

There is the usual boating in the lakes, playing games but what I always enjoyed was just walking around its various bridges, small canals and discovering things I had never seen before. Plus the flowers in the park with their vibrant colours, different in every season provide some mystery to what the year's colours would be. The two cafes in the cricket field and the Inner Circle are also a favourite.

Here are a couple of photographs of the park taken over the last 3 years.

Primrose Hill

View from Primrose Hill

Primrose Hill is a very small park just adjacent to Regents Park on its north-east end. There is nothing too impressive about it except that in the middle of the park there is a hill where you can get a birds eye view of London. This place is again a favourite of mine, its great to sometimes just sit there and look at the city - very quiet, very relaxed and very calm!


Hyde Park/Kensington Park

Serpentine

I used to live very close to Hyde Park but not anymore, so my trips there have considerably reduced. But it will always be THE park in London for me. Its a huge park in the middle of the city, surrounded by Marble Arch, Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge, Kensington and Notting Hill. It houses two lakes (Serpentine and Lido) is full of birds, the Queen Diana memorial walk, tennis courts, riding area, Albert Memorial, Peter Pan statue, and multiple green areas to walk around and get lost. It is one of the most touristy parks in London, and for a reason! Its just so pretty!

Albert Memorial

There are loads of things to keep you busy - there is a Speakers Corner if you are keen to hear people speak, boating and swimming in the lakes, Kensington Palace on one end which is now a museum to Diana, two cafes (Lido and Serpentine again I think), sunbeds to sit out in the sun, or you can just run/roller blade around the park for a total of 7 kms!

Random crossroad!

There are loads of events too which happen in the parks, two of which I have attended - Proms in the park where thousands of people sit outside in the sun listening to music performances - and Winter wonderland which is a Christmas market plus rides fair during Christmas.

Here are some photographs of Hyde Park in various moods...

Hampstead Heath

Hampstead Health is again a huge park in the northern part of London. Surprisingly, all the parks have a different character to it. Hampstead is almost like a jungle - with hills and dense forests and so on. It has a couple of ponds which are quite popular for swimming in the summer.

Outside Kenwood House

I have been to the park 3 times till now but I never made it to very far. This winter though I finally managed to get farther than before - we went up to Kenwood House, an old English country house which houses a lot of great paintings - the highlight of which was a Rembrandt!! I think there is still some more to explore, maybe next summer...


Paddy Rec

Paddy recreation ground is not really one of the famous parks of London. Its just one example of how every area in London has its own local park, making it very easy to spend time in the open. Paddy Rec is a small park in the Maida Vale area. And even this small park has its own running track, cricket pitch, gym, tennis courts and a wildlife trail! Lots of summer afternoons were spent just exercising in the open or running on the tracks or just watching people play cricket in this small little local park!


St James Park / Green Park

St James Park

Both these parks are near Buckingham Palace and have some kind of a royal feel about them. St James is very well landscaped even though its so small. Even then it has a canal, lots of colourful flowers in spring and walking paths along the way. Green Park is more of the sitting outside in the green variety.

St James Park is full of colourful tulips in the summer. Last summer I went out just to click them all:). It was very very beautiful!




Richmond Park

I have been to Richmond park only once, but people who stay close to it swear by it. Its a huge park in south west London. We went there once in summer, started from one end, walked all across looking for a cycle to rent and ended up spending the whole day just walking:) without ever reaching the cycles! Its a more open park than the rest within the city, has huge wide roads, deer running around and space for a lot more activity than the others. Someday I will make a second visit but till then just memories of its expanse stay with me!

Greenwich Park

Greenwich Park is a huge park I visited 10 years ago, and never ever went back to even though its on my to-visit list every year! The fact that its not the easiest to get to doesn't help either. One day, I will be there:). All I remember of it now is that it was a huge green park next to the Prime Meridian!

Holland Park

Holland Park is a park again near where I used to stay. A smaller cousin to Hyde Park, its often lost in the shadow of the Big Brother. but its a nice place, have been there at least 10 times. There is the usual cafe and games to keep you busy but as I said, Hyde Park is definitely better:).

