Week 1 - Summary

The first week involved us spending two nights at Hotel La Prior, where we relaxed in the spa and then used as home base to visit London. The rain set in on Sunday, to a point where our train journey from the city to High Wycombe was cut short due to flooding...enter the maxi taxi with sat-nav and we finally (after many detours) got home.

Drove to North Devon and was introduced to our place of residence...1 minute to Arrins on foot and three more minutes to the infamous White Lion Tavern. After dropping our gear and having a cuppa, the call was made to have a sneaky surf at Putsborough, 15 minutes up the road. Enter strong wind and sideways rain - I was in my element and getting homesick for N.Z. fast! Met Simon and Jack, who entered into the surf as well. A few dodgy waves were had, then back to Arrin and Julia's for a bite to eat.

Then up to the farm where Julia's family had rented some very nice accomodation onsite and made base. Got to meet the crew, partake in my first Guinness and Speckled Hen and cruise home fuzzed out and ready for bed.

Tuesday saw the arrival of Arrin's parents and he drove into London to collect them, leaving Ness and I the opportunity to look about Braunton. The church was amazing and it was here we got a feel for the history of England, finding a tomb that was dated 1330 something! The site had been in use since 550AD, so was quite mind blowing for two green Kiwi's.

Arrin got back with his folks and we had a get-together and chin wag to catch up. Plans were hatched for the wedding preparations and so Wednesday was well sorted, with plenty of running around and odd jobs to be done...did I mention it was still raining? Had a tour of Barnstaple - the nearest town to the village and did a little bit of retail therapy. All good.

Wednesday, OK, so things are getting a little damp and water is coursing off the fields and down roads. We set up for the arrival of all the hire equipment, which is set to come a 9am but turns up at 3pm! Wind is howling with squally showers, Arrin and I are clearing scrub on a path to get you to the marquee, but things are looking a bit grim. There is mention of a back-up plan but we try to keep positive. Off to the White Lion for din-dins and a 'few' pints. Hoorah.

Thursday - heavy overnight rain, flooded roads and tears. The farmer, Andrew offers a barn as a secondary venue and it is that or no wedding...barn looks good then! He and those on hand (Simon and Pete, Belinda and Tom) pull off a miracle and the marquee guys chip in as well to get a venue that looks awesome. Julia is a lot happier than when last seen at 10am and while it was tough for those left in Braunton, Marty does finally manage to write his speech. We get up to the venue at 4pm and are gob smacked by 1) the amount of water everywhere and 2) the final product. A few things are put together, the bubbly comes out as a relief breaker and Steve and Suzie make it from Newquay.

Arrin and Julia part for the night, while 'the boys' have a few quiets around the chiminea at Arrin's pad. We turn in at a decent hour, hoping the storm warning issued for Friday doesn't reach the forecasted levels.

WOW - What a Trip!

Wow...the catch phrase that sums up the trip really. Ness and I have set our feet on Australian soil after a legendary 3 week break in England.

Big thanks to Arrin and Julia, Arrin's whanau - Corinna, Robbie and Tina, Julia's family - Pam, Pete, Belinda, Tom, Sarah and Simon. We loved our time with you all - wish it could have been longer, however my kidneys thank me for leaving when we did!

We also wish thanks and the best of luck to Jared and Lisa in Glasgow, so good to see you and very sorry for the short stay.

Just dropping a quick line to say we are home and will get to work on filling you in on our tour of England and Scotland. See ya soon.

The Wedding Download

So, picture this...an emerald green field perched on top of a steep hillside, sweeping views of the Atlantic, Putsborough Beach and headland down to Willacombe Bay and out to Lundy Island. Add to that a massive marquee, deluxe dual loo's and a diesel generator to run the kitchen and coolers as well as the music and lights for dancing later on. This is the venue for Arrin and Julia's wedding reception and is truly breathtaking.

