Triathlon Training

Hyde Park: A London Treasure   by Greyer

At 350 acres, roughly half the size of Central Park, Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in London, and certainly one of the most historically interesting. It was originally Henry VIII’s private hunting ground, where rangers carefully maintained deer populations for the sole pleasure of the King. James I later began allowing gentlefolk to hunt there, and the park was eventually opened to the public in 1637. In the 1730s, in one of the most romantic displays in gift-giving history, the Serpentine River was created by dam as a present for Queen Caroline, and now flows slowly through the middle of the park.
In 1851 Hyde Park was the site of the Great Exhibition and the legendary Crystal Palace. It’s still host to many concerts and events, including the upcoming 2012 Olympic triathlon, and also contains several significant statues and memorials that will be of interest to any historically-minded visitor.
On its western side, the park is adjacent to the famous Kensington Gardens, and essentially blends into it. Kensington Gardens is more formal and tightly-landscaped, and the two parks have had something of a centuries-long tug-of-war for hipness, with the gentry favoring one park one decade, the other the next. No information was available on which is currently preferred by privileged amblers.
To the east of the park is Park Lane, once home to some of the finest mansions in England. Though some have been replaced with modern flats, many of the old homes still stand, repurposed as the famous Park Lane hotels.
Those interested in civics