Holland Park

If you’re entering from the High Street Ken entrance, look for the Trafalgar Way plaque on the left hand side wall outside the park. It commemorates the route taken by officials to get news about the Battle of Trafalgar and Lord Nelson’s death from Falmouth to the Admiralty.

I hadn’t previously heard of the Trafalgar Way. Reading up about it made me think of one of my favourite novels – The Three Musketeers – and all the long journeys on horseback that were a necessary part of the adventures. These days it would be a simple matter of a ship to shore call or dialling a mobile.

Much smaller and more intimate than the other royal parks in central London. Lots of other people had taken advantage of this weekend’s good weather to stroll in the park.

Every now and again, there would be a crackling noise as squirrels (alas, grey ones not the endangered red ones) loped across fallen leaves to forage. One dad had come equipped with a bag of nuts, and 3 squirrels came right up to him to feed, much to the delight of his toddler.

I had mixed feelings about the Japanese Garden. On the one hand, it was beautiful in a blaze of autumnal colours. But the expected serenity was lacking thanks to other visitors ignoring the requests at the entrance and exits of the garden. Kids were scrambling up, down and across rocks and 3 young mums tried to push buggies across a narrow bridge which was already jammed full of excited toddlers throwing several loaves-worth of bread into the water.

It was all very different to the other Japanese garden I’ve visited in Seattle. It’s probably more tranquil on a weekday, or on a rainy day – I’ll have to come back to check it out.

I’ve been to Holland Park (the area), but never realised there was actually a park called Holland Park until I read about the Japanese Garden that opened up there in 1991.

We strolled up Holland Park walk, a treelined footpath,which led to this quiet & secluded park that had many areas to relax and listen to the sounds of the birds & sqirrels in the many trees as well as the joyous laughter of the children scampering across the grassy lawns. I enoyed th exhibition of original artwork in the icehouse and the painted mural across from the orangery depicting a scene from the same site about a century earlier. I also enjoyed seeing the cleverly painted truck from the Rug Company- like it was covered in a hand woven rug! The peacock came right up to me & took some sunflower seeds & dried cranberries from me! then thank me by spreading his feathers!!

My favourite part of any London park, garden or common is the squirrels. They are adorable! There was an abundance of squirrels in Holland Park and it was a pleasure to watch them bounding around. It’s also fun watching the children interact with these energetic creatures. We watched one toddler chase, with Mum and Dad in tow, every single squirrel in his path. His hunt determined the route of their afternoon walk. The route was a bit random though as squirrels would pop out of trees or dart across pathways in opposite directions.

More at fushmush.net

Holland Park is the most romantic of London’s parks. The park opened in 1952, on what remained of the grounds of Holland House, the rest of the land had been sold off in the late-19th century for the construction of large houses and terraces to the north and west.

The woods and formal gardens of Holland Park surround the reconstructed Jacobean Holland House. Some of the formal gardens laid out around Holland House have survived from the early-19th century

The small, but lively, park is more wooded and intimate than the large royal parks of Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park to the east.

Features include the Kyoto Japanese Garden (which is small but I love it), laid out for the 1991 London Festival of Japan, rose gardens, woodland, wildlife pond and ecology centre. The park’s abundant wildlife includes tame rabbits, squirrels and peacocks.

There is also an adventure playground, cafe, and, during the summer, open-air theatre and opera under an elegant canopy.

Holland House, at the south end of the park takes its name from an early owner Sir Henry, Earl of Holland. During the 19th century Holland House was a centre of social and political intrigue with statesmen, including Lord Palmerston, mixing with people like the poet Byron.

Holland House suffered bomb damage during World War II, and now only the ground floor and arcades remain. The restored east wing houses a youth hostel, and the summer ballroom has been converted in to a contemporary restaurant, ‘The Belvedere’. The orangery and ice house stage temporary exhibitions