Wandsworth Common & Abbeville Road

In my continuing quest to explore the Clapham district, I decided to explore 2 places that are frequently mentioned by mums here.

Wandsworth Common
Yet another common (aka park) and Wandsworth is just brimming with them! But I'm not complaining coz it's really good for both me and Danielle. Gives us new places to visit every time. This common took us a good 1/2 hr walk methinks?!

Our neighbour, Mark, says the Wandsworth borough (which Clapham South is situated in) is sometimes known as 'Nappy Valley' due to the huge family community that resides in the district. And it's true, coz it's not uncommon for me to share pavement space with another 3 or 4 mummies pushing their McClaren prams! Anyway, at Wandsworth Common, it (also) has a One O'clock Club, quite a huge playground and extensive grassland for children to run about and play. There's also a pond there, not unlike the one at Clapham Common (Southside). But I reckon the geese/ducks look happier at Clapham Common :)

I took the initiative this time to speak to a mother while I was there and as it turned out, she wasn't English but from Sydney, Australia! That made it easier for me to speak with her somehow. Her name's Beth (another chio bu like Silke!) and her daughter's Scarlett. Scarlett is coincidentally exactly one month younger than Danielle (her DOB is 20 Sept). Beth told me she found it hard to make friends in England coz she didn't find the English as inviting or friendly as Australians. I agreed whole-heartedly! I told her I found the people here generally more guarded and less warm. Anyway, we exchanged numbers as well so let's see whether we pick up from there. Err... I sometimes dunno what to do with the numbers I've gotten from these mums? I feel quite pai say to call? What to say ah? Stressful.

Abbeville Road
Danielle and I explored Abbeville Road yesterday. It's about 7 mins walk from our place. Mark was actually the one who encouraged me to check this place out, said there are a lot of nice cafes and quaint shops there. It's actually not a very long street but I did like what I saw there. There were some charming cafes (including a Starbucks), lifestyle shops, 2 bespoke boutiques, a florist and a couple of restaurants. Mark says the Italian Ristorante there is v good. Maybe we'll try it out one day? I had a peek at the menu and the prices looked okay. Worth considering if we want to treat ourselves to a special night out. :)

I went into a shop called Cook which does packaged meals-to-go. They have pre-packed meals for 1 pax, 2 pax or even a family. They were giving out samples of their freshly made Banoffi Pie so Danielle & I shared some. I've heard of the pie before but never eaten it so it was a good thing I walked into the shop! The pie was mouth-wateringly delish! A fantastic blend of toffee and banana (and hence its name). The consistency is somewhat similar to tiramisu I think. Anyway, Danielle and I enjoyed it lots, even tho' it was a small sample!