westminster to hyde park to kensington

Even though it was getting late and dark, Shane and I decided to complete the second portion of "London's Greatest Walk," and so we made our way down Whitehall to the spot where Downing Street is blocked off and where guards stand vigil. We didn't see the Prime Minister (actually I don't know what he looks like, so perhaps we did, but I'm guessing no) and we walked down toward St James's Park, between the Foreign Office and the Treasury. We followed a maze of small streets and alleys, and found a frieze of Queen Anne along the street that bears her name. We then went back to St James's Park and admired the views of Buckingham Palace and the London Eye, before making our way through Green Park. This leg of the walk ended at Hyde Park Corner, just beyond the Wellington Arch. As it was dark, I didn't get any pictures during this stretch.

Rather than take the Tube back to Notting Hill, we decided to take the bus. There had just been many protests against the recent Israeli attacks on Gaza, so the streets were pretty jammed, and traffic was still fairly thick. It took ages to get to Notting Hill, but it was still cool to see all the fancy shops along Knightsbridge and Brompton Road.

The next day we joined our students for a bus tour around London. We'd arranged for our own coach and a guide named Abigail, who was entertaining and informative. That evening Joyce (who is teaching the Art course), Shane, and Carla (the program's administrative assistant) met at the Prince Edward, which is currently my favorite pub in the neighborhood. The fish and chips were great, and I liked both the Badger and the Tanglefoot ales.

Monday we began classes and, as we were busy with students and orientation and what not, Shane and I didn't complete "London's Greatest Walk" until Tuesday afternoon. It rained at the outset of the walk, but then the showers ceased, and Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens were beautiful in the clear, sunny skies, replete with rainbows. We followed the south and west banks of the Serpentine.



If you are into water fowl, The Serpentine is for you:


After wandering around the Serpentine Gallery for a little bit, we made our way to Kensington Palace, which was once the home of Princess Diana of Wales. We passed her memorial along the way:


We finished up at Kensington High Street.