Leaving UK

I always hate goodbyes especially when you’re not sure when you will catch up again so it was sad to say goodbye to Jake and John. Had a great time with lots of laughs.  I will always remember their saying “Sun before seven, rain by eleven” – it was always correct although sometimes the rain stayed away until twelve!!
The weather has really been awful. It was only 9C yesterday when I went meet Richards mum and dad with Kerry and Richard in Birmingham. It was  bucketing down. We had a lovely lunch and it was good to meet Richard’s folks.
Had a good time with my nephew and family. Ivy and Benny enjoyed playing with their second (?) cousins.
Staying in Putney meant it was handy to get around and while Justin played golf Lauren and I took I & B to the Natural History museum. The kids were fascinated by the dinosaurs but there was one which moved and roared which scared Benny. Luckily we were inside because surprise, surprise the heavens opened!
We then walked to Kensington Palace and did a tour through an exhibition about Queen Victoria. I have never been inside before so it was interesting. The entrance wallpaper with pictures of Diana was a  bit strange! After the culture came the afternoon tea – very pleasant!
On Friday we headed to Kew Gardens where we met an old friend of Justin’s  and their three children. We spent most of the time in the children’s garden. The grandmother role of jumping on the mini tramp was exhausting and Benny and I did take a tumble but I remembered to roll so all was good. It was another busy day and we all fell into bed exhausted.
Yesterday we met some friends of Lauren’s on Southbank. Poor views of Big Ben as it was shrouded in scaffolding. We then headed to Covent Garden. Lots of walking again and it was I & B’s first time on escalators so that was a novelty! I think I’ve gained a few grey hairs though! Unfortunately there were problems with some of the trains and we had to bus it back to the apartment.
An Uber ride later and I arrived at airport hotel. Up at 3:30 for early flight to St Petersburg via Stockholm, which only took 2 hours and I slept for most of that . Now waiting for connecting flight!