Colchester, Cabaret and Cambridge alliterate nicely my London visit to my friends and family this week. The stream of hello and goodbye hugs and kisses began in the mid-term car park in Stanstead airport as old and much loved friend Martin had instructed me to catch the free bus outside arrivals so he could avoid paying parking fees. Sadly, he got my flight times wrong and ended up paying more as he had to wait past the time limit (but I’m worth it) and he managed to give me a hug anyway. From then on, the hugs and kisses became a constant as as did my comings and goings between various exhibitions, theatres, pubs, dinner tables, garden parties, river fests, and the other delights of ‘the old country’. What a wonderful week.

 It started off at the seaside in Brightlinsea, Essex and ended up in Somerset House at the Courtauld Gallery. In between we visited the Zanele Muholi and Expressionists exhibitions at the Tate, had a Thai lunch in Maria and Malcolm’s garden, enjoyed a Fitzpatrick Garden Party, and loved the Zoology museum in Cambridge. I also played pool for the first time in 45 years! But the high light was going to see Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club. My family had given me two tickets at a table seat for my 65^th birthday and Joe and I indulged in German sausage, cheese and crackers, champagne and cocktails while watching an absolutely wonderful performance. The direction and choreography were amazing, the orchestra in the upper echelons of the theatre, superb, and the acting was the best. We were totally immersed into Berlin in the 1930s. As the advance of the Nazis became evident, it was extraordinary how the Cabaret morphed from high class fun and games to low brow sleaze and misery. If you can go…do. Meeting the new babies at the Fitzpatrick Garden party was also great fun. It was amusing (and please forgive me, my children, nephews and nieces) to watch their parents chase, cajole, and scold while we grandparents smiled, sat back with our glasses and wines and cooed from a safe distance! I am so lucky to be able to dip into London and its wonderful whizzing transport connections, art galleries and theatres with friends and family who I really love, and then be able to return to the more tranquil realm of Ireland where I feel I now belong. Next stop, France.