St James’s Park

This is one of the smallest but most gorgeous of London’s parks. It has brilliant views of the London Eye, Westminster, St James’s Palace, Carlton Terrace and Horse Guards Parade, and the view of Buckingham Palace from the footbridge spanning St James’s Park Lake is the best you’ll find (get those cameras out). The central lake is full of different types of ducks, geese, swans and general fowl, and its southern side’s rocks serve as a rest stop for pelicans (fed at 3pm daily). Some of the technicolour flowerbeds were modelled on John Nash’s original ‘floriferous’ beds of mixed shrubs, flowers and trees, and old-aged squirrel-feeders congregate under the trees daily, with bags of nuts and bread. Spring and summer days see Londoners and tourists alike sunbathing, picnicking and generally enjoying the sunshine, though sometimes in annoyingly large numbers. Near the popular cafe and restaurant Inn the Park stands the National Police Memorial, one column of marble and another of glass. Conceived by film director Michael (Death Wish) Winner and designed by architect Norman Foster and artist Per Arnoldi, it pays tribute to 1600 ‘bobbies’ who have lost their lives in the line of duty. There is also a wonderful allotment in the park, close to the Pall Mall entrance to the park and the Inn the Park restaurant and cafe, open in spring and summer only (May to October); it was initially modelled as a showcase for WWII allotments that flou-rished in London and the rest of the UK. It grows a number of fruit and veg, has a herb garden and is a lovely place to wander about, especially with children.