Many times I look at the map to see where to go, I look for natural spaces, places that appear in green, I'm sure there is a park there, and I feel like going to explore. But other times I find places by chance, if there is such a thing, I don't think so. But those places are always beautiful.
On a walk quite some time ago I came across a beautiful garden in a neighbourhood, maintained by the neighbours. On that occasion I was walking alone and I thought my mother would love to see it, because it would remind her of our garden in Argentina, so one afternoon I said to her: Let's go for a walk.
I hoped it would be an afternoon without much cold, although the weather alternated between sunny and cloudy. I wanted her to see it with her own eyes and not through my photographs.
I assure you that she was delighted, there were even fewer people there that day than the first time I saw it and got to know it. It is called the gardens of Gamarra, which is the name of the neighbourhood.
Everything is very well kept, with a variety of plants, flowers, trees, small sculptures and even a water fountain. But this time we focused more on a place that is very close by and belongs to the same garden, a place where the neighbours make vegetable gardens and teach people how to create them, how to create and maintain them. I love that, I also used to have my own garden, although the soil wasn't very good, they grew what they could. But here the soil is excellent and everything grows.
At one point when we were walking around the place the sky opened up and let me take some pictures of the sun, which made it more wonderful and the green more intense. I could also see that the activities of the place had changed. The neighbours hold meetings and courses and that is very good for the neighbourhood.
I recognised many plants from when I had them in my garden and so did my mother, so we were a bit nostalgic as we walked among them. Only part of it we couldn't get to, but at least I was able to take a picture.
Nearby there is a park called Parque del Norte, we went inside just to let my mother see the inside of it, sit down for a while to rest and watch the children playing and also the pigeons that were approaching.
Then we continued our walk, while I looked at the map to see what I could discover nearby and as we turned around, leaving the park, we came across this spacious place with trees, several children's playgrounds and stone walls, I love them.
Between these walls there were some big stairs to access a higher area of the neighbourhood, and then another children's park with more colours, but I think that as it was cold the children preferred the previous park with more shelter from the breeze and perhaps better games. I imagine that during the summer these spaces must be full of people. For now they sleep until the hot season.
The buildings looked beautiful on those stone walls and the sun was starting to set again. I like to explore new places and I still have a lot to do in this neighbourhood. There are too many areas I haven't visited yet.
But looking at my map I saw something and I wanted to know what it was. Only this time it was to know, to find out what it was that I kept walking uphill.
I came across this sports area. Of course you had to pay to enter. It's a skating and skateboarding rink and I don't know how to do either, I thought, but I liked the entrance of the place and the fact that there was a big space.
I saw children and teenagers coming from all over to practice these sports, that's very nice to see, a place that brings them together and encourages sport and exercise.
I left there with the plan to return to the neighbourhood because I saw on the map another big park nearby, called Parque Pequeña Fuente. But by now the sun was starting to go down and it was getting colder, so I will leave that place for another walk.
Thank you very much for joining me today on this new exploration and discovery walk. I send you all a big hello. See you soon.
Amonet.
All photographs are my own.