Remember remember the 5th of November! Well I certainly did, one of my very best friends JJ's birthday is on the 6th November, so naturally her celebratory plans were on bonfire night. I met up with JJ and our friend Laura in the afternoon, and we went for lunch at Pooh Corner Tea Room in Ashdown Forest, before going for a little walk in the woods to Pooh bridge, where we saw a little fairy house door which was actually Winnie the Poohs house door!! Later at JJ's house she was surrounded by friends as we all pottered down to the high street to watch the bonfire society parade which ended with the lighting of the bonfire and a fabulous firework display. Bonfire night has to be one of my favourite events of the year! There is something so lovely about the tradition of it all. Getting all wrapped up in wooly jumpers and stamping about in wellington boots, sipping whiskey or brandy from a hip flask to take the edge of the cold, being surrounded by the local community all in high spirits. It's just great.
Ciarán treated me to a day trip to Edinburgh at the beginning of December! I know a day trip from London to Edinburgh sounds ridiculous, and I guess really it is, we got the train and had almost 4 hours there. Yes we spent more time on the train than in the city, but actually it was wonderful! Ciarán got cheap first class tickets and this meant we were provided with a constant supply of complimentary tea, coffee and snacks and I finally managed to catch up on some reading! Once in Edinburgh, we had time to do a little bit of exploring, marvelling at how beautiful it is, we embraced our inner tourist and walked up to the castle and were greeted by a gorgeous view out over the city. Ciarán had researched some lunch spots and we settled on a sweet little french place before heading back to the first class lounge and getting whisked back down to London and in bed by midnight. It was a really relaxed day, and I got a good flavour for Edinburgh, I'd love to go back and spend a couple of days there. The day trip might not be everyone's cup of tea but it was a good way of seeing a new place on a budget. I'm desperate to see so many places and the only thing that stops me is the money factor, even if you can travel there cheap enough, accommodation can be a real kick in the teeth. So if you're willing to embrace having a very short window of time to see the place, a day trip could be just the thing!
By the way Smoke by Dan Vyleta is fantastic! Just read it ok. No questions. Just do it.
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