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Fridays are one of my favorite days. I have no classes! Last Friday I had lunch with my cousin in a little French restaurant just around the corner from me. The day was rainy and gray, so it was nice to have some really warm, filling food. It was also really nice to get to know her more. We haven't ever really spent much time together - strictly family gatherings - but we actually have quite a bit in common at the moment. It's nice.

Saturday I got up and took a trip to the Botanical Gardens. I walked from my apartment, which was exhausting. I followed Google Maps directions and ended up lost in a residential area. At some point I ended up crossing a stream and found myself on a wooded path area. There was a sign for Dean Village, which I would like to visit at some point. I followed that and ended up running into the Botanical Gardens. At the wrong gate (it was closed). Fifteen minutes later I finally reached the garden.

It's free to visit, which is really nice. The weather was also beautiful yesterday - blue skies and sunshine! The only issue was some serious wind that made is really cold out. I stayed mostly warm in my new trenchcoat (thanks to a fantastic godmother!).

The first bit of the garden you find is the rock garden.

It's got plants mixed in with rocks and grassy patches. There are rock paths everywhere. The gardens in general did a really fantastic job with little paths. There were several places where you wouldn't see anyone around you, thanks to them. The grass and plants were so green! My favorite was this waterfall that ran through the rock garden and into a pond in another part of the gardens.

There were peat gardens, woodland areas, and arboretum, ponds, and a Chinese garden. I made a bit of a detour for a warm drink though in the cafe. When I came out, there were children running about everywhere. I've never seen quite so many children in one place, having the time of their lives playing on grassy areas.

The only part of the gardens that isn't free is the glasshouses. I think they have tropical sort of plants in them, but didn't go in. There's really enough to do without them. Tucked away in one corner is a memorial garden to the Queen Mother. Each corner of it has plants from a different area of the Empire, apparently. Not that I know enough about plants to tell. There were some beautiful fragrant roses though!

I love British roses. They're always enormous and so fragrant. Our roses always seem lacking in comparison. Also, it's quite hard to make flowers stand still for close-ups.

The pond was one of my favorite areas, probably because I act like a two-year-old around ducks. A minute after I got there, one ran up screaming "DUCKS!" much to the disappointment of the parents, who were trying to leave.

Here's where you can see a distant trail of the waterfall leading into a pond.

I left the gardens after a bit and made the hike back to my flat, which was considerably harder than it was on the way there. Probably because I was exhausted, going the opposite way of the wind, and carrying a bag of flour and bag of sugar as well (for cooking later). I actually had to sit and take a breather before tackling an enormous flight of stairs.

I got back and cooked myself a fantastic dinner. Mom sent me her recipe for chicken pie. It actually turned out quite well, despite taking twice as long as it should have (I really hate my oven). After that I made apple crumble as well, to get rid of a bag of apples I had lying around (which I of course shared with the various people in my flat at the time).