December, 2005
Another year, another newsletter, perhaps next year we should just maintain a Blog…
This year, even more than last, has flown by in a flurry of mostly Fleur-related activities. In January we flew to Tuscany for Burns night at a little Scottish oasis called the Borgo di Colleoli and met a beautiful young Scots harpist (Katie) who had played for the opening of the Scottish Parliament and will appear again later in this year’s story. While there we heard from Fleur that she and Keith had found the perfect house. On our return we saw it, agreed, and within a couple of weeks, subject to all the usual legal stuff and delays, it was Fleur and Keith’s.
In February we had the opportunity to use some of Graeme’s stash of Airmiles with a trip to Marrakech; nice to travel Club class again and it turned out to be a wonderful holiday. A few crinklies passed to the concierge at our hotel found us an English speaking driver (who had driven Posh & Becks the previous year) plus comfortable car for two days, and that allowed us to do a couple of interesting trips – Essaouria 200km away on the coast and the following day a shorter distance up into the High Atlas to visit Berber villages. We learned about argan nuts and carpets, cornered the market in local spices, and Judith invested in pointy toed shoes and a large tajine; she also inadvertently took camel riding lessons but that was a mistake anybody could have made. And everywhere in Marrakech we travelled by caleche, clip-clopping along in great style.
March saw the annual WEA art class trip, this time to Paris; three days of culture and a welcome break from the various house, wedding, honeymoon, etc planning then well under way. It took until late in the month to complete on Fleur and Keith’s house, at which point they moved in and Judith, then between jobs, started decorating.
In April we treated ourselves to a dirty weekend in Brighton, an opportunity to visit the Pavilion and also Charleston farmhouse, one time home of Vanessa Bell and weekend retreat for the Bloomsbury set, now nicely conserved with much of their furniture (and art) still in place. And in May we travelled with Rory to Crete to stay with old friends Maggie & Phil who now live there year round. They have worked wonders with their house and have built an apartment beside it for paying guests. The lifestyle is utterly seductive – wonderful unobstructed views across Souda Bay, Greek food and wine, convivial, relaxed lifestyle – no wonder Phil has gone completely native. Rory drove us to Knossos to look over the excavations and we enjoyed meeting Maggie’s aged but very lively parents and hearing about their lives. The other highlight of the month was a tour round Legal London which included lunch at Middle Temple sitting at high table which was an oak trestle made from wood given to the Temple by Queen Elizabeth I.
In June we visited Normandy for a long weekend with a group of our friends who comprise the Little Baddow Luncheon Club; this included a trip to Monet’s garden at Giverny and a superbly gastronomic lunch in Honfleur. Later in the month Judith again took part in the Race for Life at Hylands Park in Chelmsford, finishing in a better time than last year – all that fitness training is really paying off. August, as ever, is our opportunity to let our hair down for a week at the Edinburgh Festival. This year we managed to fit in with the tides in order to stay overnight on Lindisfarne, and in between rain squalls we were able to enjoy the views and get the feel of this special place. Thanks to the wonder of the Internet (and pre-booking) our time in Edinburgh was fully utilised – we visited the Scottish Parliament, the Queen’s Gallery and the RSA, and managed between three and five shows a day. It sounds a lot but there’s so much to try and fit in and a week isn’t nearly long enough. On the return leg we stayed at Karen’s house in Chester so that we could visit the Lady Lever Gallery at Port Sunlight to see the collection of Pre-Raphaelites.
And then it was September, Fleur and Keith’s wedding, and all of our planning through the year was about to be put to the test. The Big Day was Saturday 17th and the weather was close on perfect – just warm enough, dry, sunny but not so bright that people would screw up their eyes for the camera. The wedding dress had been finished with only hours to spare but Fleur looked wonderful as did the Mother of the Bride [that’s enough sycophancy, Ed]; Graeme and Rory were kilted, as were all the male Johnstons and a good few of our local friends. Keith, his best man and many other guests were in morning dress along with Keith’s two small sons. The bridesmaids, Jodie and Karima, had both flown back from trips to Australia and so had great tans to go with their outfits, and our youngest niece Hannah was a scene-stealing flower girl. And all this was of course complemented by a wonderful array of posh frocks and stunning hats. If you haven’t already done so, you might like to have a look at www.wedding2005.co.uk and its linked photo gallery.
The wedding was held at Vaulty Manor near Maldon with civil ceremony, wedding breakfast and evening reception all within the Manor and its grounds. The aforementioned Katie played Celtic music before and during the ceremony and modern material during the pre-meal reception. Fleur was piped in to ‘Flower of Scotland’ and the wedding party and then the bride and groom were piped in to the meal, all of this co-ordinated and stage-managed by Royston, our brilliant toastmaster. During the evening we had the Julie Cooper Band, old friends from school dances about twenty years ago, and during their rest break Graeme smuggled in a belly dancer called Deniz who astonished us with her ability to belly dance with a large sabre balanced on a love handle [children, don’t try this at home]; so that’s what they’re for…
Being gluttons for punishment we held open day at St Martins on the Sunday to clear up the leftovers and provide a comfort break for people travelling home, a nice chance for Keith and Fleur to parade around in their ‘Mr Mitchell’ and ‘Mrs Mitchell’ tee-shirts. A few days later, well before dawn, we drove the Young Marrieds to Heathrow for the first leg of their honeymoon; they had a few days in New York before joining a cruise up the Canadian coast, then back to New York for another couple of days, and from the photographs and souvenirs they brought home (though no cash) they clearly had a wonderful time. By early October, with all that excitement behind us, we felt in need of a complete rest and managed to arrange at short notice a week away in Rhodes; weather not great but otherwise a pleasant and much needed break.
