Beautiful Hastings – garlic in Alexandra Park, and bluebells

It is unusual to be able to admire beautiful bluebells and flowering wild garlic, both at their best at the same time. This year has been a little odd.
   We have a little ritual every year, visiting the wild garlic at the very top of the upper part of Alexandra Park, in the thicket above Shornden Reservoir. (Here’s an odd thing. Why do so many locals refer to it as Alexander Park? It was named after Princess, later Queen Alexandra when she opened the park with her husband, later King Edward VII in 1882).
    It was a beautiful sunny Sunday. As usual, we walked to the park from home. First thing, we saw a group of people by the War Memorial, commemorating VE Day.

VE day ceremony in Alexandra Park

    Plenty of vivid green spring trees to see, but cherry blossom torn off by the recent high winds. We stopped for a coffee in the excellent eat@The Park cafe. They have greatly expanded the volume of outside seating available, which is good.
    Walked along our favourite path ‘The Ride’ in the Upper Park. My attention was drawn to the enormous sweet chestnut trees with multiple trunks, which must have been coppiced many years ago and then neglected.

‘The Ride’

Once-coppiced chestnuts

    
    Last year, the garlic was good, if a little trampled. This year, it was perfect.

Path to the garlic

Garlic….

Garlic….

Garlic

 
    In the garlic. I found a bird’s egg shell  – I think it is a blackbird’s.

Blackbird’s egg shell

    Then, we walked up through Bohemia, and down through Summerfields Woods. Poked my head into the Walled Garden – lots of people busily working.

Busy-ness in the Bohemia Walled garden

     The bluebells in the wood were stunning – the best we have ever seen them. Why is it so hard to get a good colour when photographing bluebells? You can see here, the first photo is a good blue, but the second one is more purple.
   

Bluebells, Summerfields Woods

More bluebells

     Finally, down through the town, and lunch at Ada Turkish Restaurant.
     A lovely walk – Hastings at its best.