The Oldest Botannical Garden in Britain

It had been sprinkling on and off, but from the weather app, there appeared to be a window without rain...

I walked along the Cherwell River and saw some punters (those with poles) moving the punts along the river. I had punted with a group of conference-goers when I was last here 40+ years ago. It was a lot of fun.

The weather looks nice, doesn't it?

The botanical garden was large with many paths. Fortunately, there were also quite a few greenhouses which almost immediately, I had to make a run for. First came thunder and then a deluge of showers began.

These pitcher pants were fascinating. They came in all sizes and colors.

Giant water lilies - maybe the Amazonian variety. You can see the circles of fierce rain drops in the lily pond.

I'm not sure I've ever seen a cotton plant.

From this greenhouse, I ventured outside, only to be caught in another storm. I stood under a canopy of trees before rushing out of the garden and into an alcove of a building. That's when it started to hail:

Back at Paddington Station, an old friend was waiting for me.