Family loving and religious ceremonies in London

---

HE SAID...
We woke at 4am and organised ourselves for the 5.15am shuttle bus to Ataturk Airport for our flight to London. We were a little tentative, as we didn’t know if we’d be able to take the oud onboard as carry-on luggage. Luckily, there was no problem taking it on – the hostess even placed in the front locker to protect it. Apart from an incredibly annoying group of old Turkish passengers, the flight was smooth and uneventful. I even managed to get myself through Ataturk Airport without collapsing. 😊

We arrived at Heathrow around 11am. Romy (Ren’s sister) was waiting for us, and when we eventually found the bus terminal we headed straight to West Harrow. Romy had prepared a few hot snacks, and after a much needed shower we lunched on a delicious creamy prawn pasta. I had some work to complete, so Ren, Romy, Kirsten and Jared went shopping in the afternoon. Everyone returned at 6pm, and as we sat and chatted, Romy prepared two fantastic curries (beef and potato) with beans and rice. We then played a hair-raising version of Sing Star. My scores wavered between tone deaf and amateur, while Romy, Ren, Kirsten and Jared’s scores wavered between hopeful and lead singer! With only four hours sleep in the past 24 hours, we were fading fast – we had to sleep.

I woke at 5am to finish a tender we’d been asked to submit. After a quick breakfast we prepared for Kirsten’s Confirmation ceremony and caught a taxi to the local church. It was fascinating to watch family politics at play, especially young kids objecting to photos with grandparents (but eventually having to submit to the demands of stern parents). In twenty years’ time, they may regret not smiling for the photos. The ceremony was interesting, especially the Bishop’s sermon. He placed considerable emphasis on the meaning of communion to the lives of those who accept it. We had a few glasses of champagne in the piazza after the ceremony (Jared and I thought it was pizza and champagne) and then headed out to Beefeater Grill for lunch. It was here that we met Donna, our most favourite of waitresses! Donna didn’t smile and kept herself in a state of untold busyness – with only three tables in for lunch. When Ren asked for a lemon, lime and bitters, she snorted ‘Ya want lemonade and WHAT?’ After two more attempts and the same response (growing louder each time), Ren opted for a coke. Donna humphed off and brought the coke. My meal (sausages and mash) was surprisingly good. We’d noticed Donna was wearing a badge on her waist that said ‘If I don’t tell you about our breakfast, you can have one on me.’ At the end of the meal, I summoned my inner courage and politely pointed out that she had not told us about the breakfast, and that as a result, we may be in the running for a free one. Donna gruffly pointed to my paper place-mat and told me all the details were there if I cared to read them. I decided a free Beefeaters breakfast was not worth Donna’s wrath.

We left the restaurant, jumped on a bus and headed home. On the way, Romy, Jared and I jumped off in Harrow to see if we could buy Pictionary, while Ren and Kirsten continued their way home. We were in luck – one of the shops had a copy in their storeroom. With game in hand, we headed home. It was a nice afternoon, so we walked to the park for a lazy game of basketball. A Christian band was playing as part of a small festival, so we sat on the grass for a while before walking home and playing Pictionary into the early evening while Romy prepared dinner. We dined in front of the television and slowly crashed one-by-one – it had been another long day.

We woke early (5.30am) and had a lazy morning sitting on the couch and chatting with Romy. We eventually made our way by bus and train to Shanthi’s (Ren and Romy’s cousin) for lunch. It was a beautiful meal, and it was touching to be welcomed into the family by Ren’s uncle. We retraced our steps (by train and bus) to Harrow and settled in to watch the Euro 2012 final between Spain and Italy (Spain won 4-0). We were exhausted by the time the game finished, so we headed straight to bed. We were flying back to Australia the next day, so we needed a good night’s sleep.

We woke at 6am to catch up on trip notes and prepare for the flight home. We had a quick breakfast and then headed out to a ten pin bowling venue. It was a great way to relax and unwind before a long haul flight. We played one game, lunched on mediocre Mexican at Chiquitos and played another. We headed home by train/bus in the mid-afternoon, showered and watched Wimbledon on television until rain washed out play. Romy whipped up a fabulous salmon and potato meal which we washed down with a cold rose. We then jumped into a taxi and headed to Heathrow. We arrived around 7.30pm, checked in and discovered to our dismay that we couldn’t take the oud as carry-on luggage (as we had done from Istanbul to London). We packaged it as best we could and smothered it with fragile stickers. However, it was a very fragile instrument, so we didn’t hold much hope.

