The big Five O and Hawaii 5 O

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As I began typing this I have 6 days left of my forties. I am sitting in downtown San Francisco just off Market Street and very close to the famous Trolly Bus stop. I love this city and this must be by 12th visit and each time I visit experience something new and fun.  Last night I joined my friends for the Dia de los Muertos festival/parade. A very strange experience. The parade was over 1 hour long through the mainly latin Mission District but the people in the parade came from all over with a good sprinkling of hipsters and millennials. 



This is my 3rd day here and I am still jet-lagged, wide awake at 4am, exhausted at 4pm but hopefully more time in the sun should resolve that. I am now sitting at my gate for my flight to Hawaii. I will write more of this when I am settled in my hotel mid week as this trip has been fun and social but not yet restful. I need sleep and sunshine and some me time! :)

Hawaii was amazing.  I saw volcanoes (and stood on one), a lava beach, houses destroyed by lava. I saw dolphins and whales and met some lovely people (Missy and Frank) and saw some epic scenery thanks to my host and guide Jon (a friend I made in Boston in 2000). Some photos from Hawaii.




Hawaii is definitely a place I'd go back to as it is so big and has so much to see I feel I only saw a fraction of it in the 4 days I was there.

Great song about Hawaii (in Spanish)


So my 50th has been and gone. I was able to speak to my parents, sisters, nieces and nephews on the day which was amazing considering I was so far away! For my birthday itself I had the most amazing evening. A lovely dinner in central San Francisco at Le Colonial with my local friends, Aaron, Luke, David, Michelle, Derek and Ana as well as my friend Sally from England and my friend Miguel from Quebec.  It was great food (Vietnamese) topped off with cake and some lovely Champagne (thanks to Michelle and Derek).  After the restaurant me and Miguel went to a very funny bar in the Tenderloin to watch very bad drag and this song was one of the highlights! 




On Saturday our hangovers were blown away by a 4 mile walk across the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito followed by an amazing ferry ride across the bay back to the city.





I could write a hell of a lot more about as I saw so many things and did so many things on this trip but the whole thing can be summed up as friends, laughs, sights and sounds and fun! I am now back in London, tired, jet lagged but feeling very happy to have spent 10 days celebrating my birthday in Hawaii and San Francisco and funnily not feeling any different than I did when I was 49. 

November 11th, 2019


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