Playground Culture

I told the wife of one of AC’s British colleagues that I am getting to know English culture through the playgrounds. It’s really true. Being in a foreign country with a small child means that we do fewer adult touristy things and more hanging out in parks and gardens.

So what have I gleaned so far?

1. Playground equipment appears to be less safe for little kids and loads more fun. The stairs and ladders are steeper. Platforms are higher. The slides are longer and zippier. At Queen’s Park in Brighton there’s a long slide that looks like a metal chute set right into a hill. I was astonished to see young toddlers zooming down on their bellies. This sort of thing would never fly in the U.S.

(Notice the metal slide in the background. This spinning seat-thing in the foreground is one of Sam’s favorites.)

At St. Ann’s Well Garden in Hove, there’s a zip line for kids. Sam didn’t want to try it, but she loved the “lying-down swing” they have there. Here’s a picture of the one in Queen’s Park:

(This is Sam climbing OUT of the swing. The two boys on it with her are Luke and Natty, sons of one of AC’s colleagues.)

2. Every playground we’ve been to has some sort of snack stand attached to it, or even a cafe. The playground we go to most often is the King’s Road playground, right on the beach. It has sand and a wading pool (in summer) and there are two cafes right there, so mums or dads can sip their lattes while baby eats sand. I don’t know if this is just the Brighton and Hove area or if this is typical of all Britain. But it just seems so civilized to me (the coffee-sipping, not the sand-eating).

3. Most popular name for a boy these days here in Brighton? George. At least according to the informal poll my ears are conducting.

4. Overheard girl names that made me smile: Harriet, Scarlet, Ophelia. The last one… lovely name, but oh– the associations! And wasn’t Shakespeare from somewhere around here? 😉