60th Birthday

The main reason for my trip to Scotland was for Joep's 60th birthday celebration. I arrived in Inverness at about 9pm on the 27th December - just in time for the big event. Of course, the weather at that time was not great and I could easily have been delayed at some point in the journey. However, the journey went smoothly and I was even lucky enough to receive an upgrade on the flight between Tokyo and London. Just as I was about to get on the plane from Narita Airport, a British Airways staff member pulled me aside and said she had a message for me. Interesting........the next thing I knew, I was holding a new boarding pass for my new seat. Lucky me! This was the second time in a row I have received an upgrade from British Airways - I wonder what the secret is?

The rest of the journey to Scotland was uneventful and I arrived in Aberdeen on schedule. Meeting me at Aberdeen Airport was my brother, Mark, and a surprise guest at Joep's 60th birthday party. The surprise guest was one of Joep's old friends called Jenze. Via the powers of the internet, it was easy to track Jenze down (he was in Benin in Africa!!) and he turned out to be the star guest at the party. Joep was really pleased to see Jenze and I suspect that they will meet up again soon in Holland to renew their shared interest of yachting. After arriving at the house, I had a quick shower and then Mark and I went out for a few pints....the boys don't change.

In total, there were about 35 people at the birthday party. Despite the numbers, the house had plenty of space to accommodate all the guests and there was a mountain of food and a lake of alcohol left over at the end of the night. The EU would have been proud!

One point of interest at the party was the chanchanko jacket (and matching bonnet) which is traditionally given in Japan when someone turns 60. The present was kindly given by Tomo, the local doctor in Shimogo Town. I have tried to google chanchanko, but there seems to be little background information on the internet. I would be interested to know how this tradition originated but have not had much luck so far. UPDATE: Shaney has kindly provided a link for information regarding the chanchanko.

It was a great party which managed to reunite people with a common background - the Isle of Skye. Most people at the party still live there, or have done so at one point or the other. I managed to speak to the majority of people, although I do regret not being able to speak to all those who were in attendance. Perhaps I will be able to achieve a clean sweep at Mum's 60th birthday...

A great start to my holiday and there were plenty more adventures to come. Happy 60th Birthday, Joep!!!