Matt Adores... Urban Parks!

Living within a British city I have the benefit of having facilities and amenities nearby. Its easy for me to get to the bank, get some shopping on the way home from work and also to enjoy well-maintained public parks and spaces.

Since 1840, Britain has a proud history of setting aside urban land and developing it into a pleasant "countryside within the city". The great Victorian-era industrialists commissioned horticulturalists of the day to create wonderful open spaces for the benefit of everyone.

My hometown has parks maintained by Birmingham City Council.Every suburb has "green space" to relax and escape from the concrete jungle for a while. Most parks have well established trees and plants. The Parks Department keeps the grass mown and replants the flowerbeds every year with bright, colourful blooms.

The photos to the left were taken earlier this week on a sunny evening in Queens Park. There is plenty of space for adults and children to play. I know of several sports and exercise groups that regularly use the park for training sessions. A convenient carpark makes the place easily accessible, and several bus routes pass nearby. If you're hungry or thirsty a pub serving cold drinks and food is within a very short walk.

Throughout the city, the larger parks have their own facilities and some are used to host concerts and fireworks displays. Most have a dedicated play area for with swings, slides and climbing apparatus for the kids. The council have made sure that the ground surrounding them is coated with a soft rubber layer to prevent injuries.

Here's a clickable list of the main parks in Birmingham.
Aston Park
Aston Park Pavilion
Birmingham Wildlife Conservation Park
Cannon Hill Park
Castle Vale Centre Park
Central Neighbourhood Parks
Eastside City Park
Edgbaston Reservoir
Handsworth Park
Kingfisher Country Park
Kings Heath Park
Lickey Hills Country Park
Plantsbrook Reserve
Pype Hayes Park
Rectory Park
Sheldon Country Park
Shire Country Park
Sparkhill Park
Summerfield Park
Swanshurst Park
Sutton Park
Victoria Common
Ward End Park
Woodgate Valley Country Park

Matt Adores... Astronomy

From my earlier posts, you'll probably be aware that I like being outside. I appreciate being out in the open air without the restrictions of four walls and a roof to hinder my view of the world.

A few months ago, myself and several friends were planning a camping trip. Nothing over-the-top and nothing too adventurous. We'd book a campsite, get a fire going, and settle in for an evening of light-hearted conversation and good company.

As it was early in the year,I thought to myself that this would be a great opportunity to do some stargazing. The nights would draw in relatively early compared to the peak of the summer and it would give us the chance to look upon the stars before it got too late.

On the evening of our arrival I noticed that the sky was clear, or at least as clear as it gets in the usually cloudy skies of Britain! I went to my car and returned with a small portable telescope.

Manufactured by Celestron; it's a small spotting scope. Its lightweight and compact, and unlike celestial telescopes, the image in the eyepiece is the correct way up. This made it easy to align the telescope with the planet Jupiter and to keep track of it as the Earth rotated.

The four big moons of Jupiter were clearly visible even when using a low magnification of 50x. Some of my friends had never seen a planet through the lens of a telescope before and were impressed.

The conversation ebbed and flowed and during the quieter moments I'd have a look around the sky and enjoy the views of the stars.

I adore observing nature up close and also at a distance. When Winter returns to the Northern Hemisphere I'm looking forward to taking more time to observe the stars and constellations above us.