On awaking to a bright blue sky and blazing sun we pulled out our packed away summer clothes and set off on a walk along the Thames path to Chiswick House. With my mum visiting and neither P nor I having visited here before we thought it would be the perfect day for it.
People were out in a vengeance, cycling, rowing, eating and drinking in the warm October sun. There's always such a buzzing atmosphere down on this part of the river with pub after pub filled with people inside and out.
The river was calm, the seagulls were soaring....
And even the ice cream vans were back out.
We walked and walked, until we finally cut up through the beautiful Church Street, steeped in architectural history to the hugely vulgar "hogarth roundabout". An incredibly ugly, expansive busy thoroughfare of cars coming in to and out of London from all directions. It was hard to imagine that the place we were about to visit was only a very short walk away.
On entering Chiswick house, the first thing you are hit by is sudden silence. The protective walls, century old trees and beautifully preened gardens suck up any sound from the chaos of cars, lorries and motorbikes and leave you in complete tranquility. It's hard to believe that you are still in London.
It's a very romantic setting with hand built historic bridges, grand vistas and hidden pathways, all set amongst architectural delights and a dazzling array of flowers, shrubs and specimen trees, creating a unique oasis in this corner of London. If I wasn't getting married in Indonesia, (and if budget was no option), I would certainly consider this as a venue.
I love having my mum to stay, exploring and discovering new places is such fun- plus this was a pretty special weekend for us both as we had finally found THE dress.... I am still in a little denial that I have finally found something quite so perfect. I can't express how happy and I am (and relieved, as I was getting a bit worried that I was doomed to find anything that suited me), anyway, that's all for another post!
We wandered the grounds for a good hour, there really is so much to see (and photograph!!).
And when you thought that there couldn't possibly be any more, there was, a 19th century conservatory, apparently home to a world class collection of camellias.
Having covered a good stretch of West London riverside we headed back through the Chiswick streets to Turnham Green tube, picking up bits and pieces from the local markets for lunch. Back at home we set it all out on a big wooden chopping board and enjoyed the rest of the sunny afternoon outside on the deck.
Hopefully this wasn't the last sunny Sunday we'll see.
Emi x
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