Best of Britain

Well, its coming up to our 2 year anniversary in London, so we decided it was about time we unleashed the 'Britishness' that has slowly been developing within us. What better place to come out than 'Proms in the Park' - a true British traditional experience of singing and flag waving in Hyde Park.

In an unusual turn of events (befitting the unusual nature of the evening), London delivered a cracking evening, a rare event this summer - so the scene was set for a great night in the park. An added bonus and another fortunate twist of fate was that Uncle Bruce, a finely tuned singing machine, was in town... so conditions were therefore perfect as we lined up with 39,997 others in orderly fashion - being British, we would have it no other way.

Before we knew it, we were in - and as we popped our bubbles and poured ourselves a glass each, we were informed by friends that we had met up with, that unbeknownst to us, this was in fact a 'no glass event'. Despite much security, cueing and bag checking at the gate - our various glass objects had made it through..... very British... lots of fuss, but, fortunately for us, no real substance.

Its fair to say we all went into this night knowing very little about what we should expect. The real Proms were going on in the Royal Albert Hall nearby - the orchestra and singers performing for the well to do for the final time this year. And then there was us, and our 39,997 friends, spread out in Hyde Park soaking up the sultry tones of Bjorn Again - the world famous Abba revival band. Bruce showed initial promise here, and for a moment I thought we might have dance moves displayed, but in the end we settled for simple, but effective, flag waving - the Union Jack of course.

That is something not yet covered - you are no one at Proms in the Park unless you have a flag. Fortunately we had twigged to this and shrewdly purchased 2 Union Jacks on our way in. We therefore fitted in perfectly -however it did result in us being disowned by the kiwi friends we had met up with...... a small price to pay in the wider context of our display of British nationalism.

The night was characterised by good nibbles, nice wine (albeit contraband), great company and a significant amount of flag waving. The highlight for us all was the last half hour, where the traditional side of the Proms comes through. Flags waving and the crowd standing, we joined in and sung British classics such as Rule Britannia, Jerusalem, Auld Lang Syne and of course the National Anthem. Happy, happy times - and a defining moment in our British adventure.

In all seriousness, we had a great night - and it was great to be part of this tradition, which I gather has been going on for over 110 years now.........