Cannon Hill Park
One of the pleasant surprises for us about Birmingham has been the amount of "green space" here--running contrary to Birmingham's industrial image. Birmingham has over 8000 acres of parks within its limits, more than any other city in the United Kingdom. In addition to the smaller sections of grassed and flowered walkways in our area, we have also been to a few of the larger parks.
Cannon Hill Park is one of the more popular of these, as it is a beautiful park with lots to see and do, fairly close to the city centre. We were introduced to the park by our fellow expatriate Canadians Laurence and Peggy, and we've been back a couple of times since. The park is filled with beautiful flowers (pic 1) and shady trees, great for a leisurely stroll (pic 2). Or, you can get in a boat and paddle around one of the large ponds, as Michael and Matthew did recently (with some help!) (pic 3), watching the geese and other birds with their young. There are also play areas for the kids, large open areas for outdoor sports, and all the facilities one needs.
If you are at Cannon Hill Park with young children, you should certainly check out the Nature Centre down at the Pebble Mill corner. The prices are absurdly low (a rare thing here), and inside you will find wallabies, meerkats, red pandas, and more--including, as Matthew discovered, friendly little goats (pic 4). The whole park is great for an afternoon or a day, and best of all for a young family, it's cheap!
posted by Michael Pahl at
Sunday, May 07, 2006
1 Comments:
Ah, Cannon Hill Park. We spent *many* a happy day there. Highlights included a big Punch and Judy jamboree there in May about five years ago, with lots of Punch and Judy shows from all over the world. The kids loved it. Last summer, while the Edgbaston Ashes test match was on, there was free big screen coverage at Cannon Hill Park (just across the road) -- a real treat. And don't forget the Mac. Every year for at least five years we went to the Laurel and Hardy day each October -- 6 hours of Laurel and Hardy.
When we lived in Mosely, I would walk to the university every day, taking a short cut through Cannon Hill Park -- always a pleasure.
And the kids' highlight would be the "Party in the Park" pop festival one Saturday in summer each year -- they still talk about seeing the Sugarbabes, Nelly Furtado and the like.
By
Mark Goodacre, at 10:58 p.m.
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