 Changing Places No 120 W/C 1st June 2008
A week of celebrations and happiness with Emma's fourth birthday taking pride of place. A birthday party involving all her Majorcan friends from her Majorcan school and the trust from the parents that this strange incoming family of ´Londoners were alright to be trusted with their little ones for the duration of the party. What a long way we have come since we were the newest kids on the block . Emma now aged four had her birthday day celebrated with ice creams at the local Soller ice cream factory. The new pink bicycle was the present of the moment and the fact that it could be almost ridden without stabilisers was the most important bit about the day. We have a cluster of birthdays around this time with Jays being today and Kate's next week. The May / June time is a happy and expensive time for our family and one where the family back in the UK really miss the moment. The days were not so long ago when all family and both sets of grandparents would have been present for these special birthdays but now celebrations become elongated and wait for the frequent visits of those not able to be here on the day. No wonder the children love their extended birthdays.
End of term looms and the discussions are already taking place about the new teacher for next year. The lovely Miss Pink is finishing her year as Kate's teacher and then returning to a career in the UK. She will be missed so much by the children, Kate has already shed tears at her imminent departure and can't imagine the school without her. The long school holiday will fill this gap and I am sure she will be ready to start again in September with the next long suffering teacher! As for Emma the local Majorcan school in the Port of Soller has a completely different system and the children go to that school and expect to have the same teacher for the first three years of their school life. That teacher becomes such an important part of their lives and they couldn't contemplate the idea of a change over every year. The security blanket that provides for the littlest ones of the school is second to none – but the pressure on the teacher not to change jobs or direction while in the middle of a three year stint must be huge.
We are on tour with The Georgie Insull Choir as I write this column this week. Technology is a wonderful thing as I can send this copy to the Bulletin from the ship. We are developing the Island Star Passenger Choir ready for a performance tonight and they are doing really well. Our leader is in her usual inspirational form and we smile encouragingly at the new members when she stops playing the piano and barks at us that we have made mistakes......We come back for more and so do they. We know that she loves us really especially when we get the notes right and we pleased her by our singing in the English Church in Rome. The serious bits are over now and we have the rest of the week to play. The cocktails are second to none and the relaxation breeds an evil sense of humour so who knows what will happen.
The same can't be said for a fellow traveller who knows exactly what happens if you go out for a curry before you go on holiday. This is story of cruising to make you laugh and cry. A family arrived on a flight from Manchester and their luggage didn't arrive with them. The cruise ship staff were sympathetic and helpful and tried to transfer them on to the ship as soon as possible while they waited for the luggage to arrive on another plane. They were given the usual form to fill in about any upset stomachs they might have had. Dad filled in the form truthfully attributing this symptoms to the curry and beer of the night before. The cruise Doctor didn't see it that way and said that if he still wanted to travel he had to be in isolation for three days before being allowed to join the rest of his family. He agree to that and settled down to television and reading and good food. Oh no said the Chef – a light diet for you until you are completely better. There was not a lot he could do about it from behind a locked cabin door. A holiday to remember, no luggage, isolation and rabbit food – happy days!!
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