A Big Day Out

What to do on a sunny Sunday but do what Londoners do and stroll in the park? We'll investigate the swimming at the Serpentine Lido (lido is the charming Brit name for public swimming venues but reminds me of the Love Boat). Our stroll to Kensington Palace the other day foreshadows the extent and foul of the fowl, so we are skeptical and shelve the plan. En route we observe parrots or parakeets? I'm not up on my tropical birds living in Hyde Park but they're green as the leaves of the trees in which they perch. One is coaxed out of the cammo and onto the seed-filled hand of a local enthusiast. We carry on toward Buck Pal, past the Diana fountain which today doubles as a water park for the wee, admiring the green and white striped loungers in the shade. But we're not yet ready to sit. The palace gates are more spectacular than the building imho. Selfies taken, it's time for lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe (of all places!) home of the world's most expensive Cobb salad, passing distant Big Ben on the way. HRC is a museum itself, of sorts. Nancy admires various Daltry and Townshend costumes and I covet john Bonhan's drum kit. Kids are entertained by music videos from our childhood and prior. Fed and watered, Trafalgar Square is not much further and we bump right into Canada House. Korea-London festival is in full swing in the square and it's mobbed. We seek refuge in the National Gallery for a brief but satisfying encounter w Da Vinci and Monet and Manet and Guardi. Girls are interested less in the paintings than in divining the secret of the levitating tin men performing their illusions on the street outside. Frances learns the secret and is encouraged to whisper it to one of the performers. Giggles, a peck on the hand for deducing correctly. Back to the flat by Tube. Time for Happy Hour to cap a (relatively) happy day (fave quote, "I'm doing all kinds of boring stuff so it's only fair that you should do something boring too!"). 12,300 steps, 5.4 miles covered, we can fairly say we saw London today.