Chris Hatherill: Hopping the fence
Though not comparable in scope or scale, private urban garden squares are the city dweller’s equivalent of restricted land in the countryside: nice to look at over the fence – but frustratingly out-of-bounds. I know that most of London’s leafy locked squares are probably remnants of some ancient system of laws dating from plague times, but I find it insulting that the public is still blocked from entering these green oasises, which are usually empty anyway. Why shouldn’t we be able to stroll through them, pause for moment by the fountain or – gasp – quietly read a book? Short of knowing a resident – or climbing onto the nearest Porsche to hop the fence – there are precious few chances to experience how the other half lives, or at least, picnics.
That’s why the Open Squares weekend is so exciting. On June 13 and 14, over 190 gardens – many of which are not usually open to the likes of us – will throw open their gates to the great unwashed, giving everyone a chance to enjoy their secrets and, more importantly, prove they can behave themselves. Transport for London and London Parks & Gardens Trust have even organised a series of guided and self-guided walks, allowing you to trace routes through The City, Kensington, Islington and elsewhere on foot. So come on urban Ramblers: rise up, storm the gates, climb the barricades, then leave quietly and take all your litter with you.
Chris Hatherill is web editor of Walk Magazine
- This entry was posted on: Thursday, June 11th, 2009 at 10:00 am
- Filed under: Blogs
- Tags: access, gardens, guided walks, urban walks
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