Gardens in the Morning

Early this morning I took myself over to the gardens before the mums arrived with their kids.  It was quiet, the top gate was blocked off so almost no-one was there, jolly good I say.  

 
The idea was twofold, to loosen my aches from yesterday and to play with the manual settings on the camera. The bones creak still and the camera produced a great many failed shots!  At least one creature stirred in the gardens this white cat that yelled along after me, I am not sure whether it was lost or hungry, I suspect both.

The cat and I wandered slowly among the trees, he meowing not me, until we separated near the grass part.  Being not long after nine I expected more people but in times past I have arrived early and in the quiet found many birds and creatures going about their business, maybe the early morning heat was putting wildlife off.

   
The barking high above me announced this wee man who was upset about something.  I had noticed one other squirrel running about and maybe this is he possibly upset because all others have gone to ground.  His bark, there is no other word for the noise emanating from him, his bark could be heard everywhere, very loud for such a wee creature.  I did speak to him but he just turned his back on me.

   
Then the disappointed seagulls hovered around.  Disappointed because there was little in the way of foodstuffs to fight over, normally early on there is something left lying about.  How do birds cope with the heat, let alone other weather situations?  It seems to me they appear at the hanging feeders less in high temperatures possibly because other food is more readily available, possibly it is just too hot?  I know not why?  Gulls fly in to feed on farmland and return in the evening to the estuary to sleep on the sea, rather them than me.  There were only a handful of them around today also.

I almost got this purple thing right.  Few flowers around except those planted by the garden staff, mostly green stuff at the moment, except for the grass which is like hay.

This wreath lay at the memorial today but I am unsure who it represents.  At first I thought it was referring to the Korean War, also called the Forgotten War as few wanted to know about it at the time and few know about it know.  Between 1950 and 1953 the Korean peninsula was the scene of the first UN operation, many nations participated but the UK sent a relatively small number of troops (led by Australians) so soon after the second world war, several thousand died mind.  On the other hand it reads '16 Med' which could refer to the RAMC in which '16 Med' serve today with the 16th Airborne Division.  I do with people would make things clear for my little mind.

 
What is this all about?  This took several attempts with manual setting before I got one that I could actually see that is what this is about!  What is it?  I have no idea...