We then headed to nearby Kensington Gardens, which becomes Hyde Park further east and together are a massive stretch of greenery in the middle of the city, and almost everyone in London spends part of their weekend here in decent weather. Kensington Palace, Princess Diana's former home, lies on the far west end of the park, so we toured that first. It's a very depressing palace, built of dark brick in the 17th century, with dark paneling and small windows throughout to ensure the place is as depressing as possible. Of course only the historical, somewhat pokey rooms are open, so I assume the bulk of the palace that is still in use is more lively.