Ciao for now to my favourite city in the world

Farewelling London for a year was not a hard thing to do today. And this surprised me no end. I spent my week in London with my beloved friends. I went to the Tracy Emin Exhibition at the Haywood entitled ‘Love is what you want’ - seeing her used Tampons was probably a little too much for me but the rest was quirky and intimate. I watched my All Blacks at the Temple Walkabout (yes that’s right on my last weekend in London I slummed it with plastic cups and cheap wine to see a rugby game and fortuitously I met a Kiwi mountaineer who assured me my dates for trekking to base camp of Everest next year in June-July is a brilliant time of year to see the mountain), I cooked pancakes for my Tuscany crew on their way to SW4 and caught the end of Notting Hill Carnival for Family day, I had lunch with Liz and Pete at Peter Gordons delicious kiwi restaurant Providores and cruised around Notting Hill Carnival with my good mate Fancino running into 3 lots of friends on the day – reminding me this is a small city afterall! I ran with Holly of Holly Golightly Fitness whilst I watched ladies walk dogs and Dad’s push prams. I checked out the new BlackRock offices eating in the canteen (well sitting, the food was strictly from outside the office – thanks Fede!), shopping and some extra love from my home boys G and Andrew.

Saying goodbye was easier than I anticipated. On visiting the office I saw the frustrations of my friends. I was right there with them 6 weeks ago and now with the markets changing peoples belief that this is as good as it gets, reminds me of the dark days of 2008 – long before we were in the spiral of a merger integration as well. Now I feel light, free and well liberated from it all. Also I have such a great desire to get home. A week in Sydney to see my buddies will be brilliant…then it’s the comfort of home. I can’t wait for the love of family and more of the goodness of nature that I have been enjoying in the Balkans.

Special Thanks to the hospitality of Holly and Harv for putting me up in palatial Holland Park one last time. Thanks to my friends for making London the city I love the most in the world. My home.