Often, we like to bring you beautiful hidden gems, quirky finds or recommend places you might never have thought of to experience. Today, though, we found some photos from a late summer outing which made us so happy, we wanted to share them – it was a lovely Sunday day out, but probably somewhere you already recognise!

We first saw this amazing bakery at the food market next to the Royal Festival Hall:

And then strolled along the South Bank, past those iconic lamp posts with some familiar sights in the distance – the London Eye defined very nicely against the blue sky.

Upon entering St James’s Park, we were greeted by this guy, one of the many birds which live in the pond in the centre.

As it was still warm and sunny, we sat on the grass (surrounded only sporadically by dangerously-close ball games) and admired the gorgeously lush flowerbeds, covered with lupin and foxgloves.

This little family of swans, shepherded by mummy and daddy, looked like something out of a pastoral drawing….

More stunning lupin, foxgloves and delphinium lined the paths.

In the ultimate tourist shot, we tried to frame using the flags lining the Mall – they look so festive!

Pretty impressive gates outside Buckingham Palace – did you know that the frontage we all recognise was only added as recently as the Victorian era? As you work your way around the sides of the Palace, you can see the original, darker stone behind the paler frontage.

Having said that shot of the Mall was the classic tourist photo – no, actually, I think it’s this one… You can tell that this soldier is in the Scots Guards, as his buttons are in groups of three and he has no plume in his bearskin – each regiment has different numbers of groupings.

In this shot, you can see the darker, more modest frontal behind the facade. You can also see the sun gorgeously lowering in the sky as we headed off, after a really lovely London Sunday.

Have you taken any wonderful photos of Buckingham Palace or the London parks? Let us know your top tips!