Sweet 16!

Well, today has been great - very enjoyable despite it being a long day. We didn't get home until 1am!

We had a nice relaxed start to the day and then Mum and Dad came around after opening up at work and Sophie opened her cards and presents. She was ecstatic when she opened her Tiffany's necklace that Mum and Dad bought her when they were in New York. My daughter is one very lucky girl!

The plan was to all leave together and head off to the O2 in Greenwich where we would leave the cars as I'd booked tickets to see Titanic in 3D in the evening. We would then get a tube into London to have lunch at The Hard Rock Cafe. Mum and Dad opted to go down the M1 and around the highway to hell while the four of us sped down the A14 and the M11 thus avoiding the almost continuous roadworks that blight our motorways at the moment.

The four of us arrived first and headed into the O2 to use their facilities and to have a coffee at a Starbucks. Mum and Dad arrived about half an hour after us and then we took the Underground to Hyde Park Corner. We had talked about taking one of the Thames Clippers that travel up and down the river but time was tight and it was a windy and very chilly day so we opted for the warmth of the Tube instead!

I love using the Underground but I always forget about how much walking is involved and I was a bit worried about poor Keith and his hip, but he was OK (or he said he was) and within an hour we were queueing at The Hard Rock Cafe where we were told the wait would be about an hour.

The place was packed - what eaterie isn't at the moment? - and we headed off to the downstairs bar for a drink before we were able to have lunch. We were given a little buzzer that was supposed to vibrate when our table was ready but the bloomin thing kept barking at me and emitting a high pitched beep! Very annoying!

Keith bought the drinks for the four of us (thankfully mum and dad said they would buy their own) and I think it's the most expensive round we have ever had - £18.80 for a glass of wine, a pint of lager and two cokes!

We didn't have to wait long and within 15 minutes we were seated and studying the menu. Although the waitress warned us that the main courses were large, we still went for two sharing platters of chicken wings and nachos and mum and dad had garlic bread each. These were swiftly demolished and our very delicious mains arrived. Five of us had burgers while Keith chose the full rack of ribs which were very meaty indeed! He struggled, I can tell you!

The food was very good, I have to say, and our waitress was lovely. There was a great, very noisy, atmosphere with rock music blaring out and the loud hum of conversation. Most of the diners were obviously tourists like us, but Mum gasped when a couple were seated behind us and recognised Raef Bjayou from The Apprentice. I vaguely recognised him but a couple of girls certainly knew who he was and went up to him, asking for photos and autographs.

I'd told the waitress it was Sophie's 16th Birthday and she brought out her dessert with a candle and made her stand on the chair while everyone sang Happy Birthday! Very good but a tad embarrassing for Sophie!

It was a great lunch and Sophie thoroughly enjoyed herself. It's a great restaurant but I think we all secretly wished we were eating at the Universal branch!

After eating we paid a quick visit to the shop and then took the tube to Picadilly Circus as Sophie wanted to see the "Times Square of London". Mum and Dad politely said that no, it wasn't at all like Times Square so we decided to head back to the O2 in plenty of time to see Titanic in 3D.

As it was rush hour the trains were pretty crowded and we were all packed in like sardines. No way could I do that every day!

The O2 was pleasantly quiet so we called into The Slug and Lettuce pub and had a couple of rounds of drinks before the film started. As we hadn't got reserved seats I started to panic that we wouldn't be able to sit together but I needn't have worried as the screening took place in the Sky Super Screen and it was huge...and only half full when we arrived.

The four of us had a short sharp argument as to where to sit (I love reserved seats!) but soon we were all settled and we enjoyed the film very much. The 3D made everything very sharp and clear and the actors seemed to loom out of the screen at us. Keith and Dad said they'd be asleep within half an hour but there was too much going on and we were all riveted. The film is a long one - about three hours - so we didn't emerge until 11pm and it was 1am by the time we were all at home, very tired but glad to have had such an enjoyable day!