Dadda had to fly home and we went to stay with our friends Karen and Andrew in the countryside, just out of London, in Berkshire – in a picturesque little village called Waltham St Lawrence. Where I spent the first 48 hrs doing laundry and drinking proper cups of tea and watching Great British Bake Off.

The kids recharged their cat batteries and played with Baxter the dog. And there were ponies, but we don’t know how to operate those.

And the garden, which is the size of Grey Lynn park has squirrels, hawks, kites, owls, badgers, moles, a toad, voles, chickens, horses, foxes, little deer, hedgehogs and ten million bunnies. And a slow worm.

The village consists of one church and one ancient pub. And a sprinkle of 400 year old cottages. It couldn’t be more beautiful. We ambled down to the pub each day for pork pie, or a sausage sandwich or pigeon breast or roast beef … washed down with delicious warm, watery local ales.

We were there for the Village Fete. Molly entered the ‘three eggs in a basket’ section and placed 2nd place – prize 50p.
Jack failed to place in the life drawing section – we blamed his recent exposure to the art at the Bienale in Venice. He was just too edgy and avant garde for the nice old lady judges of Waltham St Lawrence.

Karen, who is actually the nicest, kindest lady in the world took the day off work to take us to ‘Harry Potter World’. It was pretty cool. It’s the real studio where it was filmed so it has all the authentic sets and props. And we also went to Bekonscot model village which I thought was weirdly British and camp even before I learnt that Enid Blyton was an original patron.

I’m going to put the photos in, in the form another QUIZ! There’s a mixture of ‘at home in Berkshire’, ‘at the pub’*, at ‘Hogwarts’, and at the ‘model village’. But which is which!? Huzzah! Try the quiz ….

*Jack is drinking Butterbeer, (not proper English ale) – a noxious and foul beverage indeed.