Avenue House Estate

M. Ismail is one of NewsFlashMedia’s team members. Since late October 2011 she has been living in London and vacationing in France. She updates us here on the simple things about living abroad.

THE first thing I did when I reached England was to go to the park. It was the end of autumn, my favourite season. It holds many sweet memories for me. It was the season I fell in love for the first time in my life.

Just like winter, when everything turns white and icy and cold, autumn brings in the golden colours, the bright reds, yellows and browns. The ground is covered in layers and layers of beautiful golden leaves. The sight is so beautiful it makes you forget that underneath those stacks of leaves are nasty dog poop some owners choose to leave behind instead of scooping them up into the bin. There are plenty of bins in the parks in England.

The beautiful colours of autumn.

So my friends and I would kick the leaves about, dug our heels into them and most times ending up rolling about on the leaves. And true enough, we have ended up with dog’s poop on us many times over. That’s when all hell would break loose.

But this isn't a story about my first love, though I know that's what everyone prefers to read about. This post is seriously about autumn and trees and golden leaves.

Late last year I came to England again. This time around, I'm staying in Finchley, a district in Barnet in North London. It gets a little confusing if I were to explain all the different areas linked to the district so suffice to say I am in Finchley Central. And it was here that I stumbled upon Avenue House Estate and its extensive grounds covered in beautiful trees that must have existed way before I was born. To me, this is the beauty of trees. They take that many years to grow that so much history must have followed their ‘journey’. In fact, there is every probability that some of these tree species are not easily found today.

The grounds of Avenue House Estate.

It was Nov 1 when I was on the grounds of Avenue House Estate and I did not know a thing about the place except that I was so taken by the sight of the grounds surrounded by trees of all shapes and sizes.

The afternoon sun filtered through the leaves and branches, making everything so magical. I was so engrossed admiring a branch laden with thick layers of yellowish-golden leaves that I didn’t hear someone asking if there was something wrong. When I realized someone was staring at me, looking rather worried I reassured him it was just the leaves that have taken up all my attention. He smiled and as he wheeled away, he said: “Yes, it’s beautiful here at this time of the year. Take care love.” 

The path leading to the Estate and its grounds.

Avenue House Estate is rich in history and is perhaps one of the most important landmarks in the area. Later that night I did a bit of reading on the place and discovered that the beauty of the grounds is credited to one of the most famous landscape designers in Victorian times – Robert Manock, who used ‘the Gardenesque’ style (a planting style) on Avenue House Estate, built in 1859. Those of you who would like to know more about the Gardenesque style can get information online. I also read from the estate's official website it also has an impressive collection of rare tree species brought in from other parts of the world. 

And some of the unique collection of trees was compiled into a book in 2006 through the efforts of the Friends of Avenue House group. The Group, made up of volunteers, has done a lot to help improve the park for the benefit of the locals who frequent the grounds for their outdoor activities. But if there is one area that needs to be focused on it would have to be security as the grounds are vast with many quiet spots, nooks and corners and windy paths mostly covered in heavy foliage. The park is gated but open to the public and there is quite a good crowd of walkers in it too. But the problem is the park is so well shaded that you can be caught unawares if an attacker ambushed you.

How can anyone not enjoy this beauty?

Which season can be more colourful?

I shoot trees as part of my photography collection and the Estate's grounds were simply stunning and breathtaking. It was also a nice sunny day when I went there, very ideal for shooting but I ended up rushing through my shots when I read a notice placed near the entrance. A sexual assault had taken place within the grounds just a few months before I came to England. And the scary part was that the attacker was still at large. Who would want to take a chance knowing you can easily become a victim? Some of the other walkers may be a little confused with my darting eyes and hurried pace.

Initially I had planned to return to the grounds and shoot in winter just to see the comparison but I went to France instead. By the time I got back from France, there were only traces of winter left and melting snow. Maybe a revisit in the future? Someday.