RHS Garden Hyde Hall

It was really hot and sunny in the UK recently so to make the most of it my family and I wanted a day out. The place we chose was RHS Garden Hyde Hall, which is an outdoor space with various types of gardens.

There were so many different types of plants and flowers, some I’d never seen before and most that I’d never be able to name. We started off looking at a little garden that had a variety of flowers, my favourites were the huge, eye catching, red poppies. I’ve never seen them that size before.

We then walked down to the fish pond that also had water lilies.

As it getting quite hot, we stopped for ice cream and a little rest. Nearby was a dry garden that overlooked the far reaching green hills below.

We walked on and saw beautiful flowers wherever we looked. It was amazing to see such a variety of flowers in every shape and colour you could imagine. Although I seem to be drawn to the purple ones the most.

I also spotted some light pink poppies, again I’d never seen this colour before and never in this size (they were about the size of a melon). Maybe there’s something in the water here.

We then took a path that led us to the Sky Meadow. Curious as to what this could be we came to a field full of wildflowers and a lovely calming view. I imagine the name comes from the fact that the sky meets the meadow and that’s all you see.

After resting for a while we made our way past a huge lake and a lovely green expanse which was lined neatly with tall trees and an interesting sycamore structure in the middle. The kids wanted to play so we headed in the direction of the play area that also had some fun animal structures .

The last part we saw was the Winter garden which consisted of foliage that would keep growing and survive the cold. There were some figures of leaves, showing stages of decay as you walked along, that I really liked. Nearby was also a pathway lined with hundreds of foxgloves.

We then made our way to the shop, where we picked up some lovely plants for my mum. My favourite being these Galaxy sky petunias that were quite striking.

The visit to RHS Garden Hyde Hall was a really nice one, there was so much to see and so many winding pathways that lead to unexpected spots. I felt a little rushed on this visit and the heat tired us out too, but I’d like to come back again in another season, see what else is growing and hopefully take it a little slower.

Visit to Maldon

I went to Maldon recently with family as the weather was nice. We headed to Maldon with Hythe Quay nearby. There were lots of sailing boats, the masts and sails high above our heads. I love the colours and details of the embellishments of the boats.

There were boat trips being taken down Blackwater river, which looked quite fun.

We opted just to sit and watch, enjoy our picnic and the cool breeze.

We didn’t spend too long here as there wasn’t much to do, so having rested we made our way back to the car. It was nice to see the calming blues of the water even for just a short while.

Protesting for Palestine

I have been passionate about supporting the rights of Palestinians for many years now so when violence broke out in Gaza in the last few days of Ramadan it was difficult to see. In the weeks that followed there were many protests in support of Palestinians and against the abuse of power displayed by Israel, across the UK and across the world. I joined one protest a few weeks ago to show my support.

The route for the protest was along some of London’s famous backdrops. I joined them at Trafalgar Square and we made our way past Piccadilly Circus.

The route of the protest took about an hour to walk. We then all congregated in Hyde Park for speeches from politicians, organisers and academics. Even a heavy downpour wasn’t enough to scatter the crowd.

This protest is said to be the largest ever held in Britain for support of Palestinians and their rights. An estimated 200,000 people marched in London on this day. I pray that Palestinians are given their human and civil rights and that they are able to live in peace and freedom like so many of us take for granted.

I have Jewish colleagues and friends that I respect and I know that Judaism is a religion of peace. It’s Zionism that Israel promotes, a political ideal that leads to racism and inhumane treatment of the Palestinians. I’d also like to point out there is no room for anti-Semitism in support for Palestine.

Windy Southend

I had a few days off after Eid so I decided to take a trip down to the coast. The easiest coast for me to get to is Southend-on-Sea, and on this particular day it was grey and windy but not wet like it had been all week.

The first thing I did was walk along what Southend boasts as having the longest pleasure pier in the world, at 1.33 miles. I always enjoy the long walk to the end where there are a few souvenir shops and a restaurant.

At the end of the pier I walked around and then went in to one of the shops to look around and warm up as it was really windy out on the sea.

After having enough of being blown about at the end of the pier I walked back down to the shore to grab some lunch. Having had a sit down I was ready to venture out again. I made my way to the sea front, which it seemed I had all to myself! I found some really pretty shells as I made my way up the pebbly beach.

There wasn’t much else to do at the sea front, so feeling windswept I made my way back to the station, doing some window shopping as I went. I did come across some cool street along the way.

I always enjoy my trips to Southend, I love the long pier to walk along, and being by the coast always feels relaxing, although less so on this visit as the blustery wind and grey skies made the coast seem more dramatic than usual.