We had coffee and cake with Romy and the kids before heading through security to the international departure lounge. Our holiday was almost over. It seemed only yesterday that we had set off on our Singapore / London / Turkey adventure, and here we were waiting for our flight home.



SHE SAID...
After a very early morning wake-up call and a check out, Andrew and I were surprised that we were early for our 5:15am airport shuttle to Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. I highly recommend the airport shuttle as a cheap (12TRY each), prompt and no fuss method of travel for an early flight. We were nervous about travelling with the oud, and even though we had been told we could take it on board by every person we had spoken to, we still opted to line up very early and be the first at the check in counter – just in case. Very very happily, there was absolutely no fuss about carrying it as cabin baggage. It was a big relief. We settled in at a cafe for one last gozleme and cay (Turkish tea) and then boarded our flight to London. I’m seriously going to miss the Turkish food and glasses of tea.

We arrived at Heathrow’s Terminal 5 (not my favourite terminal) and were again met by the smiling face of my sister Romy. We were back in London, and we had an occasion to celebrate – our niece Kirsten’s Confirmation. We had arrived the day before the ceremony and had an afternoon of shopping for last minute items to complete Kirsten’s outfit. I had so much fun going ‘girlie’ shopping with Romy and Kirsten. Jared met us after school and joined us for the remainder of the shopping trip. Romy cooked a fabulous dinner of Sri Lankan beef and potato curry dinner for us – we could get used to this kind of attention from my sister!

I’m not quite sure how it happened, but that evening we ended up playing Sing Star. The kids easily outplayed us! It was a lot of fun; however, it confirmed that I really shouldn’t give up my day job. We were all quite tired and opted for an early night, especially as we had an early start the next day.

The next morning we dressed up and went off to witness Kirsten’s Confirmation ceremony at Our Lady and St Thomas of Canterbury. It was a very cute old church in Harrow-on-the-Hill, not far from an apartment Romy and I used to share many years ago, near the old Harrow Boys school. As far as the ceremony went, the Bishop talked to the group of 29 about their duties and responsibilities as young adults and challenged them to use their ‘gifts’. As Kirsten’s Confirmation sponsor, all I had to do was stand with her as the Bishop went through the rituals. It was all over rather quickly and off we went to lunch to celebrate. Lunch at Beefeater Grill was as tasty as it was entertaining. The starters and desserts were outstanding, however the mains were a bit hit and miss. The waitress we had was efficient but boisterous and scary. We were in no doubt that we were no longer in service-orientated Turkey anymore. I tried English banoffee pie for the first time (a favourite of Kirsten’s), and I loved it very much. It’s a decadent combination of banana, cream and toffee layered on a crumbly biscuit base. Heaven! 😊

It was a beautiful sunny summer afternoon, so when we got back home we decided to walk to the local park for a game of basketball. We then sat on the grass for a little while and watched a band which was part of the local Anglican church’s festival in the park. While Romy cooked dinner and baked a chocolate cake that evening, the kids, Andrew and I played Pictionary (an Australia vs. England game) and then watched the Andy Murray/ Marcos Baghdatis game at Wimbledon.

The next day was a family day and we were off to have lunch at our cousin Shanthi’s house. Even though it was a long trip to see them, the food and company were superb. Shanthi had cooked a Sri Lankan feast and it was also really fantastic to see my Uncle Shun who I hadn’t seen since I was a child. It was a fun and lovely afternoon of catching up with family news. We got back home in time to get some snacks and drinks and plonk ourselves in front of the television, to watch the Euro 2012 final between Spain and Italy. Romy and Jared were supporting Italy and the rest of us Spain – but even though Spain played exceptionally well, we would have preferred a less one-sided game.

On our last day in London, we decided to go ten pin bowling. I have never been good at bowling; however, I always have such a good time playing it. We had a very ordinary Mexican meal in between games that wasn’t worth writing home about, and then headed home to pack.

We had had a very busy and fun filled four days in London. I have to mention the fact that we used the buses and tubes around Harrow every single day of our stay, and I had public transport envy. I know you tend to be more unforgiving of the quirks of transport systems when you use them every day, but personally I don’t think the Londoners know how good they have it. We love the transport system in London.

Romy cooked us one last delicious meal of salmon and potatoes, and that was that for our stay in London. We were about to leave for our looong flight home. As much as I wasn’t looking forward to the flight, I knew that once I was in my seat and settled, it would be fine. On the other hand, saying goodbye to my sister and the kids wasn’t going to be so fine.

Next time I write to you I should be snuggled up in a plane seat or most likely already be back home throwing on a big jumper, thick socks and ugg boots...

---