Dipping our toes back into our world of monthly short breaks by public transport, we headed out to Sunbury-on-Thames. For no other reason than Jude had seen an embroidery museum that interested her … and there are pubs, a hotel and of course the river Thames. All we need for a couple of days away!

So we headed there, with the prospect of glorious summer weather changing for the worse. Sunbury Park looked interesting, but it was remarkably dry. Like the Serengeti when we arrived, deluged the following night, and no doubt within a very few days it will be greening up.

In the park is the very well preserved walled garden. Not my idea of a good garden in its over-regimented formality, but there were a few interesting plants including Trumpet-vine in flower and Carolina Silverbell in fruit.

And of course the café, and refuge from the first of the sharp showers that came our way. Right next to it was the embroidery exhibition, featuring the Sunbury Millennium Embroidery, a remarkably detailed piece of work highlighting the important features of the local community, including its historic buildings and abundant Thames-side wildlife. While perhaps most meaningful to locals and not worth the travel from afar just to see it, as part of a wider interest visit as ours was it certainly passed a good few minutes. And kept us dry!

And so down to the River Thames. Not the easiest of access, because too many long stretches of what should be a public asset have been privatised by wealth. But wherever access is possible the views of the river are very attractive, encompassing a well-wooded southern shore, islands, moorings, locks and weirs.

And as always, green space and natural margins provides for wildlife, including Harlequin Ladybirds and a Green Shieldbug; a distinctively marked Gelis ichneumon wasp (possibly G. areator) and a wax-secreting aphid; as well as several galls including the sawfly Euura bridgmanii on broad-leaved willows and the mite Eriophyes pyri on Rowan.

Perhaps the best view of all, from the Magpie pub with its riverfront terrace. As we discovered, the umbrellas are pretty water-resistant, and as the afternoon showers merged into heavy rain, the open, dry terrace seemed a good place to linger for the duration. Lots of time to appreciate the local birds, from Red Kites and Rose-ringed Parakeets, to Mute Swan families and Egyptian Geese, and even a couple of Kingfishers. Ripples in the river, stirred up by the freshening breeze and sprinkled with raindrops, made for photographic opportunities that lasted for a good pint or two! Indeed, it was so welcoming that we returned there for our evening meal.

Lower Sunbury had plenty of other interesting buildings as well, including our very comfortable accommodation, the Flower Pot.

And, after a very rainy night, an excellent breakfast. A bus drivers’ strike thwarted our plans to move on by bus, but it did give us the opportunity in the morning to look at and into St Mary’s Church. Some interesting-looking lichens in the churchyard were completely eclipsed by the interior glass and decor, in pre-Raphaelite/Eastern Orthodox style. Very impressive indeed!

And then it was off by train to our final, much anticipated destination, the Art Deco masterpiece that is Surbiton station.

And as an added bonus, once inside we found it is now the home to the restored William Blake-inspired mosaic panels of art and poetry that we had last seen several years ago in a rather battered state underneath the arches near Waterloo Station.

So far as the rest of Surbiton is concerned, it felt a whole lot more real than Sunbury, populated by real people living normal lives. Sadly St. Andrew’s Church that looked so  dramatic inside online was closed. But then there was always Wetherspoons, a converted early 20th century lecture hall. However we eschewed the charms of the cheap for the lovely atmosphere, good beer and great value lunch at the independent Elm Tree pub, complete with Guinness mural. A fine way to round off our return to the world of short breaks!