Day Two, Three and Four! Pulling a pint, Conference and amazing friends

Well it's been an incredible amazing few days, with lots of  stuff done packed in to both days and night. So I'll start this post at with cake. 

Friday morning rolls around after a great sleep at Kieran and Karens house, So much for the sun though. It absolutely heaving down with an incredible thunderstorm to boot, which lasted for several hours. 

Kieran and I started the morning where we left off, from the night before, cracking jokes. We then decided to go for a walk into the beautiful little town of Berkhamsted (Berky) and even though one had to duck the rain drops, you could still the beauty of the place. Kieran took me to cafe where I had my first (and currently my only) long black. (which here is an Americano) A massive piece of Coffee cake which Wiremu guarded for me.

 It stopped raining, and Kieran, Karen and myself popped out to Lunch at The Rising Sun, and incredibly authentic pub. An incredible authentic pub where this happened!  

https://www.facebook.com/Stuw1966/videos/10154005617228721/









After an amazing day, and the best start to my tour, it was hard to think it could get any better. BUT it did. I drive to Birmingham to meet my amazing wonderful friend Sarah, and I'm greeted with this.

After a few amazing hugs and tears, Sarah and I jump into my car and drive over to Leicester to stay with our mutual friend Claire, and the dream just keeps getting real

That night we all went out to a local pub (to be fair in New Zealand, we would have called this place  restaurant) for a beautiful meal and my first pint of Guinness in the northern Hemisphere. Spending time with Claire (and her family) and Sarah is very dream fulfilling. These two mean so much to me, it's hard to describe the love we all have for each other. None of our journeys have been easy, and for the last 8 or so years, we have all been there for each other.

The next day (saturday), is the reason I came all this way. The Somerville foundation conference. A conference specific to Adults with Congenital Heart Disease. It was a fantastic, day, with talks covering anxiety and depression, and the future of ACHD care in the UK. The Somerville foundation is really the world leading organisation in the world, when it come to do with CHD Adult support. I learnt so much and perhaps I can bring some of those ideas back to NZ.

My amazing English Kiwi friend Kiera.
Was so great to see her again

Some amazing members of the
Mustard and Senning survivors group

Three TGA'rs. Kieran and myself are Mustard. Sarah is a Senning
All three of us are Post transplant!!

Sunday was recovery day! after conference and the fact that Claires awesome partner Luke  and their son Lewis may have dragged me kicking and screaming to their local pub for a few local brewski's kinda left us to a slow sunday start.

But, Sarah and I left for Stamford to meet Craig Lyons, another group member and general good guy. What we didn't expect was the greatest local tourist guide on the planet!! Craig took us all around Stamford and told us everything about this incredible town, it's history is deep and dark, but beautiful too, and just walking around this town, took you back to a place of yesteryear!

Craig, Sarah and myself on a original cobbled road.

The number of cemeteries spread through the town was incredible
and the stories on the graves equally spell binding. 

 Before we left Stamford, Craig took us out for lunch at a wonderful little pub (I called it a cafe) where I had some great English fare! Pigs in Blankets and a Pork Pie! A wonderful meal to end a fitting time in an amazing town.

Back in Birmingham now, for a few days, and on arrival I was greeted with a lovely roast dinner, cooked by Jackie, Sarah's mum.

Oh yeah, It's raining....