More to explore

I am taking advantage of the pleasant weather to continue to explore my new surroundings. I am always keen to ask around locally for places to visit especially on foot. 

A 10 min walk from where I am now living is a very large area full of allotments. These plots of land are rented by local people to grow vegetables or flowers. Normally only allotment holders are allowed access but here I discovered that the public can visit at the weekend.  There are pathways between the rows of allotments making it easy to wander around.

The individual plots are large enough for you to erect a shed and a greenhouse.

Just getting it ready to sow.

Quite a few plots had raised beds.

Potatoes were the main crop on this plot.

Flowers were the choice here.

I even discovered beehives in one corner. Everyone was very friendly and chatty and there was even a cafe where I could get a bacon sandwich and mug of tea for just £2.50! 

I was there for a couple of hours walking around and chatting to the gardeners. It was a lovely way to spend a Saturday morning. Definitely a place to revisit.

Inside the windmill

The windmill close to where I now live had an open day a couple of weeks ago. I went along with a couple of friends for a guided tour.

We were escorted round in small groups by a knowledgeable volunteer. The windmill was built in 1808 and ceased milling in the 1890s.

It has been refurbished and a number of the timbers were replaced as part of a heritage project. There are three floors which are accessible  by very narrow, steep staircases. It felt more like climbing up and down ladders than stairs.

When built the view from the windmill would have been very different from today.

One of the old mill stones.

The Windmill is only open a few times during the summer months so I was pleased to get on one of the tours. 
Who knows, with the climate crisis maybe one day we will have to return to using wind power to grind the flour. 

Chelsea in bloom

 This week is the Chelsea flower show. It is a 5 day event run by the Royal Horticultural Society and is the height of the serious gardeners' calendar. I have managed to get a ticket twice in the past but not this year. However, in the local area of Sloane Square in Chelsea, local businesses have put on their own displays. Yesterday I went for a free walk to see their contributions to street floral displays.

 

Loved the ballet shoes.

I hope you enjoyed walking around Sloane Square and King's Road with me and hundreds of other people. There were many other shops and displays. I would say 90% of the flowers this year are real and not silk. Not sure how they will last the week. Many shop workers/ owners were out watering and spraying them. The businesses rely on the goodwill of the public not to touch the flowers especially overnight when the shops are closed. It is one of the best free flower displays I've seen and is getting bigger and bigger each year.