Never Never Land

Lichen on iron railings in Kensington Gardens

"I have a place where dreams are born and time is never planned.  It's not on any chart, you must find it in your heart... Never Never Land." ~ Peter Pan (the musical).

Half-way through my trip to England, I spent a leisurely day, walking through Kensington Gardens and perusing some of the galleries at the Victoria and Albert.

I had a lot planned for the day.  The morning was to be spent at the Victoria and Albert Museum (art and craft and fashion, oh my) and then a stop at the Science and the Natural History Museums across the road.  However, forces conspired to alter my plan, including but not limited to my own body and the batteries in my camera.

First alteration to my plans: I slept in.

Really, I can't blame my body for rebelling that way.  I was on vacation, after all, and so far, the latest I had awoken was before 7 am.  All those early flights and early sunrises were taking their toll. So, I didn't really begrudge the sleep.  Obviously, I needed it but the extra sleep pushed back the day.  Cross the Natural History Museum off my list.

Can you hear him playing?

Second alteration to my plans: Peter Pan and the fairies of Kensington Gardens.

I adore Hyde Park and the Kensington Gardens.  Right now, if you were to ask me where I wanted to live, if I could live anywhere in the world, I would say across the street from the gardens.  Imagine living on one side and working on the other.  Who needs a car when your commute could be a 15 minute walk through such a lovely park? And, they have an allotment (community garden to Americans).  Seriously, plant me there now.

The last time I had walked south through the park, I had walked on the Hyde Park side of the Long Water and the Serpentine, enjoying the sounds of Bing Crosby wafting from various game and craft booths.  On this day, I strolled along the Kensington Gardens side.  It was a much quieter walk and along the way, I found Peter Pan, playing his flute, with rabbits and squirrels gamboling at his feet.

 I must confess, I generally do not like squirrels (I have some living currently in my living room wall... ick!) but these bronze squirrels were actually quite cute and whimsical.  I spent quite of bit of time, walking around the statue, trying not to get into other people's photos.  Finally, after remembering I was planning on doing other things that day besides sit at Peter's feet, I tripped along my merry way to the museums, only to have my interest drawn in another direction.

I blame the fairies of the gardens.  Because of them, I saw magic in everything.  Another pedestrian became a modern goose girl, with her avian court hanging on her every word (all right, maybe they were just hoping for crumbs).  A gnarled, worn tree became a fairy hide-out.  My way led me under the Carriage Drive, through a tunnel.  What secrets lay on the other side?

 At the Serpentine Gallery, I turned right, enticed by leaf-strewn walkways and lichen-covered railings.  In the distance, I could see the spiky outline of the Albert Memorial.  I did not find it to  particularly beautiful, especially from a distance but it intrigued me.  And I'm glad I sought it out because I found these:

Bison!

Watch out, he spits!

That ain't no clay pigeon up there.

The memorial is surrounded by a gilded railing and at each corner of the railing, stood a set of statues representing a continent (America, Africa, Asia and Europe).  Although I can't find anything specific relating why these particular continents are represented, I'm assuming they refer to the continents where the English empire extended.

All very serious and noble, I'm sure, a worthy memorial to a man who devoted himself to the arts and his people.  Exquisite carving as well.  Yet, the sight of a carved bison, elephant, a bull and a camel were enough to get me giggling.  It's those fairies, I'm telling you.

I ate my lunch, sitting on the steps south of the memorial.  My whole morning was now gone.  Scratch the Science Museum off the list.  That left the Victoria and Albert Museum and, as that museum was one of my must-sees for London, I wasn't going to be deterred.  I took one last walk around the Memorial and found one last gift from the fairies.

A single golden leaf, blown against the railing.

 I finally continued on, past the Royal Geological Society where I met Dr. Livingstone (in statue form) to the V&A.  My initial visit (yes, I went more than once and I'll explain why in just a second) was slightly confusing.  My Rick Steves guide didn't quite match up with the V&A map as several galleries were being refurbished behind "hoardings."  What a wonderful way to describe the walls that hid the unfinished galleries.  I felt if I could just find a keyhole to peek through, I would find treasure beyond my imaginings, like a dragon's hoard.

One last bit of whimsy, a Chihuly chandelier at the V&A

The V&A can be overwhelming; I think I read somewhere that it has over 12 miles worth of corridors.  You certainly can't see it all in one day and appreciate it all.  I was going to try but then the third and final alteration to my plans:

My camera ran out of batteries.

After documenting what I could and trying to resurrect my tired camera, I left the V&A and strolled back home, through that wonderful park again.  It's even more magical as the sun goes down; you can almost hear the fairies flying through the air.

I started the day with my time planned and it slipped away from me, in the best possible way.  I spent the day dreaming and living in my own kind of Never Never Land.