Headington Hill Park

I love parks, so I love finding new ones in Oxford. Of course this isn’t new, but it’s one of the lesser known areas, especially as it’s so close to the open South Parks.
Ignore the ominous hedges and gates and take a step into this great little place. You can pop in during a lunch break and share your sarnie with the curious little birds who hop around begging for crumbs. If you’re in a hurry, try avoiding the traffic and noise of the city by walking through the park and connecting to other parks (try the Mesopotamia concrete path to University Parks). If you have the time, the best thing to do is to just stroll through the trees, enjoying the glimpses of buildings like the magnificent Islamic Instutute and Headington Hill Hall — the 19^th century mansion whose private gardens used to be situated in the park.
There’s all manner of unusual trees and plants, which I find interesting even though I have no idea what they are. Look out for the tree near the Marston Road entrance that has been struck by lightning but is still stubbornly spewing out branches.
It’s much nicer than South Parks — even the occasional bits of graffiti are hippie style peace and love words. It’s free, it’s pretty, it’s good to chill out in.