A sunny (but chilly) day for a hike through the countryside.
Today was a beautiful, sunny day, albeit a bit breezy and quite chilly. Nonetheless I was eager to get out for another long walk – my fourteenth consecutive weekend hike. I selected a route in the North Downs, outside the town of Guildford to the southwest of London. This week, the whole family came along. Despite extensive delays on the rail system, which has reduced service this week while crews leverage the holiday week for some maintenance work, we made a fine day of it.
London is beautifully decorated for the holiday.
London goes all-out for Christmas, with homes, stores, streets, and squares boasting elaborate decorations. The long nights encourage beautiful light displays, often including massive designs that are draped along major shopping streets. Throughout December I’ve snapped photos of some of my favorites – and even my full gallery of photos doesn’t begin to demonstrate the breadth and depth of the decorations across the city. Perhaps the most elaborate was produced by Anabel’s, an exclusive club on Berkeley Square, London. Its entire façade has been overlaid with an fantastical scene inspired by the Narnia stories.
Merry Christmas!
Preparing for the holiday in London.
Part of the joy of spending Christmas in London is the opportunity to explore the city as we prepare for the holiday. We began by attending a production of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. It was a real treat to see one of my favorite stories, on stage, in the city where the story is set!
Beautiful weather, and light crowds, the day after winter solstice.
The ancient site of Stonehenge is one of those world-heritage sites that really must be on anyone’s life list. It’s only two hours from London, so I’ve been eager to visit. And, because it was designed with exquisite solar alignment to the winter and summer solstices, with winter solstice being (likely) the more significant date, I sought to arrange our visit for yesterday, the winter solstice.
My research quickly dispelled that notion. Stonehenge was anticipating thousands of people to show up for sunrise, many of whom would need to walk miles alongside the road (in the pre-dawn dark) from remote parking locations. All the tour operators were sold out, and would require departing London before 4am. I decided, instead, to book a private tour for the day after solstice. Wow, was that ever a good move!
Winter solstice in London
Today is the winter solstice. (Technically, it is the December solstice, which in the northern hemisphere is the winter solstice.) I thought surely there would be many photographic opportunities for the solstice, in and around London. (Solstice is a big deal at Stonehenge, of course, but I envisioned massive crowds today and decided to wait.) So I asked ChatGPT for advice. It provided a remarkable response, listing a half-dozen locations suitable for sunrise, another half-dozen for sunset, and more; it listed specific times, provided information about transport to and from each site; it suggested camera settings; and it even built a busy day-long itinerary for a sequence of sites to visit. Although impressive, I decided to keep it simple and went to Primrose Hill for sunrise.
An extended walk along Regent Canal and through Kensington Gardens.
It isn’t always necessary to leave London to enjoy a lengthy hike that offers plenty of interesting things to see, along with some natural spaces. Today, for my thirteenth consecutive weekend hike, I walked over Primrose Hill, along the towpath of Regent Canal, and across the west end of Hyde Park known as Kensington Gardens. Along the way I enjoyed broad views of the London skyline, intimate views of a narrow canal, backside views of London Zoo, and a distant view of the London Eye. I capped it all off with chai and a croissant at Guillam in Gloucester.
Three random sights in London.
I often take long walks, here in London. Sometimes I have a destination – going to work at Imperial, or visiting a museum, or shopping for an obscure item. Othertimes I just wander. Either way, I sometimes ignore the temptation of Apple Maps, point my nose in the general direction, and zigzag through streets and parks until I get close to where I want to be. Along the way, I enjoy the sense of discovery, often about the smallest things.
After dark, London provides many photo opportunities.
Nearly every day, I walk past the London theater (um, sorry, theatre) housing a production of the blockbuster Broadway show, Wicked. It’s after dark, when the show is running, that it truly shines. Literally. The bright-green neon lights of the Apollo Victoria theatre’s marquee illuminates the street and, what I love most, the queue of taxis waiting out front.
A lovely hike through the North Downs, with a visit to Darwin’s home.
“Welcome to Down House,” said the cheerful manager as I wiped the mud off my hiking boots at the entrance to Charles Darwin’s home. “Sorry for the wait, I was just out back checking on the sheep.” As I stepped across the threshold in search of a scone and a spot of tea, I felt more like I was stepping back 150 years as I skirted around the Drawing Room in search of the Tea Room. Out back, gardens and greenhouses (and sheep) still thrived, much as they had during Darwin’s day, though resting now as winter approaches.
A lovely stroll through a massive park on the outskirts of London, with surprising wildlife.
Earlier this fall, as we settled into life in London, I had the opportunity to take several hikes outside London. Thus started a sequence of ten consecutive weekend hikes… so I was determined to get out hiking again today! I chose a walk along the Thames River and through the extensive meadows and woodlands of Richmond Park, just outside London. Little did I know how much wildlife I would find in this extensive parkland, so heavily traveled by so many joggers, dog-walkers, and equestrians.
David Kotz 