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Published: October 14th 2008
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Thai Visitors
From the left - Kingkarn, Anap, Da and their local hosts Simon and Catherine. Just before we left we found out that Mel’s Dad Clive (Richard’s father-in-law) was going to be visiting his Mum at the time we were due to arrive - and as it is less than 1 hour’s drive we went to see him one day just after we got there. It was a bit strange seeing someone from home while so far away but we had a good chat and went to lunch and a walk in Bradgate Park where he apparently used to take Mel for walks and fishing for minnows when she was very young.
While we had been in Thailand we found out that Pom’s Mum, Aunt Da and Uncle Anap were coming to England for a visit in early April - and would be about 45 minutes drive away from us. So, we arranged for them to come to lunch one day - it also gave them an opportunity to deliver the teak box they had bought for us but which wouldn’t fit in our bags. In the middle of April the weather was quite cool - especially for those from Thailand - and in spite of the fire they all had so many layers of clothes
Admiring the Garden
Da and Kingkarn admiring the Spring Flowers. on they were walking around like the Michelin man. However, it was very nice to catch up with them and show them our new home - so different to anything to be found in Thailand. And they enjoyed the lunch.
Our good friends Laurie and Bob live a couple of hours drive away - and Laurie has not been very well so it was good news when they said they could come for lunch one day. Once again we lit the fire to cheer the place up and Wendy prepared a nice lunch for us - after the obligatory tour of the house of course. It was really good to catch up with them again - we had stayed with them when we visited in ’04 so it was nice to be offering them some hospitality. It was a really special visit as Laurie was feeling much better and enjoyed the day out - even if she was quite tired by the time they got home again.
We had an email from Fred (Germany) to say he was coming to England for a few days to catch up with his first NZ host family who were over to a family
Fred and Wendy
Enjoying a stroll along the canal. wedding. Fred had stayed with us for a couple of months at the end of his exchange in NZ when his family moved to Christchurch and has been back a couple of times so it was nice to see him even if only for a couple of days. We picked him up from the train one evening and the next day managed to take him to Foxton Locks which is one of our favourite places - it is about 30 minutes drive away and has 10 locks leading down to a canal junction. The tow-paths make a nice walk with the canal on one side and fields on the other - and the obligatory pub is there if one feels like a drink on the way back. Alan and Sally (Fred’s host family from NZ) called to pick him up on their way back to London so it was nice to catch up with them again - even if only for a few minutes.
We had been in touch with Juliana who now works in Cardiff and lives there with Steve her Welsh boyfriend - and after much deliberation they decided they would take some time off to come and
Juliana and Steve
The smokers indulging their habit in the wood shed. stay for the bank holiday weekend. Steve was supposed to be working on the Monday so would have meant leaving late Sunday but he managed to change it so they could spend 3 days here. It was just great - Jules had been with us 97/98 and while we had seen her a couple of times since it was just so nice for her to be with us here - it was almost 10 years since she had left NZ after her AFS year. We talked a lot (surprise?), went for walks and just generally caught up with what she has been doing and how her new job is working out. Steve just fitted in with us as if we had known him all along and it was so nice to see them together. Both being smokers they spent a bit of time outside in the wood-shed having their regular nicotine fixes - but not too long at a time as once again it was raining and not too warm out. They left late morning on the Monday after a relaxing and most enjoyable visit.
One day my computer told me it was Gunnhild’s birthday on Sunday so I emailed
her that maybe there was something important happening that day. She replied that yes, there was something happening and, more importantly, she was coming to England. Seems her parents had shouted her the tickets to go to Cambridge for a few days - her brother works there and it was a prefect time to catch up with us. She is from Norway (Oslo) and had been with us in 2006 so it had been some 18 months since she had left. We drove to Cambridge to pick her up and it was a tearful reunion but a very happy one We came back here and, after the usual tour of the house, I took her to Foxton Locks for a bit of fresh air etc etc - and the compulsory beer in the pub. After a very nice two days with her (she even got roped into helping put the carpet down in the Marquee!) we drove her back to Cambridge where we met up with her brother and we took them both out for a curry dinner (for her birthday) before we drove ourselves home. It was good to catch up.
Another visitor we had - but only
With Gunnhild
In the kitchen of our flat. for a very short time - was Uncle Rodney. He had come over for a 7 week stay and managed to visit a lot of folk around the area and we saw him for a few days. We managed to take him to Cadbury World - where he proceeded to demolish every bit of free chocolate he was given before we even got to the next hand-out - and for a visit to Coventry where we all enjoyed seeing the cathedrals (old and new). We had a nice picnic at the side of the road by a field and next to some woods and were home again in time for tea. He drove us to the Airport for our French Tour (no, not the Tour de France!) and as he was leaving only a few hours after we arrived back that was the only time we were able to catch up with him. Was nice though.
Places we have been: since we have been living here we have been to (in alphabetical order) Blenheim Palace, Boggle Hole, Bournville, Cambridge, Castle Howard, Coton Manor, Coventry, Eden Camp, Flore, Foxton Locks, Game Fair, Goathland, Heathrow, Jazz Festival, Leicester, Locton, London, Luton, Lyveden
New Bield, New Forest, Pocket Park Duck Race, Pontefract, Portsmouth, Robin Hood’s Bay, Scarborough, Secret Nuclear Bunker, Southampton, Stanstead, Thirsk, Tyneham, Waterlooville, Whitby, Winchester, Woking, Yorkshire.
Those are the places in England we have visited and look like an awful lot to write about so I will leave it for another post - then I can also catch up on our overseas jaunts so far.
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