The majestic Wye valley, 508 metres down from Symonds Yat to the river. What a breathtaking sight.
Not sure about the sign. I never saw Christchurch around here.
It was very special to be able to walk to this lookout with my sister Lyn and her husband Norman. It's great they can both still get to and thoroughly enjoy such fantastic sights.
The Beeches, Becky (my niece) and Alex's, Monmouth home. I was so fortunate that my itinerary plan fitted into their plans. Perfect. My room at the front, with its gorgeous yellow balcony, looked out over this magnificent viaduct.
What a feast we had on the terrace,with stunning views and the beautiful sound of the Wye flowing over the little waterfall known as The Beeches.
As the sun set, so the trees took on a glorious autumn hew.
Next day, we headed off up a gentle forest walkway to a supposed waterfall.
Weeks ago, after constant rain, this had been an impressive sight. Now, it was simply a fun place for Gus, the family dog, to paddle! Nonetheless, it was a very pretty walk.
On the way home, we stopped at the Wye Valley sculpture garden. It was fabulous and worth visiting for sure. This lovely piece was made of old cutlery.
My absolute favourite had to be this absolutely stunning owl, made of painted wire. If I had had space in my luggage and a thousand plus pounds, I would have loved to have bought it!
This was a close second! What vibrant colours, perfectly set against the greens and golds of the Wye valley.
Only two days in this beautiful area, but I felt I had got to know it quite well. We sat outside in the lovely cool evening air, savouring the views, enhanced by the brilliant sunset.
My next trip was a short bus journey along the Wye valley to Chepstow, only forty minutes away. We need to get wonderful electric buses like this one for travel around NZ.
Unplanned trips so often lead to other unexpected visits. When I decided to head to Tenby, Wales, for two days in June, I met Paul and Katy on the train. After a shortish chat together, I was very surprised and delighted to be invited to visit them in Chepstow, as it was so close to Monmouth.
What a generous and spontaneous gesture, which I could not resist. I love getting to know new people and at the same time a new town. It was a very picturesque, colourful town, with huge castle, built way back in 1660s.
The castle protected Wales from the English! Strange world isn't it? The centre of the bridge across the Wye has Wales on one side and England on the other.
Above are some interesting facts about the bridge particularly the tidal range at this point
High tide looks particularly beautiful.
I was invited to lunch by Paul and Katy at a fantastic Italian restaurant by the river. We had an absolute feast of delicious, authentic Italian food.
After all that food, we enjoyed a relaxing brass band concert by the river under a shady tree, before climbing back up to Paul and Katy's home ( which they have mostly built themselves) in the powerful afternoon sun.
Then next day I travelled south, to an area I definitely call home, Surrey, where I was born and grew up.
Fantastic to stay with school friends Di and Ian, who made sure I saw plenty in just a couple of days.
First day a trip to Denbies vineyard, the largest in Britain, and certainly the most successful. Our train ride up the hill gave us spectacular views of the Downs.
The wine tasting tour was equally good and super informative. We had a fair bit of wine as we were guided round! Good that we had gone by train. And had a decent walk to the vineyard.
It was wonderful to pick David up at Reigate later in the afternoon.
The next day was my request to see home, school, etc.
We had a great tour of the school and, in particular, the new school facilities. The new swimming pool and sports hall is amazing, but I was pleased to see the tennis courts where my tennis career started are more or less the same, apart from the grass courts having been removed.
The gardens are pretty incredible for school grounds!
It was good to be able to visit my Mum and Dad's grave just next to the school grounds.
Another walk down memory lane, this time at the Burford Bridge hotel where I worked as Banquet and conference manager before coming to NZ.
We enjoyed a simple but tasty lunch in the garden of the hotel.
Final stop after a zigzag drive, the top of Box Hill above the hotel and views to Brockham on the left, where I lived for 4 years.
All in all a great day of memories and a dinner in local pub with 5 or 6 school friends I haven't seen for years.
Once more, my thanks to all my friends and family for making this week so very special.
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