Well that it seems was Summer 😎. What a wash out the past couple of weeks have been. Fortunately we didn’t have much in the way of outdoors activities planned apart from a visit to Kew Gardens.

There were a few days of shall we shan’t we? All eyes on the weather apps on our phones & on the forecasts on the internet and tv. It wasn’t looking too promising, but we wanted to visit Kew Palace (as part of our Historic Royal Palace Membership) and as it closed for the Winter on 30th September, it was now or never. So with the besties on board and wet weather gear and brollies in the boot we set off.

So glad we did. Such a lovely setting, stretching out from the banks of the Thames. There was so much to explore, and certainly one day was not going to be enough.

As the weather was being kind to us we decided to wander through the magnificent gardens. In amongst the trees, spectacular glass sculptures appeared, stretching up towards the clouds. The exhibition, on until 27th October, by the glass artist Chihuly is amazing. Huge colourful works standing proud, reflecting the sunlight and glistening in the intermittent showers.

We climbed high up into the trees, taking in the amazing view fringe treetop walkway, down on the gardens, the glasshouses and across to the City Skyline on the horizon. Breathtaking.

Coming back down to earth, we continued our enjoyment of the sculptures as we strolled through the Japanese Garden in search of the Great Pagoda. Built in the 1700’s and recently restored, we climbed the spiral staircase up 9 floors to see more wonderful views over the gardens and London skyline, and bringing us closer to the fabulous Chinese Dragons adorning the outside of the Pagoda. My hubby who firstly dislikes heights and secondly dislikes spiral staircases did really well to join us on the walkway and at the top of  the Pagoda.

Dodging the showers, some quite heavy we explored some of the galleries dotted around the gardens, before finding the Temperate House. WOW, the enormous glasshouse is home to some gorgeous plants, currently interspersed with more glass sculptures. We found another spiral staircase, which took us up towards the roof and a walkway which enabled us to have fabulous view looking down on the plants and brought us level with a stunning sculpture hanging down from the rafters.

As the sun shone we enjoyed the glorious flower beds and were amazed at how they remained so colourful so late in the year. When the sun disappeared again we enjoyed a gallery displaying more Chihuly art. Spectacular pieces in wonderful colours.

 

In and out of the glasshouses with an array of tropical plants and another housing a pond with lilies standing to attention out of the water, complimented by the glass lily sculpture surrounding them.

We made it to the palace on the edge of the gardens. By palace standards it is tiny, but perfectly formed, with passionate volunteers telling the story of George 111, Queen Charlotte and their 15 children, who lived here. The kitchens were housed in a separate building alongside the palace. The enormous fire place where hogs were roasted on spits is still in situ along with the bread ovens. Remarkably and old bath sits in one of the rooms. It is purported that King George used to enjoy his baths in the kitchens so that his staff didn’t have to carry the hot water to the palace.

As we left the palace, there was a wedding being held in the Nash Conservatory. What a beautiful setting

Our next stop a conservatory built in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, which is the home of a vast array of cacti. Big ones, small ones, smooth ones and spiky ones. Some in bloom, others not. Most behind glass presumably to avoid spikes in people’s fingers. However  were ushered through fairly quickly as the wedding party were heading there for pre dinner drinks. Magical.

As dusk started to fall, we meandered along the Great Broad Walk admiring the scented borders towards The Hive. A modern art instillation recreating the inside of a bee hive. The tiny led lights and music playing in the background mimicking the sounds of a busy beehive. So clever so mesmerising.

A lovely end to a fantastic day. So much to see and do. Impossible to take it all in in one day. So pleased we decided to ignore the weather forecast.