wrote:
Today is my birthday. It's a long time since I have looked forward to a
birthday, over fifty years, I remember hating birthday parties up to my
last one when I was six. When I was seven they decided that I was old
enough to decide for myself that I didn't want one.

This year however I have actually been looking forward to my birthday,
and the most useful and valuable birthday present that I have ever
received, the 60+ London Oyster photocard.

Remarkably it's valid on national rail services after 9:30 on Monday to
Friday, with no evening peak restriction as far as I can tell, and on
most other public transport networks in London at any time.

Yes, it's tremendous, and a real advantage to being a London resident. Of
course, we've been contributing to the scheme for years as part of our
Council taxes, so it's nice to become a benificiary.

I lost out in my younger days, having to pay full fares from age 14; no
student discounts etc in those days.

Decided to go for a ride this afternoon; this is where I went:

405 bus from Coulsdon to West Croydon

Train from West Croydon to London Bridge

Jubilee Line from London Bridge to Stratford

DLR from Stratford to Cutty Sark

368 Bus from Greenwich to Woolwich

54 bus from Woolwich to Elmers End

Intended to catch the tram from Elmers End to East Croydon but it's not
running today, so had to use the replacement bus to East Croydon

Train from East Croydon to Coulsdon Town

Does anyone else remember what they did with one of these on their first day?

I don't recall doing anything special on the first day I got mine. And I
had to wait longer than you, as when I reached 60, the 60+ card hadn't been
invented; it was introduced a year or two later, so mine didn't arrive on a
birthday. Like you, I never liked celebrating them, and stopped doing so as
soon as my parents let me.

Something I did a lot when I first got my card, and still do occasionally,
is to travel on a rail or Tube line to a station on the edge of the Freedom
Pass area, then walk or take a bus or two to another edge station to return
(I carry a GPS, so never get lost). I think I've now visited all the edge
stations, and been for a wander/bus ride from them; my card is now a
Freedom Pass, so my free bus rides are not limited to TfL buses. I
deliberately don't over-research the bus options in advance, so it's a bit
of a magical mystery tour.

I take particular pleasure in travelling to the few edge stations outside
zone 6, like Dartford, Chesham or Shenfield. There's a particularly bucolic
bus between Chesham and Uxbridge, via Gerards Cross.

It's also nice to get back to Heathrow and get straight on the Tube, at no
cost. At Gatwick, I only need to buy a ticket to East Croydon, with the
rest of the journey free.