Raining cats and dogs

The girls' grandmother is here from Japan. Day one was warm and sunny, but since then she has had a real taste of wet British weather. We went to the Surrey County Show one of the annual rural shows, complete with stalls, rides, show jumping, cattle, goats, dogs showing their skills, produce and agricultural machinery. We 'rugged up' but obviously haven't perfected the knack of keeping the wet out. The locals were there in wellington boots, long water proof coats, hats and rarely an umbrella, (not many people use them here). We bravely trudged through thick mud and darted between tents to keep dry. Lots of lingering over pygmy goats and birds in cages....so as to avoid the wet! These shows are big and take up a lot of space, and while we could hear the commentary for the show-jumping, hadn't the energy to find it. To watch would have meant more standing in the rain. We lasted only a few hours, but were all happy to have least gone and seen it.
I am now going to keep my wellies in the boot of the car, along with a warm rug and a towel. The wellies will get lots of use as I am about to start as a volunteer at a local National Trust home called Standen. See the picture above. I am going to work in the garden there. Gardening is a real passion and there are opportunities to learn as well as do something good for our heritage.