Staying Alert - London Lockdown - Day 52

On day 52 of our isolation we are endeavouring to maintain sensible safety measures on our daily routines that we have established. So far, so good! 

The weather has been sensational for this time of the year. The daily adventure into the outdoors has been encouraged by this weather pattern. 

We have many choices of outdoor spaces to explore, with lots of parklands and open spaces where we can maintain our distancing from other likeminded folk. 

A return walk to Chiswick House and Gardens is a weekly destination. It is a constantly changing landscape - just what the designers back in the 18th century set about achieving. 

The statue of Venus atop of a Doric column at the centre of converging pathways. 

The garden here at Chiswick House was the first of what have been called the traditional English landscape gardens. Many other famous English gardens have used the design of the Chiswick garden as a model for their development. The design is centred around recreating a garden of with elements from Ancient Roman gardens, which in turn used Ancient Greek examples. 

Elements of the English landscape gardens were fabriques - in this case the Ionic Temple, based on a Roman and Greek temple.

The Ionic Temple is set in the landscape with a circular pool and obelisk in the centre of it, with three raised circles of lawn surround the pond. 

18th century bridge, urns, statues and obelisks are found around the garden. 

The beautiful, and classical, 18th century stone bridge is a dominant feature of the outer garden. 

Very regal avenues bordered by funerary urns and Cedar of Lebanons interspersed between the urns. 

Other visual impacts as you move around the garden. 

The Thames walkway is often very congested these days so we attempt to keep away from it as much as possible. It is especially frequented by runners who don’t seem to have socially distancing in their thoughts. But on a short passage along the embankment, where there is some very expensive real estate, we found signs indicating where the Thames flood levels impact. Perhaps not the place to buy!

All directions where the Thames flood levels come up to. 

One of the great places to exercise and to catch up with the family - whilst following the Boris’ rule of  "the good sense of the British public" - is at the very unpopulated golf club and grounds. 

This is a panorama shot of the golf club at the weekend. Great for social distancing. 

With this open space a small group of four sitting on the grass - all keeping their distance from each other - were moved on by the police.  Perhaps the message is to keep moving!  No one, though, is sure what the message is!!

All keeping the distance.  Dogs, too.

Hampstead Heath is one of the best vantage points to view London - even with the limited amount of traffic in the city at this stage, the view was of a city partly shrouded in a haze. Being a fine day, many Londoners took the opportunity to wander the surrounding woods. 

Hampstead Heath- with London in the distance.

 

Small Dogwood type flowering plant in St Peter’s Square Park.