Many years ago, I lived in Newport, in fact this was where my first encounter with burnout happened. During this time my apartment was situated on the road that runs alongside Belle Vue Park, now if you haven’t visited it is well worth a visit.

Last week I met a videographer there as I needed a new showreel for the business and we decided to meet up at Belle Vue Park. I had literally forgotten what a beautiful place it is.

Parking up at the tearoom carpark (which I never knew existed!) we made our way into the park. The vast among of greenery and trees is stunning and really brings with it a certain calm and stillness. There were pockets of flowers (sadly the daffodils and tulips have now seen better days) but the bluebells and many others which I can’t name unfortunately and sadly as I am no horticulturist are in full bloom.

As we wandered through the park Dan (my videographer) was amazed at the expanse of it and how many ideal spots there were to take video shots and photos, I probably would have missed the beauty of it again had I not had to keep stopping for the video.

There was blossom in vast amounts, there were wooden bridges spanning small pockets of water (I wish I had taken photos), there were winding paths that were once lined with the hue of daffodils and there were lots of photographers making the most of their surrounding and indeed lots smiley people all enjoying the spring breezy yet sunny weather.

At the end of the morning Dan left and I took myself into the tearoom, what a gem of a place this is. The views over the park stunning, the ambiance delightful, the food was delicious and the staff were a joy to encounter, so chatty and kind. I am not a cake lover however if you are then this is cake heaven, defiantly my new place to meet friends in the area.

Sitting in the tearoom made me reflect on when I lived in the area of the park. I did visit it quite often as it provided solace and light on my darker days the shame however is that once, I moved from the area (now fifteen years ago) I have not been back since. There is no reason for not visiting only that life moved on and I had forgotten that this little place of tranquilly was still there offering its calm to anyone who needs it.

Over the years I have often lived and worked near park areas, something else I had forgotten till yesterday, Richmond Park in Surrey, Regents Park and Hyde Park in London, St Stephens Green in Dublin, all bringing space to stop and drink in the nature around that literally fills those pockets inside us with birdsong, calm and the colours of nature.

I realised yesterday that for me I need to spend more time in the parks that surround the beautiful area we live in, we are so blessed and I am guessing there are many of us that forget to step out into the natural world that surrounds us and our often-busy lives.

Last week mindfully I did just that, once the filming had stopped so did I as I dropped into the tearoom for a bowl of soup and a cup of tea.

So, this spring as we journey into spring look around you and take time to discover the hidden gems that are on your doorstep, you may be surprised.