In January 2000, Niall, Kathryn and Branduff McAllister moved to England. We had one claustrophobic month in a London flat off of Fleet Street. Niall was able to walk to work, and Branduff and I spent time exploring some of the hot spots. We weren't too far off of Covent Garden, and we had a handy tube station down the street. Poor Branduff was pulled along to many shopping expedition, including to Fortnum & Mason and Harrod's.

However, I was thrilled when we found a home in Chipstead, a small country village in between Redhill, Reigate and Dorking areas. We were not too far away from Gatwick Airport, too. We lived for two years at Keepers Cottage, a 16th century renovated home, complete with updated kitchen, original dining room, lounge, television room, four bedrooms, and a huge garden! The only downside of this lovely existence is Niall's long commute to work by train.

Polys/primrose are winter flowers, and look lovely in the garden. At right, the back of Keepers Cottage.

Tulips just love British weather. At left, the back view of Keepers Cottage.

At left, 4-year-old Branduff looks quite dapper in his Aberdour School uniform. At top is the front view of Keepers Cottage in Chipstead, England.

Branduff (nearly 5 years old) poses in front of Keepers Cottage in the summer of 2000. The hydrangea are in full bloom, casting a lovely pink hue to the house.

After the lovely summer, we were about to confront a combination of crises that hit the country. They started with torrential downpours and flooding throughout the fall, only letting up in April 2001. In September, demonstrators barricaded petrol outlets and the forecourts (petrol stations) went dry. We curtailed any driving and hoped that we'd have enough fuel to conduct normal lives. Grocery stores ran out of basic food supplies and it was pure chaos until the deadlock ended. In March 2001, dreary wet weather was met with news that Britain was facing a highly contagious outbreak of foot and mouth disease. The public pathways around this area were shut and only now in June 2001 are being slowly reopened.