UK09: RICHMOND PARK WITH E

here is a map of (approximately) the route we took. we probably meandered rather more than this map suggests. the map also doesn't tell you that the ultimate aim of our walk was to reach SPANKERS HILL WOOD. because it has an hilarious name!



d & i hopped on the train early, going from the second last station on the northern line to the last station on district line. i feel like i've just joined some kind of london club. e was waiting for us at the station, and it was SO LOVELY to see her after not being able to give her squishes since last december! another lovely aspect of seeing her was that she took us to the cafe right near the station (a taylors st coffee place) that makes PROPER, GOOD COFFEE. omg. you have no idea how good it is to find these places in england!



anyway, we walked up to richmond park where there was a duathalon going on, so the main paths were teeming with lycra-clad specimens sporting padded buttocks. charmed. we managed to avoid them for the most part, thankfully, and instead went and hung out with the deer! DEER! EEE!





the grass was very dry for england - it almost looked like home! but in the woods it was that lovely glowy green. nom nom nom. it's amazing that such an enormous open space exists in london, completely surrounded by residential etc suburbs. i guess that's one of the legacies of having royalty own vast amounts of land and not letting plebs on it.





we had a super walk, and were definitely ready to head back to the cafe for lunch and more coffee. but first we had to stop in on the cheese shop (teddington cheese) we'd seen on our way up. it's not a proper holiday until you've bought cheese! we got a delicious, stinky cheese called (i think) epoisses, which was so runny that by the time we got it home we had to eat it with a spoon. we also sampled the oxford blue (quite mild, i thought) and a cornish yarg. i'd never had yarg before, and it had a nice tartness to it.



the cheese was so stinky that on the way home on the train, i overheard someone in the seats nearby ask, "is it just me, or is this carriage really smelly?" heheheheh.

after buying the cheese and having some lunch, we were too lazy to do anything except keep sitting in the cafe and drinking delicious tea. i hightly recommend the place, because they even put a timer on for our green/white tea so we didn't over-brew it. yay! cheese + tea + walking + friends = genius day!



we were going to go out with e&l in the evening, but instead we ate cheese, did some washing, and watched the fog, a rather slow-moving horror film directed by john carpenter of THEY LIVE fame. it was not as funny as they live, unfortunately. but then, what is?