Hyde Park

Last week, my dad and Debbie were in town. The first day, while they were still super jetlagged, we decided to visit Hyde Park, since it's around the corner from my flat. Additionally, the weather has been ridiculously sunny and warm for London, and we decided it was the best way to enjoy it. 

We entered the park at Speakers Corner, and continued through the middle of the park towards the Serpentine (or big lake):

Upon reaching the boat house, we (and by we, I mean my dad) decided we had to rent a boat to row around. 

Dad reverted right back to his lifeguarding days and insisted that we rent the boat for an entire hour. He then proceeded to pretend he was still in his early 20s while outracing the lazy tourists, showing us the various types of ways to steer a rowboat (didn't know there was more than one). This is when he still had some pep in his row:

It was really beautiful circling around the lake by your own personal rower in late day. The lake was pretty large, and filled with swan, geese, and ducks. And the weather was absolutely perfect.

This is the bridge that Dad aimed to row under; however, he made this eager and ambitious decision from a distance. I think it took a little bit of the wind out of his sails (pun very much intended) to see those chains blocking the entrance. 

Dad kept asking (more frequently as the hour wore away) whether we wanted a turn rowing. We kept responding that no, no we did not. We were much happier to just be passengers.

Bring on the swans:

After our lovely and relaxing ride, when Dad had sweated through his shirt and developed  blisters all over his hands, we continued our walk through the park. Along the lake, there were swans hanging out looking for free food. They were so nasty! I saw a small dog unknowingly start sniffing around the area where the swans were, and they all swam after it, mouths open and hissing. I was slightly terrified for the dog, as the swans were 4 times the size of him and I thought he was a goner. Luckily he wandered away before things got ugly.

After walking straight through the east side of the park, we walked back up towards Speakers Corner along Park Lane, and back home, concluding our lovely day in Hyde Park.