Day 1 - 2: London, England

London in late December is cold. Dark, rainy and cold. England is currently in the depths of its winter, with the wind howling, the sheets of rain drifting across the fields and the sky dark and gloomy.


We are in Chertsey, which is about 30km south west of London, on the River Thames. We are at the house of the International Man of Mystery's parents, and what a glorious house it is! It sits right on the banks of the river, in a very large apartment that is contained in a country mansion. Each resident has a yacht moored at the front and there are sprawling fields on either side. This would be an ideal place in summer!


We are here to spend time with the Boy's seriously ill father and we are spending much of our time assisting with his care, and doing small jobs around the house to make things easier for them. We are trying not to dwell on the seriousness of his father's health and we are trying to make the house full of laughter and cheer. It is hard, as the reality facing the family is quite grim. Nevertheless, we are getting out and about, as much as the circumstances (and the weather) will allow.

Yesterday, we spent much of our first day at the hospital with his mother and father. Today, the Boy and I went off to the DIY Store and then we went and grabbed a pub lunch near Hampton Court Palace.



Given his father's health and the fact that we would be transporting him to and from hospital, the Boy hired a lovely Jaguar which has fantastic heated seats, lots of room and a great GPS. The International Man of Mystery is in his element, with all of the gadgets, buttons and gizmos in the proudly British car!


We are expecting to head to Prague tomorrow but right now, we are living hour by hour, day by day. If we need to hurry back to London at any point we will. Travelling Europe is not a priority for us at the moment. Supporting the family is.