Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens

If you value your life, run away!
Originally uploaded by jakeline

I decided to go to Kensington Gardens early in the morning when the light was good for photography. Then I realized that I’d rather sit and enjoy the empty flat, so I finished up a novel I was reading (Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson. Pretty good, but that man can’t end a story to save his life.) So, it ended up being about 6 in the evening before I got around to heading out. I’m actually glad I waited a bit because the evening was lovely. I walked up by the Albert Memorial, and there were people just sitting around chatting. Tons of people. Gobs of people. I took the path back and walked along the Serpentine to the Peter Pan statue. I’d heard people say that when you’re really in the park, you can forget that you’re in a city. I suppose that’s true to an extent, but you can definitely still hear traffic and see the tallest buildings. I guess when you live in the city, the sound of traffic is just background noise that you don’t hear any longer.

The park surprised me in that it wasn’t perfectly manicured lawns and precisely planted trees. I mean, a lot of it was that way, but there were areas that they let go a bit wild. But there were still people everywhere, even in the areas where the wild grass was left to do its thing.

Finally, it dawned on me: These people live in a flat like I do. The outdoors is largely paved over, and there’s no good place to play some frisbee. They can’t go into their backyards because they don’t have one. This is London’s backyard! Then I was struck with a bit of homesickness. I wanted my friends to be there so sit on a blanket, eating cheese and drinking wine, chasing after a frisbee, making fun of each other, flying a kite, and all of the other little things I take for granted. Living in the city makes so much more sense now! Having to share this big public space seems to change your sense of boundaries, of what is private and what is public. I saw people sharing intimate conversation on a blanket, completely oblivious to the crowds around them. I saw people good-naturedly kicking back a football that had gone astray. I’m not saying that this doesn’t happen in Southern California, but I’m saying that if a park back at home was that crowded, there would have been an uncomfortable vibe, which definitely didn’t exist here.

Also, anyone who doesn’t believe that birds evolved from dinosaurs need to go see the swans at the round pond. Those suckers have no fear of humans and are huge. They’ve lovely when gliding across the lake, but up close, they have these paleolithic legs and are surprisingly assertive about their personal area. I definitely snickered while watching a kid get scared off by a swan. I think there was a bit of nervousness in my laugh, though, because I’ve got to tell you: If one of those suckers hissed at me, you’d better bet I’d jump away too!