Swanley Park and Stanhill Farm

‘Easy Like Sunday Morning’

Light and easy.  For me, that’s how Sundays should be.    

Strawberries don’t grow in Singapore, we can only get them from the supermarket and I’ve never seen a strawberry plant before, so believe me when I say that I was really excited about that day.

Not far from where my sister lives is Stanhill Farm, located in Dartford, Kent.  It delivers fresh produce from their farm straight to people’s kitchens.  They also allow people to pick their own fruits and vegetables, which was exactly what we did last summer.

My brother in law, Kuya Bong, wasn’t working that Sunday and so he had time to take us all to the farm. 

You can take as many baskets as you need at the entrance at no cost.  At the exit, that’s where everything will be weighed for payment.

We went there for the red, juicy strawberries.

And for Kim, a time to relax under the sun.

I saw some raspberries too but they were not yet ready for picking.  Apparently, harvesting of raspberries is from July to October.

There were beans and many other vegetables, too.

I found the whole experience relaxing and therapeutic.  I often feel that sometimes it’s the simple things, like flying a kite, gardening or in this case, strawberry picking that is most effective in fighting stress and other complexities in our lives.

After strawberry picking, we drove to the nearby Swanley Park.  We took the mini train from the parking lot to the pond for £2 per person. 

Never underestimate these little trains.  They’re actually fun to ride.

Here’s the pond in the park.

Mini boats can be hired.  And there are benches to sit on if you forgot to bring your picnic mat.

You can choose to have a picnic on the big open spaces or under a tree. 

There’s a playground for smaller kids.

And buggies and a separate playground for the bigger children.

And what is a park without an ice-cream van?

Double, triple scoop?  It’s not just any ice-cream, you know.  It’s a blue one! And as blue as the sky that day.

Like I said, this is how I want my Sundays – light and easy, surrounded with green and a touch of blue.

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