Kew with a twist!

So I did manage another visit to Kew, and had a visitor with me too, my cousin who I don't see as often as I should or would like...

We took the pace steady and were there a good few hours... I didn't take as many pictures as I often do, Angela took several hundred more than me.....her blog will appear later some time and I will come back and link it as she will have some beauties!

 we started walking down the Broad Walk - it felt odd acting as tour guide rather than just wandering...
I was explaining that  I love these fluffy little seed heads..

 with the more spiky looking bits in the background..
and how hard they are to get in focus properly!

 we both have a love of seedheads...









there was a hint of sun behind the cloudy sky..

 and it was very windy - the spray from the fountain was blowing all over the place.
I even filmed a bit on my phone

 the dogwoods are still stunningly bright - about the only bit of colour today (apart from some green)

hope Angela will forgive me...

 we went into the Princess of Wales glasshouse were we saw this cactus whose flowers looked like a woolly hat.....
no sniggering at the back!

 Being with a friend made me look at things differently to usual... and see things I don't always spot.

 like this lacy hole in a big fern leaf

 We were talking about the Chinese Water dragons that live in the POW and I said how rarely I see them....






then rounded a corner....

air plants hanging like a curtain

 patterns on leaves

 one of the students was watering the orchids in the display

back outside, we went to look at this, that I rarely look at, it is just "there"!

 in the alpine house

 bullrushes

 bubbles on the water

 obviously we had to visit the Hive

 fabulous cloud patterns

 back round the pond towards the cafe and refreshments...

 gunnera flower spikes

 more branchy-cloud pictures!

 and of course my current fave, Life in Death...

 the restoration work at the Temperate House...

 and the Treetop Walkway... we had hoped to use the lift but it was out of service...

 back on the ground again...











no reflections in the lake today, it was too windy

 double big ball selfie time!  (you may need to click to enlarge)

we had been talking about the abundance of Plane trees and how they look like they'd been festooned with Christmas bauble decorations... it was nice to see some blue sky too

 cutting through the rose garden, a large clump of rosehips

 "back door" of the Palm House entrance

 having not climbed enough steps we took the spiral staircase up to the top walkway round the Palm House interior

 there are plants growing on the outside of the windows... I suspect this may be next in line for restoration given the state of some of the windows!!

 I always like the view along the roof

 and we both saw the glistening of the water drops at the same time... think Angela will have got a better picture to me though!

 and I always love the rails of the staircase

 and this is in the stairs

 more cloud patterns...

but it was time to head home, we were both getting tired!


Was great to have company and great to have one final visit of 2017 ....  (I have just counted up, and I went 36 times this year... that's a lot of photos!)

but I'll be back soon!


Edit...  as promised, the link to Angela's blog and some of her 450 photos from yesterday... Even though we were walking together she has some different view points and angles and they are well worth a look!