Christmas 2011 - Back Home With The Family

Christmas Lunch - The Best In All The World

It had been four years since my last Christmas at home. In 2008 I spent xmas in New Zealand with my good friend Darren, bathing in the heat of the December sun in the beautiful Taupo. In 2009, I had just arrived into Quito a few weeks before when Christmas popped up again. It would be one of two consecutive Christmas days spent in Ecuador as in 2010, I was once more eating Christmas dinner with rice on the side. Now though it was 2011 and I was finally back home to spend it with my family. Although I had missed a Christmas or two I hadn't forgotten the routine, so, at 7am I was up with Maisa and my dad, my sister Amy and Jody too - as we all headed off into town. As tradition proceeds, we first stopped off at Abbey Road, to have our photo taken and write words of love and peace on the famous stretch of wall outside the Abbey Road Studios. We then headed to the Serpentine Lake. It has been a tradition for many a year - when on Christmas morning a bunch of absolute lunatics jump into freezing water for a swim. It's done for charity - so it does have some sense behind it and each year it's filmed for television. It has been my Christmas tradition to come and watch it every year for as far back as I can remember. Maisa found the whole thing interesting but at the same time must have been asking herself why she woke up at 7am on Christmas day to see hairy naked men jump into an icy lake. We continued our adventure by taking a little tour through London, showing Maisa some of the famous sights along the way. When we made it home it was about 10.30am and present opening time. We all sat in a big circle and took turns to open gifts. I think Maisa had more presents than everybody else.

Later on in the day and family started to arrive for Christmas dinner. It is without doubt my favourite meal in all the world and this year it didn't disappoint. I was so happy I even gobbled up some Brussel sprouts too. While we were eating, Maisa was enjoying opening the Christmas crackers with everyone. It is odd to think but in other countries they just don't have such things. Before Maisa had met me she didn't even know what a Christmas cracker was - I think when I first mentioned it she thought it was something edible. Later in the evening and more and more people started to flood into our house. Family and family friends started to come in their masses, so by the end of the night Maisa had met absolutely everyone in my family. There was more food which I'm still not sure how we all managed to fit into our already full bellies - but somehow it was achieved. Later on in the evening was the Christmas Quiz. Hosted by my father, it works by splitting the adults against the so called children - although no-one on either team was younger than 20 as far as I could work out. There were about 20 people or so on each team as a series of rounds see various questions answered. Some of the questions were even given (and had to be answered) in Spanish, which was advantageous to the kids team with Maisa and myself able to speak perfect Spanish......okay, so mine is a little less perfect. Naturally the kid's team won - thanks mainly to my knowledge, and by the end the adults were all coming up to me telling me to go back to Ecuador so it would be a little more fair next time. I can't remember exactly if all those events happened quite as I just described them but the kid's team definately did win - that is for sure.

After touring through most of London, seeing people jump into lakes, opening a million and one presents, eating the most delicious food (non-stop), drinking until our sober senses disappeared, gaining 3 stone and winning the world famous (well, Southgate famous) Christmas Quiz - xmas 2011 had finally come to an end. It was a great day enjoyed by everyone, but for me - it was just amazing to be back home with all my family. That - I won't forget in a long time. As we all collapsed at the end of the day I remember thinking to myself that I will never eat again in my entire life. Twelve hours later at Boxing day lunchtime and I was back on the turkey sandwiches...........I will never learn.