Out of the desert and into the park.

We are not strictly speaking tourists so we feel no obligation to do 'the sights', or cram frantic activities into our days in London.  Spoilt or lazy or rather dull perhaps, but we are on holiday, like an extended long weekend where you really could be out festivity-making but you'd rather sit and watch the dandelions bloom.

Yesterday we walked over to Kensington Gardens.  Marius went across to the Royal College of Music to attempt to gain entry to their instrument museum.  Sadly it is closed for refurbishment until September (shucks we will have to come back ...).  I sat on a bench in the shade of a huge chestnut, displaying its candelabra, shedding tawny tufts of hay-fever-inducing tree feathers.  I watched tourists trying to hire Boris-bikes and giving up, I watched dogs taking owners on leads, prams and nannies and frenetic cyclists in lycra and space helmets.  I could see the beautiful red buses heaving themselves up Kensington Road (I have quite a soft spot for buses) and taxis, vans and motorbikes. 

There was the blue sky, grass and flowers.  I could have sat for hours.

We wandered across the park, dodging the mad lunch time joggers, the lovers, the businessmen on purposeful perambulations.  I was seeking inspiration for the Poets United prompt of 'Toes' and found it of sorts, in two statues:  GF Watts' Statue of Physical Energy and Sir George Frampton's Peter Pan. 

The Muse was not particularly interested in helping me out on the subject of toes as she was too busy with bird life and garden beauty, and overall joie de vivre. 

Here are some of the beautiful ducks being fed at The Long Water, near Peter Pan:

And right in the middle of one of the world's largest metropoli, we found a Great Heron and its chick (chick not in this photo, don't strain your eyes searching for it):

It is a lovely overcast morning with threats of drizzle, so we are walking down to Chelsea to see if we can get wet.


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