Queen’s Park day, the right day this time.

Small people overran the park but apart from that it was wild bird handling, goat burger eating, Spanish cider drinking, environmentally educating, cooking herb buying, merriment.

The bird of prey area was easily the most entertaining: Barn Owls, crazy mad owls, Eagles that could rip your face off. The Falconer went on to explain at length all the English phrases such as, ‘at the end of my tether’ and…I can’t remember the others but they were numerous, that originated as Falconry terms. The golden piece of advice was, “Don’t just go out there and buy yourself a bird of prey, ladies and gents. Just cos you’ve seen it done ere today doesn’t mean you’re an expert.” Had he not have said it, I’d have been straight on Ebird.

Goat burgers are baaaaar yummy. No doubt the distinct flavours are produced by the hairs on their chiny chin chins. That was drowned down by a bottle of Spanish Cider. I mean an actual bottle not the tramp of leisure/teenager sitting in the park, two-litre Strongbow variety. The Spanish fly was one of the nicest ciders I’ve ever had but bearing in mind most cider I’ve tried has come out of a plastic bottle and before that, the rotting part of a tree.

Then we picked up an SUV load of environment flyers after talking at length to what you’d call, ‘a darling old dear’ about urban bats. Not to be confused with the kind that’s swung by urban yoots.

To end the day I temporally became the green man as a huge variety of cooking herbs was strapped to me like a pack mule. Queen’s Park day is genius.