Well then dear readers, I have just reached the age of two score and twenty, or what many people call, “A man of a certain age”.
Unlike many people who reach this age I am not undergoing my second mid-life crisis (I did that when I reached 50) but I am embracing it with unbridled enthusiasm. After all, people keep telling me that 60 is the new 40 (mind you the people who tell me this are all in their 30’s!),
However, I prefer to adopt the view that you are only as old as the woman you feel and as Mrs. C is still basking in that wonderful decade that all women seem to have between the age of 48 and 49, I am all good then!
So, how was I planning to mark this milestone? My regular readers will have already guessed correctly; by surrounding myself with the people I love most in all the world and engaging in a bout of unrestricted eating and drinking! After all, the family motto is “ Ad Excessum” (To Excess!), or as our children like to call it, “Being Jolly whilst cracking open the Bolly”! That would have been our family motto but my colloquial Latin is a tad rusty so please email any suggested Latin translations in the comments section below.
When I mentioned my celebratory plans to the kids they all cleared their diaries at lightning speed, confirmed their availability and we arranged to meet up in London for a weekend to remember.
In preparation, Mrs C and I arrived in London a day early, so that I could visit my doctor (all men of a certain age have a doctor) and undergo my pre-60 check-up. The good news was that everything was where it should have been, was in full working order and nothing appeared to be in danger of dropping off! Perfect, the bar was now officially open and mine’s a large one….oops sorry wrong blog!
So what next? Easy, head to Ladurée at Covent Garden for lunch. The temperature in London was absolutely baltic and so I couldn’t wait to get inside and sample the delights of Ladurée. Our charming waitress then asked if she could get us some water…?! I replied, “why was there a fire”? Instead I settled on a steaming bowl of French Onion Soup and a Vodka Martini with a twist. Wishing to redeem herself and sensing a huge tip in the offing our waitress then said that she assumed my Martini would be shaken not stirred! Good save I thought. “Money Penny” (a.k.a. Mrs C). and I then enjoyed a deliciously romantic lunch.
After lunch we decided to watch some of the street artists. One gentleman in particular seemed to be struggling to gee up the crowd and so I thought I would lend some encouragement (read as thoroughly embarrass Mrs. C). Our entertainer was indeed trying his best, never easy when you are up a ladder in 4 degrees Celsius dressed in a kilt. Scanning the crowd he honed in on me with a laser-like focus (clearly he was looking for “a man of a certain age”) and before I knew it I was front and centre and became part of the show.
Our artiste certainly knew how to work a crowd and whilst juggling three huge knives he set about improvising our impromptu double act. He threw me a couple of the knives which I deftly caught without dismembering myself. At this point I was standing on a box in front of about two hundred people.
To my surprise an attractive young women with a rather shapely ankle and an apparent keen eye for a sharp blade shouted out that she would give me a tenner if I showed her my chopper? Oooerr!!. The crowd roared enthusiastically (read expectantly) and my co-artiste sensed that he was in for a good pay-day with his new stooge and whispered that I should do anything they ask for a tenner!! Now, I am normally the master of the double entendre and Mrs. C knows me well. Indeed, I never back down from a challenge and she was preparing not to look, unlike the two hundred people watching the show who knew exactly where to look and who were now becoming increasingly enthusiastic at the prospect of me becoming even more participative than originally envisaged!
Given that I did not have a “chopper”, either physically, figuratively or metaphorically, but was clearly expected to whip out something, I dropped the knives (and nothing else!), jumped off the box and did what any “man of a certain age” would do when under pressure to perform an act of exposure; I whipped out my Leica M10P with the 50mm Summilux and snapped a few images. True dedication to my art!
The show finally wound up with the other half of our impromptu double act, still up a ladder, stripping down to his Y-fronts whilst juggling with three large knives. Here is the image to prove it.
Following raucous cheers from our “fans” they then started to throw money, which he deftly collected. With a wry smile my comedic partner gave me a toothy grin, shook my hand, thanked me for being such a good sport and exited stage left. Meantime I left pot-less but with a feeling that at least I had done my good deed for the day.
Back in tourist mode and despite the fading light, we then headed for the Embankment so that I could get a few touristy shots of familiar London landmarks:
What a first day in London, which was topped off by a great meal at one of the many fine purveyors of sub-continental cuisine (read curry houses) in Tooting Broadway. A mutton Byriani, some samosa chat and channa masala and I was in my happy place.
The next morning we rendezvoused at the café located in the wonderful Victoria and Albert Museum. Majestic surroundings from which to start our London extravaganza.
After a steaming Americano and a pain au chocolate, Team Chivers explored the V & A in order to soak up some culture. Now culture is a luxury but calories are essential and in true family spirit we found ourselves in Ceru, a cheeky little Lebanese restaurant in the heart of South Kensington. The food was sensational, traditional Lebanese but with a twist! Well done Matthew, great recommendation. We had the traditional arabic starters and dips accompanied by a aromatically spiced beef cheek, half a rabbit and some chicken shish tawouk. The memories were flooding back.
In order to burn off the calories we decided on a walk through Hyde Park. But where to start? The usual Chinese Parliament ensued and it was out with the sat-navs.
First off was the Albert Memorial which I tried to capture from a different perspective.
The one thing that never ceases to amaze me is how much green space there is in the heart of London, which is filled with wildlife, all of which have become very tame as they seek to be fed by the tourists. Now the manually focussed Leica M10P and 50 Summilux combo is not renouned for nature photography, but I did manage a couple of images that I was quite proud of:
As we walked out of the park gate we even encountered a Rhino!
The final destination had to be Harrods. We naively thought we would pop in to the food hall for a quick coffee and a cake. Not a hope in hell, it was absolutely rammed, so we decided to leave that for another day.
Having suitably warmed up our taste buds the main event was dinner at Roka Charlotte Street. Now we were a regular at the wonderful Dubai Roka and it has always been a firm favourite with all the family. As the evening was likely to get a bit messy we decided to have a group shot and then invoke a no camera rule. Just good food, good company and a libation or three and of course, we were jolly and we certainly did crack open the Bolly!
We spent our final day in Hampstead North London. Matthew lives there and was our guide for the day. What a fab time we had exploring the village itself, Hampstead Heath and the calorific delights of the neighbourhood.
I also didn’t know how many hills there were in this area and once again, London delivered with beautiful greenery and scenery. We did manage a visit to the Pergola which provided me with the opportunity to grab a few images of the kids. We were going for the ‘Country Life” look which seemed quite appropriate really.
Mrs. C and I couldn’t be happier. We had left the expat life to share quality time with the people we love and hopefully we have started how we mean to continue. My favourite image of the weekend was one I grabbed of Anna and Simon outside of Harrods.
Mrs. C and I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family. From the bottom of my heart thank you for making my 60th birthday so special.