My guidebook: St. James's Park
A green space overlooking Buckingham Palace. For some, this park is even too curated and crowded.
It’s true: the bridge with the view of the London Eye (to the east) and Buckingham Palace (to the west) is never empty, sometimes with pedestrian congestion. On a relatively quiet day, you can check your watch using the “Big Ben” chime. From there, you can reach Piccadilly, Soho, Trafalgar Square, Westminster Abbey, and Parliament — and, most likely, the international tour groups, microphones and umbrellas in tow, are doing pretty much the same.
It’s also a place where a pelican can fly in all its fascinating and graceful enormity (though most of the time they simply cross your path — sometimes trying to eat you).
Where the squirrels are exceptionally well fed.
Where the geese are demanding.
Where, right on the main crossing, there is a special tree for hand-feeding parakeets.
Where, despite everything, one can still find a spot of relative silence and serenity.