The Professor's Wife: A Saturday walk through the parks

We stopped to buy some groceries and discovered that rain was falling outside. We have never seen this heavy almost tropical rain storm before. Lots of thunder but we never saw any lightning.

Unfortunately, the picture did not capture the rain. Just a lot of us waiting for the rain to let up.

On Saturday the sun was shining and we went walking through the parks on our way to the Sussex Fish and Chips restaurant close to Paddington Station.

Kensington Palace in the background

Statue of Queen Victoria

Swans and pigeons along the Serpentine that divides Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park.

Could the high fees have something to do with the empty deck chairs?

The first rowboat we have seen on the Serpentine.

The first paddle boats we have seen too.

A goose that thinks he is an American eagle

A bird sitting on the nest. There must be eggs in that snug little home.

Henry Moore's Arch

The Italian garden. I had never noticed before that there were fountains built into the wall.

Italian Garden

Beautiful peonies.

Seeing them I thought about Pat Nielsen who nurtured her tender flowers in the Utah heat.

Sussex garden filled with peach and orange colored roses.

St James on Sussex Gardens

The Parish Church of Paddington

Back in Kensington Gardens and passing the Italian Gardens

When we saw these tree stumps we were surprised. They could not possibly have planted these giant trees so close together. It was a sunny afternoon and when I sat on the closest stump I discovered it was hot to touch. I had suspected that the stumps could not be real and close up looking at the mstump I realized it was not wood. They are made of bronze. But they look very real.

I was surprised to see that the most common tree is the sweet chestnut. Just recently we heard a report about an alien disease that is destroying chestnut trees in the UK. I hope this "imported" tree virus does not reach Kensington Gardens.