Bishops Park

Bishops Park

This is a very small park, will be close to where I will stay. I look forward to exploring it further! P.S. (May 2016) Am still waiting for spring to fully arrive, but one of those rare sunny days I got out and explored the park a bit. Its quite picturesque, with fountains and landscaping. Located right next to Thames, it provides pretty views all around. Here are some pictures from this park.

There are many other famous parks of London, like Kew Gardens, Battersea Park, Clapham Commons etc.. I still have to visit them. But if I do, will definitely add onto this list...

London Weekend Getaways - 2

Adding onto the list of ideas on what to do in and around London, here is some more information on places you can get out to on a weekend - Cambridge, Cotswold,  Seven Sisters, Windsor, and Country Houses like Ashdown Park, Lainston House and Pennyhill Park.

Cambridge

Cambridge is a quick 50 mins ride from London Kings Cross (on a fast train), and a great way to spend a relaxing day in a student town, with a slower pace than London. I have been to Cambridge before, but last year I had to go there a couple of times for work and was impressed with how easy it was to get there!

I took a quick walk after work around the student town just to soak in the feeling of the old buildings around, the student vibe of the place and totally loved it. Even so near London, it felt like such miles away! It was winter when I was there but would definitely recommend doing punting on the river - maybe this summer?

Cotswold

We spent our anniversary weekend last year in the Cotswold area, in the village of Bourton-on-the-water. Funnily enough I have been to Cotswold before and had ended up staying in the same village even last time - I need to change it up! Anyways, again it was a quick ride away from London, a 2 hour train from London Paddington, get off at Moreton-on-Marsh and take the frequent public bus to Bourton.

Bourton-on-the-water

Bourton is a very picturesque little village, with its yellow houses, around the little stream which runs through the middle, lot of eating places and shops all around. You can cover the whole village in 5 mins, but the beauty of Cotswold actually lies outside its villages.

Of the two days we were there, the first day we just walked around the village, went up a hill and then came down, then walked in the other direction through some random fields and then were back in the village to explore the local craft and antique stores. Not surprisingly, even just walking around aimlessly felt so very relaxing compared to the running around we do in London. (Tip - 3G/4G does not work too well in such parts of the country. So before you leave the hotel, have in hand the walk you are going to do. Else you might just walk around randomly without clear directions (like we did)!)

The next day we did one of the walks around the village- from Bourton to the village called Little Rissington and then onto Great Rissington. The walk was for about 2 hours one way, and was sometimes well marked, while other times you just had to figure out which way to go.

Our trek:)

We jumped over fences, walked around lakes, waded through muddy fields, went up and down hills and basically had a very adventurous day! There was no one on the walk as it wasn't the time for Cotswold walks. Also, it wasn’t as comfortable a day as it was rainy and we got out boots full of mud. In sunny summer weather I am sure, it would be lovely. Though I enjoyed even now, it felt almost like a mini adventure:).

Of the villages, Little Rissington barely had 10 houses, so there was nothing to do there. However Great Rissington had a pub called Lamb Inn which provided us something to eat after the long treacherous walk! And also the energy to walk back:).

Bourton

In Bourton, we stayed at Cheltam House which was a small hotel right in the village. It was quite average actually. But the food options there were nice. For dinner we went to L'antara in the hotel which was nice. As was Croft which we visited for breakfast - right next to the river. Since we were coming back on Sunday, the public buses were not running and we found it tough to get a cab till Moreton-on-the-Marsh. It felt like such a different place, very tough to sometimes imagine that there are places where you can't just Uber it:).

Seven Sisters trek

The Seven Sisters trek is near the city of Eastbourne on the south coast of London, and part of the Seven Sisters Park. Its called so as the trek goes up and down seven white marble hills (sisters) overlooking the sea.

Eastbourne

We took a train from London Victoria till Eastbourne which took about 2 hours. Then we started on the trek just out of the station. It starts going up from Eastbourne, giving panoramic views of the town on the sea, and then goes up and down the seven hills.

