Who took the fun out of the fair? Or why I am a wimp and my daughter isn't.

Two days ago I took my daughter to the funfair. Her first. She loved it. She had this huge smile plastered on her face the whole time we were there. Even when her eyes were screwed close and she was holding on to her neighbours' arm for dear life.

We went to Luna Park, in Ankara. It's a big traditional affair, with some new rides and some seriously old ones too. A lot of the rides are for over 12s and Charlotte, a small 11, got turned back quite a few times. She did, however, manage to sneak in to the two storey ghost train, the caterpillar ride, and the ship that goes up and down. She did not succeed in blagging her way in the roller coaster, for which I was grateful indeed.

 Not that I was worried for my own safety. No. I wasn't. For the very good reason that I didn't go on the rides. Well I did two. The big wheel and the caterpillar. In the big wheel I kept a tight smile. Fear of heights. Nothing terrible, of course, otherwise I wouldn't have gone in at all, but distinctly uncomfortable.

In the caterpillar I enjoyed the first round very much. It reminded me of why I'd loved fun fairs as a teenager. By the second go round I was starting to remember my stomach. The third was backwards and the wind pressed on my wind pipe. I didn't like that.

After that there was the hall of mirror - somehow the thought of getting lost amidst dirty glass panes in the heat reminded me of my stomach again, so I bailed. Then the ghost train. I have never actually been in one. Far too scary. The boat that goes upside down? Absolutely not. And last, the dodgems. Nope. I might injure myself, right?

So what did Charlotte do, given her wimp of her mother and the absence of her father (who was taking Max to his play therapy)? She went in all those rides with the totally wonderful and amazingly bendable and armoured stomached Hannah and Roger who were visiting us this week. What? You think it's not the way to treat your guests? Well, whose idea do you think it was to go to the fair? And I'm really grateful to them, because Charlotte had the time of her life!

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