After a long absence - the return to Kew - and my new camera

I have been itching to take my new camera on an outing to my favourite place and today was the day - oh the joy of being able to come home and download the photos immediately, none of this waiting around for the shop to develop the films!!  Anyway, Kew is hosting it's annual Orchid Exhibition in the Princess of Wales (POW) glasshouse, which opened a couple of weeks ago but what with the weather and my crafty day to the Stevenage craft show, today was the first time I was able to go... 118 photos later, I am going to attempt to reduce them to a manageable blog post!!

The journey was not without difficulties thanks to weekend engineering works on the railway and involved 3 trains instead of 2 but... here goes!

 bright banners welcoming you !

 The main display as always is in the waterlily pond in the POW glasshouse - this year, it's set up like a plant hunters camp.

and a display alongside also in the pond.

 They've got copies of plant hunter diaries dotted around too, interesting reading!

 the stars of the show...

a wall of orchids

 back outside, time for my favourite!! I am as you probably know, obsessed by this fountain on days like this - bright, sunny, windy, and the water spraying! (I took about 20, so count yourself lucky I've not uploaded them all...)

 signs of spring - finally!

 oops, there it is again! Taken at ground level through the Dogwood...

 blue skies, and some pretty clouds

 look at the blue!

Also fairly obsessed by these willow sculptures...

 so were other people... get out of my shot, lol!!

so there you go.  An hour and a half each way, same amount of time spent there, and 118 photos cut down to these for you!! Hope you like them.

If you're nearby, the orchids are on till I think 9th March...