Park life

Cologne is bordered by a ring of linked parks which were formed after the war. According to the city’s main tourist information site, for each of its total of over one million inhabitants, there are 75 square metres of municipal park or garden.

Today I decided to check out the area closest to me: the park known as Volksgarten, or ‘People’s Garden’. It’s only right that I claim my 75 square metres worth. I’d heard the Volksgarten was good and I was not disappointed. It has many of the attributes you want out of a park such as large expanses of green grass, woodland, play area; plus bonus items like a boating lake and a café. I figure that when Baby H comes along, I’ll be making good use of this lovely green space. Summer ice creams feature heavily in my plans.

On my circuit around the park I came across this haughty looking goose. A species I’d not seen before, it had a hard crest on its head and flap of skin under its beak. These armoured add-ons served to make it look even more formidable than the geese back home in England, which is saying something, as some people use geese in place of guard dogs. Rapid research on the Interweb has revealed that it is an ‘African goose’. There you are then. You have been warned. Incidentally, the sign reads ‘Do not enter’. No need to worry on that score; not when Mr Goose is on guard.