Last Friday, H drove to Kings Across and back to drop off David at the station, having been to Lords together the day before. Took a while as lots of traffic due to the tube/train strikes and he got home around 3 hours later. To jump straight back into the car for the drive down to Hove, as Fi & Rich had very kindly invited us to go to Glyndebourne with them that afternoon /evening.
All was going well and we were early enough to help knock up the rest of the picnic, till the fateful thought struck me – all of 5 mins before we were arriving at Fi's place. H had packed the car and it was stuffed with our cool box with picnic items and fizz, multiple cases of wine (going to the cottage cellar on Sat, where we were staying that night), Maddie's travel crate to sleep in at the cottage etc etc. And I had to ask the question 'did you put the suitcase in the car'??!!
Answer clearly No, as it was still on our bed, awaiting any last items from Mr H to go into it. Poor man had to drop me off, explain the problem (no shoes to wear to Glyndebourne, no washbag, nothing else to wear all weekend etc) and back he headed to home. Nicky kindly stepped in to get the suitcase and drive it to Oxshott, where it was handed over and back down H drove… Just the 7 hours in the car and it was only 2.30pm!
Anyway – luckily Glynebourne is brilliantly set up for Londoners needing to do a quick clothes change and we were soon in our glad rags. And Fi had managed to snaffle a perfect table, slightly in the shade and soon resplendent with table cloth, plates and our starters. And of course the chilled fizz…. Stunning setting for a catch up and a rather 'Posh English' afternoon.
Beautiful gardens, views, nice old house, a swanky auditorium, a little lake etc – and tables miles apart so people could hobnob with their own guests and no-one else's!
And thence into the opera – Handel's Alcina. Which, to be honest, I had been slightly dreading as I have never been a fan of opera. And was really hoping that perhaps I might have matured into it somehow over the past 3 decades since I last went to one. But… no. It's definitely still not my bag. And the first act was a whopping 2 hours long!!!
But Fi & Rich loved it so that was fab, and H and I loved the chance to come and enjoy the whole event. Main course was then devoured and a bit more fizz, before the second act – about 1 hour and a bit more lively than the first one, so it ended on a high.
All home back in Hove by 10pm for a G&T in the garden – how very civilised.
And we discovered that – by complete weird coincidence – our last night in New Orleans in September overlaps with their Nashville/New Orleans holiday, so the suggestion of 'meeting up in a grubby jazz bar and drinking bourbon' was born! Only 4 weeks till that one, hurrah.
Huge thanks to Fi & Rich for hosting us at something I would never have done myself – we are no longer Glyndebourne 'virgins'.
And from there we tootled up to the cottage to rescue J&R from looking after Maddie the punster, and to spend Sat eve with them. Amusing watching Maddie panicking that Daddy had fallen into a big hole (H actually putting his wine stash down into the coot cellar) and to her new found bond with Auntie Janine. Also a good chance to catch up with Ross after his medical adventures of the past 10 days (that's a whole 'nother story) – and for H to be his gardening slave for the day.
Home with a huge bag of fallen apples and coot tomatoes – a jolly good Sussex weekend all round x