Hubby and I have been trying to fit this little jewel into our itinerary for what seems forever, so when a gap opened up at the same time that the Roof Gardens were open to the public and it wasn’t raining we raced across London to Kensington High Street, eager as eager could be to find what treasures lay in store.  As we entered the building I spied a polite notice asking us not to feed the flamingos and ducks as they were on a special diet, and to be honest, I gave a wry grin and took it as a little joke, fully expecting to see fiberglass models of said birds.  So you can imagine our surprise as we turned a corner and there were four elegant flamingos trotting towards us, free as they say, as a bird.  The flamingos are fondly known as Bill, Ben, Splosh and Pecks, which suits them perfectly.  After amusing ourselves with a little photography, it was lovely to photograph them so close up, we turned another corner and found a mother duck with 5 ducklings, along with lots of other little ducks floating around the place. The gardens truly are a marvel,  there are three distinct areas, a Spanish garden, a Tudor garden and an English Woodland.  We spent a good couple of hours admiring the planting of mature trees and shrubs, the beautiful pathways, bridges and buildings, and glorious mini lakes and streams. Every detail had been attended to and it was easy to see why the gardens have been given Specific Historical Interest and given a Grade II listing by English Heritage.  The gardens are free to the general public when they are not being used for events, you do need to call first to see if they are open.

Enjoy.