The City of London has a perhaps surprising amount of open space available to locals and visitors to get away from the busy city life to relax and take some time in a slower paced lifestyle.
Hyde Park is the largest of the Royal Parks. Famed for historically being a place of political debate, being home to Speaker's Corner where anyone has the right to speak about any topic they wish to discuss. With figures such as Karl Marx, Vladamir Lenin and George Orwell having spoken here amongst countless others, you may well find it worth a visit.
More recently, Hyde Park has become known for it's staging of music concerts, having had such massive acts as the Rolling Stones, Queen, Blur and Paul McCartney play there over the years. The park also plays host to London's ""Winter Wonderland"" festival, an annual event where the park is filled with Christmas themed attractions and trade stalls on the banks of the Serpentine, one of the two beautiful lakes found within the park.
On the doorstep of
Buckingham Palace lies St James's Park, home of the Mall and
Horseguards Parade, a venue for events of the 2012 London Olympic Games. The park itself is host to the annual Trooping The Colour ceremony, in which the sovereign's official birthday is celebrated. This is a great chance to see the Queen as she is driven down the Mall, flanked by a huge marching band of around 400 musicians and foot guards.
The celebration typically culminates in a flypast from the Royal Air Force, a fitting send off for such a hugely entertaining ceremony. Unfortunately the Trooping the Colour only occurs once per year, but if you are in London at that time, it is well worth getting to St James's Park for, however if you do go to the park at other times of year, you will still be able to enjoy the majesty of this beautiful park in the shadows of the Palace.
The City of London has a perhaps surprising amount of open space available to locals and visitors to get away from the busy city life to relax and take some time in a slower paced lifestyle.