Hyde & Seek

 Adopt the pace of nature:  her secret is patience.

  ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

I am still on my quest to find patience as we wait for our life to move forward.  Yesterday I was feeling restless and frustrated.  I decided to get out for the day and explore one of the "lungs" of London.   Maybe there I could release the tenseness and and find my breath. 

"Time Flies"

This was the first thing that I saw as I entered the park.  I think this was a good idea.

Hyde Park is one of the largest of the Royal Parks.  Combined with the neighboring Kensington Gardens, the park covers 625 acres.   

 

The Elfin Oak

I stopped to say hello to the "fairies, gnomes, elves, imps and pixies" who call the Elfin Oak their home.  The 900 year old tree stump was carved by illustrator Ivor Innes in the 20's.  It is at the entrance to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Playground. 

It was overcast, but the sun kept peeking through the clouds.  The park was full of people walking, running, cycling.  There were dogs everywhere.  I took my Nook and would find a park bench to take a break and read.  

I'm not sure what breed of duck this is, but the coloring was beautiful.  Like a patchwork quilt. 

What's a garden without roses?

The Albert Memorial, unveiled by Queen Victoria in 1872 to honor her late husband.

Isis, the Egyptian goddess of motherhood, was unveiled in 2009 and is the newest sculpture in the park. 

  The Serpentine runs through the park.  I walked all the way around and spent about 3 hours in the park. 

 

 I stopped at the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain. 

 It's a granite ring with water running through it and it's a beautiful spot. 

 I stopped at one of the two restaurants within the park for lunch by the water.   And, yes, it was nummy. 

 

My lunch companion. 

I only covered a small section of the park and plan to explore again.  

The Italian Fountains

 The squirrels are used to being fed and are not above begging.  Next time I will be sure to have some treats for them. 

It was a long walk, but I didn't want to leave the park.  It was such an amazing place.  I adopted the pace of nature and it was nice to just be quiet, observe and breathe.  

xoxo,

Selena

The pics were taken with my iphone and I tweaked the colors a bit with iGoogle. 

Portobello Market

Still waiting on the magic phone call, but we decided to go ahead and set up house in London.  We found a flat in Notting Hill, signed a 6-week lease and moved in last weekend.  It's a great area and we are looking forward to exploring.  It feels so good to finally be in London. 

The past two Saturdays we walked over to Portobello Market.  It's a famous antique and farmer's market that began in the 1800's and has been drawing locals and tourist ever since.

I'm feeling lazy today, so I won't be using my words.  Fortunately, a picture is worth a thousand. 

xoxo
Selena