The Kensington Palace/Gardens of London !!!

Posted in Europe

I need to tell you more of London. This will be an update of an older post that feels needs new text and links for you and me. The history, architecture and family travel are all very much sought after by us! I actually learned the history of the place thanks to a great lady Princess Diana, one of my favorite persons. We came here walking and so sad did not took many pictures, most because you can’t but even when ok missed on the opportunity. However, suffix to say its a beautiful palace and garden, Therefore, let me tell you a bit on the Kensington Palace/Gardens of London !!! Hope you enjoy the post as I.

The Kensington Gardens, formerly the private gardens of Kensington Palace, is one of London’s Royal parks and lies immediately west of Hyde Park (see post). The majority of the park is in Westminster but a small portion is located in the Boroughs of Kensington and Chelsea. The park has an area of ​​1.1 km2. Kensington Gardens are generally seen as a part of Hyde Park from where they were taken. Kensington Gardens is fenced, and with Green Park and St James’s Park, it forms a continuous “green lung” in the heart of London between Kensington and Westminster. The gardens, originally, were a recreational place for British Kings/Queens.

Some of the things to see here are: The Prince Albert Memorial (Queen Victoria’s husband) is the largest monument in Kensington Gardens. Serpentine Gallery is, since 1970, a museum of contemporary art inside Kensington Gardens. Every summer, the museum asks one of the most eminent architects to build a temporary pavilion. Bordering Kensington Palace, the Orangery was built by Queen Anne in 1704. A brick building, the interior is lined with Corinthian columns supporting a magnificent entablature.  A huge pirate ship is the jewel of the mini leisure park for children, opened in 2000 in memory of Princess Diana who appreciated the innocence of children. Diana Memorial Playground is located right next to Kensington Palace. This wonderful country is inspired by Peter Pan. This park is the setting for J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, a prelude to the adventures of the famous neverland character.

london Kensington gardens Princess Diana memorial park jul10

We owe Queen Caroline and her gardener for Kensington Gardens as they are known today. In addition to the Round Pound, the Long Water, she has also added two summer residences, one of which still exists today as Queen Caroline’s Temple. The Italian Gardens, (pic ) of fountain in Lancaster Gate are located to Malgourough Gate, in the extension of the basins of the Serpentine. They were laid out around 1860 as a gift from Prince Albert to Queen Victoria. The Dutch Garden, also called Sunken Garden, is located east of Kensington Palace. This garden has a pond surrounded by flower beds with plenty of tulips.

london-kensignton-garden-lancaster-gate-on-lake-jul10

The Kensington Palace is located, as well as the adjoining Kensington Gardens, in the boroughs of Kensington and Chelsea. The palace was until the 17C, the residence of the British monarchy. The original building was built  as a Nottingham hotel for the Earl of Nottingham. King George II is the last reigning monarch who resided int the palace. Today, it is home to various members of the Royal family including the Duke of Gloucester, the Duke and Duchess of Kent, the Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. Until 1997, it was also the official residence of Diana, Princess of Wales. In addition, it was also the residence of Princesses Margaret and Alice, Duchess of Gloucester. Since late 2013, it is the official residence of Prince William of Cambridge and Catherine Middleton, as well as their three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. As of 2018, it also became the official residence of Prince Henry of Sussex and Meghan Markle following their marriage (Harry and Meghan previously lived in Nottingham Cottage, an outbuilding of the castle). The latter couple is off to the USA and another life away from royal palaces.

london-kensington-palace-side jul10

And as my walking curiosity is endless we came about this street not knowing what it was and walked the whole lenght of it!! Very nice indeed! Kensington Palace Gardens street  is about 1000 meters long (1 km/0,62 mi), this avenue connects Bayswater Road to Kensington High Street. The southern part of the street is called Green Palace. At each end of the street is a checkpoint filtering the entrance of vehicles. Pedestrians can move freely but it is forbidden to take photographs. The name of the avenue evokes the old kitchen gardens of Kensington Palace, on whose site it was built in 1843.

The London tourist office on the Kensington Gardens :https://www.visitlondon.com/things-to-do/place/433226-kensington-gardens

The official Royal Parks on Kensington gardens : https://www.royalparks.org.uk/visit/parks/kensington-gardens

The official Historic Royal Palaces on Kensington Palace : https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/#gs.gi7czw

There you go folks, again, another jewel in London. And so many nice places not really known but very nice indeed and memories to last a lifetime. Again, hope you enjoy the Kensington Palace of London as I.

And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!

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Published by pedmar10

I am a lover of travels to Europe , Americas , Africa and Asia as well ,who like to share my experiences of the last 53 years with the world, visiting so far 81 countries; living in 6, working in 5, and Citizen of 4, speaking fluently 4 languages. I can deal with sports especially football/soccer and love music, arts, wine collector/drinker, and go out to restaurants, and just visit the world. My background comes all the way from Candelaria and Pajara in Tenerife, Spain where my grandparents came from ;not knowing each other then, to Punta Brava, west of Havana, Cuba. There , my parents born in Cuba met and later on I was born there too. 100% guanche (annexed Tenerife to Spain on April 10 ,1496). I left Cuba as many have to Madrid, Spain where I lived for 4 years. Then, move to Perth Amboy ,New Jersey USA (living there 13 yrs) ; where I completed high school, became a US Citizen, learned to drive a car, and learned English. Afterward, went to the university in Florida, ERAU, and upon graduation decided to moved there to Ormond by the Sea, near Daytona Beach, finally moving North Miami, then Hialeah, then another moved to Silver Lakes division in Miramar, Broward county, Florida; in Florida I lived a total of 18 years. Finally , moved to France in 2003 ,Versailles call me for its royalty, and working in Paris was great. It was time to seek frontiers again and moved to Brech near Auray, Morbihan in Brittany , and later move to not too far Pluvigner. Total so far in France has been 20 years, and counting. Moving average a home every 5.5 years hopefully this will be my last. Cheers All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means or stored in a retrieval system of any nature, without the written permission of the copyright holder, me. No part of this work may be modified, without the written permission of the holder, me.No part of this work may be exposed to public view in any form or by any means, without identifying the holder as the author, and with the before mentioned permission.

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