Mix this rural majestic venue with 5 weeks of rain and the final week with heavy showers and there is major drama's. Vehicles are bogged down and need towing out by the hosting farmer... then the big drama - a storm warning is posted for the area 18 hours out from the wedding day...the happy couple are shattered as their dream day looks to be going down the drain with all the rain. Enter Super Farmers Andrew and Jane who muck in and clear a grain barn, stack haybales and assist in any way possible to get the marquee interior erected in the barn. With helping hands and open minds the venue is resurrected and looks tops! Julia and Arrin breathe easier and we look forward to a great day.

D-Day. Heavy overnight rain turns streets into rivers and closes roads. The route to be taken by the wedding cars is a washout and gets redirected. The sodden fields are draining onto the roads and water is running everywhere. On the bright side - the high winds forecast aren't eventuating and the rain eases to showers as the day progresses...game on.

The lads - Arrin, Martin and Steve were based at Arrin and Julia's house while Julia spent the night at a rented house on the farm where the wedding reception was held. The preparations went without a hitch with the exception of flooded roads. The actual ceremony was held at Woolacombe Bay Hotel which is a fancy as place with a number of function rooms and the ceremony was held in one which looked onto a patio filled (by coincidence) with New Zealand flaxes. A beautiful and moving ceremony with three readings from Julia's friends and some live singing and violin playing. Photo's were inside the hotel due to weather, but a break in the clouds allowed Arrin and Julia to dash off to get some solo snaps. Up to the farm for the big to-do.

The place looked awesome!!!! After a few quick drinks and piccies the food was served and it was to die for. The speeches started straight after and were great. Julia's dad's, Arrin, Julia, Corrina, Marty and Steve all said their bit...laughs, tears and even a didgerie doo solo by Julia...then party on. Great music - loud and full of dance track classics - no dodgy old ones, straight into boogey mode with everyone up and shaking their groove thing. A great night that ended too soon, but allowed almost all paticipants the opportunity to wake up feelin fine and ready for a BBQ and drinkie at the farm on Saturday.

With a few notable folks missing due to 'illness' we went to the farm and wandered to the marquee site to take in the atmosphere and marvel at how wet it was - then true to form down came the rain, making it obvious that it was fortunate that the venue was moved. A yummy lunch awaited and the bubbles flowed. Relaxed conversations and laughs were punctuated by the dis-assembling of the site so Andrew the farmer could resume work on Monday. Again many hands made light work and the bubbles were on tap as Arrin and Julia opened their gifts which were amazing - no double up's and everything in one piece. The day after was almost as good as the big day -more relaxed and lots of laughs, thanks to Pam, Pete, Simon and Sarah for being soo welcoming. AWESOME two days.

The First Week

Hello All,

After a 24 hour series of flights and a week of frantic weather dodging we are pleased to announce that Arrin and Julia Blair were successfully married on the 5th of September!

A day and a half in London allowed us to collect Arrin's eldest sister and take a day to look about the big city. All I can say is...amazing. We were in town on a grey and damp Sunday which worked well as we had London in 'quiet' mode and travel (on foot) was easy. We got to look at Westminster Abbey, Parliament House, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and Covent Gardens but the highlight for Ness and I was the 'tame' squirrels at St. James' Park.

A three hour car drive down to Devon and we finally see where 'Stumpy' and Ju have made their home in the seaside town of Braunton...beautiful, except for the heavy rain showers that is!

The next few days allowed partial exploration of the village and outlying towns as well as pitching in with the wedding arrangements. The weather got worse and low level flooding began to affect roads...we pushed on hoping mother nature would give us a helping hand.

24 hours till the wedding and not only had the weather turned even nastier, there was a storm warning issued for the area on Friday - wedding day! So, all hands to the pumps to move the wedding Marquee from a paddock to the hosting farmers barn which he kindly emptied and erected hay bale walls to 'warm' the place. The resulting assistance of many hands made what seemed a disaster a total fairy tale...the place looked awesome.

Quick Preview - Wedding Photos