The plan as it stands is for MM and I to move in together in 4 months time (eeeeeeep!) As we are both northern, and still slightly bemused by London, we have begun a location-hunt; day trips to different areas to walk round, eat, people watch, and gauge whether or not we want to live there.
We have visited Richmond before (which is firmly on the list! Maybe a bit unattainable- but the dream is there!) and decided to head back last Sunday for a wander round near the river in the spring sunshine.
I have heard good things about Kew Gardens.. And I was particularly disappointed that I never made it to the Christmas Illuminated Walk that they put on over November-January (this has been placed on my high priority to-do list next year) so it seemed like the perfect choice of location to stroll down to from Richmond town centre, and spend an hour or so walking around and enjoying the nice weather and the fresh air.
It is only a 10 minute walk to the first gate, and at £16 each it is a bit pricey to get in if you do just intend to mooch about for an hour or so.. But it is absolutely beautiful.
The weather was really quite warm for February, the sun was shining, the spring crocuses were popping up out of the grass, and for a moment you really can forget that you're still in London.
The gardens are huge, we were there for an hour and a half and only just covered about a quarter of the plot. We walked past the Japanese gardens, complete with Pagoda! And then made our way to the massive conservation house (pictures above)... We couldn't go into the house, but it was nice enough just walking the perimeter and having a nosey from the outside.
There was a 'treetop walkway' which sounded right up my street so we ventured to that neck of the woods to have a climb and a birds eye view of the gardens. It's just high enough to overlook a lot of the grounds, and on a clear day we were able to pick out Canada Square tower at Canary Wharf! The walkway isn't very big- it's a small circular route, but is still quite fun to do.
We eventually made our way down, and made our way back to the gate to head into Richmond for lunch. A bit of a shame really- there is the Festival of Orchids on at the moment which we didn't have time to walk down to and enjoy- but I imagine it is lovely. I papped these pretty purple flowers instead
I fully intend to go back to kew Gardens in the summer for a full day- perhaps with a picnic. For £16 it's difficult to get the full value of the ticket in a short period of time- but the gardens are beautiful regardless, and were absolutely ideal to walk around on a sunny spring Sunday... Almost as pretty as Yorkshire!
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