2015

2015 has been specially wonderful for me.  In March I had my 90th birthday, and for months I continued celebrating.  I had an unforgettable party on the day.  80 friends, many from overseas from as far apart as Hong Kong and Canada, joined me in a delightful venue in Putney overlooking the river.  A marquee in the garden for drinks, the best food I have ever had at a large function, speeches and then several talented friends gave me the best possible birthday present by entertaining.  I had hired a piano.  As I said in my speech, alongside my wedding and my 80th birthday celebration, it was the best day of my life.

My friend Ian Marshall Fisher made a dinner party for me, other friends took me to the theatre and to restaurants, my best friend, Helen Cotterill (who had made a hilarious speech at my party) took me to the Dog and Fox Hotel in Wimbledon overnight to watch the results of the General Election.  In June I had a lovely party for all my Israeli friends in Jaffa, and my step-daughter and her 10 children and 26 grandchildren made a marvellous party for me in Jerusalem.

In Israel they have an insane system of having the Bicycle Lanes on the pavement.  I did not know and was run over by a bicycle.  My nephew Meir insisted I go to the hospital for a check-up, And Meir said that I arrived as if I were the Queen opening a new wing!  They told me that at that hospital alone they had at least 40 people a day in Emergency who had been injured by a bicycle.  It transpired that I had broken my arm, and in early July, back here in England, I had an operation on it.  I was quite disabled for a while and Yasmin stayed in my flat to care for me.

In April I went with Yasmin and Dave on a beautiful cruise down the Rhine river.  We started and finished in Amsterdam, and debarked at several lovely places. Including Kinderdjik, a World Heritage Sight with 19 windmills dating back to the 18th century, built to drain the swamp.  Also Nijmegan where I fulfilled a lifetime's desire to visit the Kroller Muller museum in a forest and crammed with magnificent paintings.  Built by a wealthy lady called Helene Kroller-Muller who had developed a love of art at the beginning of the 20th century and bought 11,500 paintings, including her favourite who was Van Gogh (in his lifetime he sold only one painting, to his brother Theo).  It was fantastic!  Fabulous!  Then a day in lovely Cologne,  Then along the Romantic Rhine on a glorious sunny day, and on both sides are castles, mostly built in the 12th and 13th centuries.  Breathtaking.  As far as Rudesheimer, where a train on wheels took us through the charming town and through the vineyards on the hill--to a wonderful museum of musical instruments and to a wine cellar.  Then we turned around and sailed back, stopping at Dusseldorf, where we had a lovely day with my friend  Anne Fuehr, who lives nearby.

In May I went with Yasmin for an absolutely delightful few days in Cornwall, visiting beautiful gardens and the amazing Minak Theatre, built on a cliffside.  I am glad I never appeared there, climbing down all those steps to get to the stage on the edge of the sea!

In November I went back to Israel for a week to celebrate the wedding of number 9 grandchild, a very happy occasion.  Now I have 9 married grandchildren, and number 10 is engaged.  All were introduced by a Matchmaker, and all are gloriously happy.  I had a happy week, meeting 2 tiny babies, the new son of my nephew Shimshon and the new son of my grand-daughter Esther.

I feel so lucky to be so busy and feel so well at age 90.