Took the northern line to Tottenham Court Road then changed to central line to East Acton. As the last two Mondays have been bank holidays, I ventured out on a Wednesday this week.
My first stop was Kensington Memorial Park which was opened by the Duchess of Argyll in 1926. The funds for the park were donated from Kensington War Memorial Committee who wanted to create a suitable tribute to those who had fought in World War One.
Very near the park, in St. Charles’ Square, is the Carmelite Monastery which is closed to the public but is nevertheless impressive from the outside. The first French Carmel in Paris sent seven of their sisters, two English and five French, to establish this new centre of contemplative prayer in London. It was intended, in the ardent spirit of St Teresa of Avila, to be a spiritual powerhouse for the evangelisation of England. The little community began in poverty and obscurity, but by the beginning of the twentieth century it was attracting an amazing number of new vocations, women from all walks of life.
There are gardens attached to the monastery but I couldn’t locate them – even after walking round the square. Maybe another time …
Back on the number 7 and alighted at Portobello Road where I saw the Blue Door that featured in the film Notting Hill with Hugh Grant. It was a bit disappointing – the building itself was nothing special and some lovely person had even written “Tourists Suck …” Still, it was a pleasant reminder of a film that I had enjoyed a few years ago.
Blue Door from Notting Hill film
So I didn’t stay long, got back on the bus and alighted at Paddington station where I popped in and saw the statue of Paddington Bear with a plaque explaining how it came to be there. I was also pleasantly surprised to see that the Crossrail station at Paddington looks as if it’s nearly ready – this being called the Elizabeth Line.
Final stop of the day was at Brown Hart Gardens which are at the back of Oxford Street, opposite Selfridges. These are public gardens on top of an electricity substation and the small area is a little gem in the heart of London. To the east of the gardens is the Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral – a most impressive building.
Back to Oxford Street and I strolled along till I came to the House of Fraser which is imminently closing down for good. Finally the bus terminated at Oxford Circus.
london routemistress 