| Princess Diana Walk | |||
| As
mentioned elsewhere on this site, Kensington Palace was
the home of the late Princess Diana. She was seen in
local shops and restaurants and as several of you have
asked me which ones, I have devised a short walk through
Kensington that takes in some such places. The length of
the walk is 1.5 miles (2.4km) and takes around an hour at
a comfortable pace. Start at the main gate of Kensington
Palace (1). Facing it, turn left and walk straight
ahead to the park exit. Turn on the left and walk down
the private road (Palace Avenue, Diana would daily
drive from here, exiting the palace) towards High Street
Kensington. Turn right along it and walk ahead. Kensington
Market (2) used to be situated here on your left (she visited this
colourful place several times), but closed down a few years ago and is
now a building development. Carry on up the High
Street towards Barkers Department Store (3) (she
also shopped here). Go further down the same side of the
street and you come to Marks & Spencer (4) (she
shopped here regularly). Almost opposite it is McDonalds
(5) (which she patronised with her sons, Princes
William and Harry). Carry on on this side of the road for
about 400 yards until you come to Phillimore Gardens
on your right. Here you will find the Patisserie
Parisienne (6) (where she was sometimes spotted
sitting outside and drinking cappuccino and keeping an
eye on her car parked on a yellow line). Opposite this is
the Sticky Fingers Restaurant (7), owned by former
Rolling Stone Bill Wyman. Go back to High Street
Kensington and cross over to the Kensington Odeon
Cinema (8) (Diana would often take her sons to both
places). If tired you can end your walk here now. But if
you want to carry on, turn into Earl's Court Road
and walk for about ten minutes past the Underground
Station and, on the same side of the road you come to a
Boots Chemist. On the first floor is the Earls Court
Gym (9) (the nearby gym which Diana used to keep
fit). Keep going until you come to the corner of Old
Brompton Road and Redcliffe Gardens. You see
Brompton Medical Centre in a big apartment block, Coleherne
Court (10). Diana lived in an apartment here for a
few years before she got married to Price Charles. This
is the end of the walk and now you can retire to one of
the nearby pubs or to the Troubadour Café.
|