It's all Relative

Headed to Worcester today to meet n greet with some of Ross distant relatives. We drove through some lovely countryside with acres of canola and small villages with names like; Overly Green, Inkberrow, Upton Snodsbury and North Piddle. Saw the usual daffodils with the addition of flowering cherry, may bushes and snowbells. There were also squirrels, pheasant and rabbits, with the usual sheep and lambs running amok. There was even a Romany camp (Gypsies) on the side of the road with colourful caravans, dogs and horses, sitting around a big fire in the cold. Very picturesque.

Arrived at Malvern and reacquainted ourselves with Barbara and Michael - we correspond at Xmas and haven't seen them since 1985. After a catch up we headed for a quick look around the area before lunch. Ended up in Ledbury a quaint town with Tudor style buildings, great little shops and a museum, gothic church and a little pub called the Prince of Wales Free House up a lane way where the girls had coffee and the guys a half pint of  "Butty Bach" -the pub was very tiny and with the other half dozen patrons and the dog was quite packed.

Back out into the cold and we headed up into the hills of Malvern with mist on the mountains and a view as far as Wales. Again we stopped at a pub (do you see a theme here) and ordered lunch - roast beef and Yorkshire pudding with gravy, horseradish and mustard. Very nice indeed. This pub was frequented by CS Lewis who wrote "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and his mate JR Tolkein who wrote " Lord of the Rings". They say the light post out the front was the inspiration for the CS Lewis book.

Home to Barbara and Michaels where Janet and John popped over for a cup of tea and a chat. They are Gwyneths (Ross mum) cousins and the family is quite extended. As some of you know Gwyneth wasn't a TV watcher and every evening would retire to the kitchen table and write letters to friends and family. Janet corresponded with her for 50 years and she had photos from when the boys were young , right through their lives. We saw pictures of Ross, Graham and Trevor with long hair, Gwyneth in caftans with big hair and Ross in check shorts and clashing check shirts- sartorially elegant with a bowl cut. We laughed and talked about family and relations and the evening slipped away.

For supper Barbara put on a spread - coronation chicken sandwiches, quiche, Stilton cheese and crackers and salad followed by trifle and flummery and fruit cake. Very English and very yummy.

Home via the motorway in the dark and the rain and fell into bed. What a fun and interesting day. Hope it's not another 30 years until we see them again.