The seven sisters, in white

The trek offers breathtaking views of the sea and the greens on the other side. The weather makes a lot of difference to the whole experience - when we went it was sunny and warm and so we loved it. You can even take breaks during the trek as there are a couple of restaurants on the way to have a quick bite. You also pass by Beachy Head which has historical relevance for UK’s World War history.

We finished the whole trek in about 3-4 hours, and then took the bus from the Seven Sisters Park back to Eastbourne (12, 12A or 13) to get the train back to London Victoria. Its a definite recommend for a quick trip outside London.

Windsor

Windsor is a very nice option if you just want to get out of London quick! Its just under an hour from Paddington - take a train till Slough and change for Windsor. The train from Slough to Windsor is exclusively to take tourists to the royal abode!

Boating on the Thames

This was my second trip to Windsor, so I did not explore the palace. But I still loved it just for a charm of being in a nice little town away from the madness of London. The Thames flows through Windsor and one thing I would suggest is to take a boat and run it on the river. They allow you to rent boats for about £25 which I think is pretty cheap.

Windsor castle

Rest you can also take a walk along the Thames - its got green parks which give quite a lot of introspection time. Or else just eat at the many restaurants all along. A definite recommend for a quick saunter outside London.

Windsor

COUNTRY HOMES

The next three getaways are all typical English countryhouses around London which offer a nice weekend away, in the lush suburban green lands, with a couple of activities for you to keep busy. They are pretty expensive I must say, but a nice option if you are willing to splurge within the UK:).

Ashdown Park

I spent almost a week in Ashdown Park and was impressed with the place - quite a huge old countryhouse, with a big abbey in between where we had dinner. I took multiple walks in its grounds, and they were pretty, going up and down through woods and forests! The rooms were not as impressive though as the other two!

Lainston House

Lainston house is located near the city of Winchester, and takes about an hour from London Waterloo. You need to get off at Winchester and take a 5 min cab ride to the house.

Its a nice house, with green gardens all around. But what I must definitely mention about the rooms in Lainston House is that they are the biggest rooms I have ever seen in a hotel!! Almost the size of our house in London! The area around looks fun for walks, though its a pity I went there in the winter:( and was busy the whole day!! Also you can always visit the Winchester cathedral when you visit there, another thing I did not do.

Pennyhill Park

Pennyhill Park is located about an hour from London Waterloo. You need to get off at Sunningdale and take a 15 min cab ride to the house.

Its a luxurious hotel again, with huge rooms, outside pool area, a big spa, tennis courts and a golf course within its grounds. Its very popular for weddings apparently. Again, the rooms were spacious and tastefully decorated. And it felt very very English, with fires burning in every room and loads of seating area in the main area to just sit and relax.

Bailiffscourt Hotel and Spa

Climping Beach

Adding onto the list of country houses, I spent 3 days in Bailiffscourt Hotel and Spa in Dec this year (2015) on an office training.  It wasn't the best time of the year for sure, but still a memorable experience. It is located very close to Brighton, near the village of Littlehampton, and it takes about 2-3 hours from London to reach there. Its 5 mins walking from the Climbing beach, which may be good in summer. The stony beach held no sway for us in the winter though

Bailiffscourt

Bailiffscourt was definitely not as luxurious a countryhouse as the others above. In fact it didn't even look like a countryhouse!! It looked more like a farm:). But its location, amenities and affordability definitely make it a good weekend choice. The accommodation was all spread out across multiple small buildings and the rooms were all very spacious and pretty. The beach is not much to write home about, but then it IS a UK beach:). There are two swimming pools in the property, both heated, one outside and one inside. And of course a proper spa and gym etc..

It is definitely a great place to spend a very relaxing weekend away from London. One thing which helps (or maybe not) is that the phone signal there is very very weak. So if you really need to be away from everything, this is the place to be! The overall grounds are also pretty though we did not get much of a chance to explore around. (Somehow I have gone to all the countryhouses in UK in the winter when walking outside is never the preferable option. How sad is that?)