In between all the cracks in our calendar we have managed to fit in lots of theatre, cinema and art exhibitions. The London theatre highlights this year have been Cirque du Soleil and Carmen, both at the Albert Hall, Mary Poppins, the Far Pavilions, Billy Elliott and Woman in White. We seem to have been to the cinema a good deal, and there have been trips to Southwold, Aldeburgh, Runnymede, Frogmore and Boulogne (twice). The Little Baddow Luncheon Club has been very active and apart from local meals (and the trip to Normandy) we had a riotous evening at Sarastro in London – good food plus opera babes, and the most amazing balcony table imaginable. And we seem to be increasingly involved in local Rotary events which involve eating, drinking and frequent kilt-wearing. As Christmas fast advances we are into the usual round of local parties and taking a group of 36 family and friends to the Panto in Grays, an annual not to be missed treat.
Graeme’s little e-Bay business continues to be nicely productive, in between holidays, and Judith is now working afternoons for a firm of IFAs in Chelmsford – easy commute and free parking but not nearly enough holiday allowance!
No year seems to be without sorrow and during the past few months we experienced the loss of our good friends Ivan and Emer’s daughter Fiona, sadly a victim of the London bombings. We also lost Peter Wolstenholme, a dear friend, and Keith’s mother Yvonne who had been in ill health for some months but who held on until Keith and Fleur returned from honeymoon. They will all be missed but not forgotten.
The Young Marrieds and the Young Laird have each supplied their own perspectives on the year but before you get to those we want to wish you a very happy Christmas and another happy, healthy and prosperous year in 2006.
From the Young Marrieds…
This is our first time writing in the renowned Christmas letter.
2005 has been a roller coaster ride for us, white knuckled at times. We started the year by moving into our first house together in March, we were so glad finally to find the perfect house after so much looking. We have had to do very little to the decor, our local painter (mum) popped round one morning and by the time she left we had a new colour on the walls in the kitchen and utility room. Our other must-do room was our third bedroom; it was to say the least a bit on the pink side as it was floor to ceiling pink Barbie wallpaper and is still known as the Barbie room! This has now been transformed into our study. Keiran and Joshua’s room has not been touched; the previous family did a fantastic job on this room and every night the boys go to bed in their own little universe.
Of course the highlight of our year was the wedding! We had a fantastic day and couldn’t believe how lucky we were to have so many friends and family turn out to support and show their love to us. We honeymooned in New York and then cruised to New England stopping in Boston and Portland and then on to Canada with stops in Halifax and Sydney. We can now say we have been to both Sydneys. We really enjoyed our time away and are still going through the 750 pictures we took.
On our return from honeymoon we had our saddest point of year with the passing of Keith’s mum, Yvonne. Yvonne had been fighting several illnesses throughout the year but she was determined that she would be there for Keith on his wedding day and see her youngest child settled.
And now here we are with Christmas approaching and a New Year just round the corner, we have many plans and dreams to fulfil so best we get started.
We wish you a happy Christmas and best wishes for the New Year.
Love from the old Mr Mitchell and the new Mrs Mitchell xxx
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P.S There are lots more photos on our website, www.wedding2005.co.uk . . . have a look.
Hello All!
It has been a busy year for me. I have finally made the move from T-Mobile after receiving an offer I couldn’t refuse from Cable & Wireless in Bracknell. I am now doing the same job as before, but managing performance management for eighteen mobile networks instead of just one – mostly in the Caribbean if anyone’s interested! So far I have only been to Jamaica, Jersey & Guernsey with C&W, sadly we sold Sakhalin before we had a chance to visit (bonus points if anyone has the faintest idea where it is!), and for next year I will be studiously trying to avoid a trip to visit the network we part-own in Kabul. Apart from work, I have also been on holidays to Crete, Majorca & Barcelona.
I completed decorating my house in St Albans and put it on the market (sadly too late to sell it this year). If anyone wants a house in St Albans look at the My House link below. Currently I am a connoisseur of the M25 and M4, just waiting to move round to somewhere near Bracknell (preferably Wokingham).
So what have I wasted my money on this year? Purchased my first kilt this year in preparation for Fleur’s wedding, and so far all this commuting hasn’t made me too fat, so hopefully that will last me a long time. Most frivolous purchase was my new number plate: R100 RRY; yes, sad, I know…
On the good works front I am still an IEE Ambassador for Science & Engineering, and have given two talks in Hertfordshire to promote this as a worthwhile pursuit for further and higher education. I am still in the St Johns Ambulance, and (thanks to me) our division has now at least joined the 20th century with a website: http://www.sja.org.uk/stalbans (*gone now*)
Happy New Year!
My House (in case anyone wants to buy it…): Frosts estate agents (*gone now*)