BUSY LONDON MAMA PART ONE

Flags line the Mall that runs up to Buckingham Palace

What a busy life I lead! No sooner was I home from my girls' trip to France than I was off again on an airplane to London. Squeezed in between these two events were my granddaughter Jelena's school summer party, her birthday on the same day, outdoor concert with friends, and an overnighter to the mountain cabin to prepare it for sale. I came back from London late Friday night, then went to a barbecue party last night which lasted into the early hours of the morning. Who was the last one to leave you ask? Well... one guess is all you're getting!

My main reason for going to London this time was my birthday present - which was a visit to the David Bowie Exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum - David Bowie Is. The tickets were no longer available on the internet, so the way to do it was to turn up at the museum and queue and hope to get lucky. My sister did this in May and managed to get hold of tickets for the following day.

And YES!! I got lucky! Not only was the queue absolutely decent - it took only thirty minutes - and the entry time was one hour later! When my husband and Sophie came back from their walk around the block I was jumping up and down and waving the tickets around like a complete idiot, deliriously happy.

The V&A is a beautiful museum, and I used to visit it a lot in the seventies. While we were waiting for our entry time we went into the Raphael section and gaped in awe at the enormous paintings with biblical themes. Then we sat outside in the courtyard by the pond and enjoyed the gorgeous sunshine. Oh, my expectations were sky high! My bliss was exquisite, as it always is in London anyway.

Well. What can I say? I simply cried my way through it. It's hard for me to write about it without getting emotional. Lyric notes, photos, videos, films, costumes, music, drawings - all accompanied by headphone info. It was Overwhelming. Breathtaking. Brilliant. Fantastic. It was perfect. It was David Bowie's life - all of it. And I loved it. I loved it.

I actually had a huge problem tearing myself away.

My new Aladdin Sane earrings

When we entered the last room music came on full blast. Enormous screens covered the walls from floor to ceiling, and "Heroes" from two different concerts played in synchronicity on two walls.

I could have stayed forever. Maybe I'm still there.