Pull out your waders

The town I work in, Guildford, found itself in a bit of high water this week. When I crossed the little bridge over the river into town in the morning yesterday, I noticed that the river was higher than it had been the previous night (when it was already a fair bit higher than usual). The water was now lapping over the footpath a few feet away from the edge of the river bank, and looked like it would be staying there for a while.

An hour or so later I looked out the window at work, and the river has risen again, to fully cover the footpath but about 20cm. At this point, I figured it was time to start taking a picture every now and then!

First photo, at about 0945

The water just kept rising, and pretty soon we were setting targets and picking markers along the wall. We chose the bottom of the first letter in the graffiti you can vaguely see to the right in that photo above.

At around 1030 it started raining and again the river rose, by around 10cm. 

1130 and it had risen by about another 5cm this time.

View across the street. The YMCA to the right was close to flooding.

Sun out and still the river rose.

The same wall in the other photos, view down the river. To the left is apparently a warehouse where some sets for theatre productions are kept, and the water was only about 5cm away from the big barn type doors.

The underpasses were out...

The water was about calf height here, but at the deepest point right in the underpass would have been about waist height by the end of the day. 

The underpass roped off/

Car parks were empty, for once...

The bridge work that had been going on for the past week was left alone. The scaffolding was
still up when we went home, hopefully it'll survive! By the end of the day, the water was rising about 10cm every hour.

No more pedestrian access for this path...

On the left is the river, on the right is the work car park. Water was gushing in and the
drain in the middle was blocked, so it became a private lake.

This will probably be the last time the owner of this car decides to leave the car overnight.

Still dreaming of a white Christmas

'Merry Christmas'! 'Mulled wine'? 'Mince pie'? 'Sausage roll'? 'Pudding'? 'Fizz'? 'Anyone for a top up'? 'Pass the Bread Sauce please,' 'Could I have the gravy'? 'Have some more Brandy Butter,' 'Are there any more pigs in blankets'? 'This turkey is delicious'!
And my personal favourite:
'Where's the Brandy'? followed by  'Who's got the matches'?

My first Christmas away from home and in a different country. It didn't snow; but the weather outside has certainly been frightful, the winking christmas tree lights look so delightful, and there was no place we had to go!

The English Christmas was fantastic. There's something very festive about the warm glow of lights through frosty windows, rugging up and stepping out the front door and instantly feeling your nose sting with cold as your breath hangs in the air like your own personal fog.

 
Dismal weather becomes a non-issue, as everyone dons hat, scarf, gloves and coat; and flocks to the streets to join the throng of dedicated christmas-shoppers. Up and down the High Street they trudge, bags in tow bursting at the seams. Even small children seem to understand that now is not the time to make a fuss, as they trail along dutifully behind mummy's growing collection of shopping bags, keeping lingering in front of shiny stores to a minimum.


The Mr and Mrs of the family were definitely host and hostess with the mostest, and lunch was a sight to behold; with an entire baked turkey, a huge serano ham, roast potatoes and parsnips, carrots and sprouts, pigs in blankets (small sausages wrapped in bacon), home made sausage rolls, cranberry sauce, gravy and bread sauce. All of this followed by home made mince pies, home made meringues (amazing), custard, brandy butter, and a traditional christmas pudding - which was ceremoniously doused in brandy and set alight! Woo! I can add some new traditions to my list of things to take back with me...

One flaming pudding!

One large baked turkey

A far cry from barbecues and the beach, but nonetheless a fabulous Christmas, I hope yours was, too!

And a real live christmas tree!