Visiting friends from Nepal in England

I'm back from my tour of England, where I got to visit friends that I knew from Nepal. It was a bit strange to be seeing them here in the UK rather than Pokhara, but so wonderful to catch up and talk about Nepal together.

First I met up with Chris and Chrissy near Gloucester. They were in Pokhara for a couple of months last fall. They picked me up at the train, drove me to their home, and then on to the Tuckers south of Bristol.

It was great to see them all again - and boy have Naomi and Izzy grown since I last saw them a year ago. The warm weather continued, so Simon and the girls and I went to the beach together (we even swam in the sea), then Sarah took me to Bath (and we had tea in the pump room - how posh). It was a lovely weekend together.

Then I was off to the Morrises south of London. They are doing well - Evie is a cute, friendly three year old, who was so happy to see me - even though I'm sure she didn't really remember me from a year ago in Nepal. Jude, who's been born since they were back, is a very happy (and healthy) baby, and clearly adores his big sister. With more great weather we went to a beach near Brighton, and Elle and I went for a great bike ride in the surrounding countryside.

It was really good to see and catch up with friends from Nepal, it helped me get past the sense of unreality of coming back to the west. It is so easy to slip back into life here, and Nepal seemed so far away. Now I feel like I've had a chance to process it a bit, and it feels more real again.

I stopped to visit my friend Michal from Canada in London on my way back to my sister's. We wandered around the city, went to a couple of museums, a photo display at the Canadian Embasy on the artic (made me homesick for Canada - I have been away for over 18 months!), and a free oudoor play near London Bridge.

For those who like pictures, here are some links:
More pictures from visiting friends in England
More pictures of Cayley and hanging out in Cambridge.
Extra picturs from trekking in Jomsom, Nepal - from my friends so I'm in most of them!

And my parents have posted some more pictures of their time at Green Pastures Hospital, in Pokhara, and some of their travels around Pokhara.