Fun & Famous

CAROLIEN’S FAST LANE LIFE

Around this time of year, it's always a double celebration for me. Because just before Santa arrives at the doorstep, I briefly celebrate my birthday (fun fact: on the same day as our dear May-Britt). A small downside: many friends already have Christmas plans on the 23rd, and I never know what to ask for as a gift with all those holidays in a row... So nowadays, I announce my B-day bash well in advance, and luckily I got a great gift tip on set: a voucher for a pair of beautiful handmade earrings from Eenvoud. So last Friday, I was happily sitting with a large group of friends at the gourmet pans at my place. And the dessert? How could it be otherwise: a ridiculously beautiful and delicious cake from Life of Pie. My Christmas can't get any better!

Every time I walk past De Hallen, I tell myself that I need to go to the movies more often. Such beautiful films are being made that I really should see for work, but I still don't quickly think about catching a matinee alone on a day off... Could it be something from the past, that it's embarrassing to go to the movies alone? And while you're sitting quietly looking at a screen for two hours. So I decided to go alone on Thursday afternoon to see the new film La La Land. Well, I can tell you: the theater was packed with single visitors at half past one in the afternoon! In the end, I did cheat a bit because I texted a girlfriend to see if she wanted to join me, but still: next time, I will undoubtedly dare to order a solo ticket at the box office. And the film? An ab-so-lute must-see during the Christmas holidays!

I'm not the only one dealing with the ‘being born at Christmas’ problem... In fact, three friends have their birthdays on Christmas Day and Boxing Day! And then the bizarre coincidence is that ‘best friends’ Géza and Manuel celebrate their birthdays on December 26! Now that they are reaching the memorable age of ’the big 30' this year, it certainly calls for a party. So we shifted some family obligations and sat at beautifully set tables at Géza's parents' house on Boxing Day for an unforgettable evening... Because it certainly was: each speech was more beautiful than the last, and the chef prepared a delicious birthday dinner. And as if that wasn't enough, the next evening a big 30 surprise dinner for Manuel was on the agenda! I'm afraid this will mean not just a few days, but a few weeks of detoxing...

Jon and I are fortunately not really into New Year's parties. A few years ago, we spent New Year's Eve in Thailand, looked at each other at a quarter past twelve, and went to sleep. Wonderful! Unfortunately, a warm destination wasn't in the cards this year, but we still wanted to get away for a few days. And as if fate was guiding us, I spoke to my girlfriend who lives in London and is away for the holidays: we were warmly welcomed in her little house! That same day, we booked tickets to London and I frantically searched for tickets to the musical ‘Book of Mormon’, which we've wanted to see for years. Yesterday it finally happened, our trip could begin! We hadn't even landed for an hour when I had already dragged my husband to the first location of the trip: lunch at Ladurée. This promises to be a ‘jolly good week’.

Marly and I have our birthdays two weeks apart, so at Christmas it has become a tradition to pick something nice together for our birthdays. By now, our wrists are quite full of matching bracelets, so it was time to switch to a different gift. As if by telepathy, we texted each other that a look at the bag sale at the Bijenkorf might be the answer we were looking for. I can tell you: we only needed ten minutes to spot these beauties from Stella McCartney on sale, and shortly after, we were outside like two happy kids with our new acquisition. Now we just have to think about what our quest will be next year...