What does Sushi, a roll of wallpaper, a bath full of beer
and a beagle have in common? They all
featured prominently in my trip back home two weeks ago! Yes, a couple of weeks ago, it was time for
my bi-annual trip home and I have to admit, it kicked last Aprils arse. Let’s begin, shall we?
Now, I’m going to skip past the whole flying back home part,
as I’ve already mentioned the only interesting part last week (I’m a girl) plus it’s a fairly routine flight
for me these days. So, straight onto my
arrival home (thankfully not covered in
wine this time), where I was greeted by my parents and this little guy
howling in excitement at the sight of me.
After my usual cheese and pickle sandwich and some tea (some traditions die hard), I was able to
enjoy a sunny walk around the New Cumnock lagoons with my parents and Ollie,
just taking in the beauty of where I used to live and enjoying some time with
my parents. Afterwards, it was time to
spend a ridiculous amount of time opening a mountainous pile of parcels and
letters( I tend to stock up a lot when I
get home but it’s like Christmas) followed then a home cooked steak pie
dinner with my mum and dad (and Ollie,
though much to his chagrin he didn’t get anything) before collapsing into
bed exhausted. A nice slow start to my
holiday, which after such a long flight was exactly what I needed. I have to admit though, it was nice to be
doted on a little and have dinner cooked for me!
Next up was Sunday and my first foray into Glasgow in which
a group of my closest friends and I would celebrate my birthday, which was the
next day. Picking up Derek on the way to
the train, it was nice to spend some time catching up in person as we trundled
along in the train. Arriving in Glasgow,
we then had a coffee at the Costa in the Saint Enoch’s centre, whilst waiting
for Michael and Cara to arrive (it was
nice to watch people go by from inside the Costa and just relax with a friend). Once Michael and Cara arrived, we all caught
up a little and they gave me my birthday present: an amazingly thoughtful
scrapbook/photo album decorated on the outside with a load of superhero
pictures (and a potentially risqué quote
from Batman) and on the inside? On
the inside was a lifetime of memories: loads of pictures from our time together
as well as gig and cinema tickets. Thank
you both very much for it and for spending time thinking it up and creating it:
it has a place of honour on my coffee table and I flip through it whenever I
miss home or my friends.
After finishing our coffees, we headed to Hillhead to meet
John, Heather, Martin and Katie for a fairly pleasant reunion and for some
lunch at the now ‘classy’ Curlers bar (in
my university days, it was a great student bar that served great burgers and
was dark and beer covered) where I was able to have an amazing pulled pork
burger (thanks John) and a great pint
of Brooklyn (thanks Michael) whilst
catching up with friends I hadn’t seen in months. Next up was Iron Man 3 at the Grosvenor
Cinema (a really small but classy cinema),
which was completely different from what I expected but still hugely
enjoyable. I won’t talk much about the
film due to spoilers but it was a great end to the trilogy and was hugely
entertaining.
After the film, and some pick and mix (of course), we headed to a small sushi takeaway close to where I
used to live. Now then, I do mean small:
it was literally 4 small tables, a counter and fridge, with the kitchen
upstairs but holy hell, did it make some good sushi. Between the group, we managed a 50 piece set
plus multiple side dishes between us which was just a glorious meal to the end
the day…if incredibly filling. The best
way to describe the sheer mass of the sushi was if the chef had took a little
piece of everything in the ocean, added rice and served it to us. Finally, it was back to Michael and Cara’s
for a drink and perhaps the most amazing cake ever.
Yes, that is a massive and completely edible dragon on my
cake. This was made by my friend Katie
and it wass based on Dungeon and Dragon’s (Fitz is my character’s name) and it
was completely delicious. And the size…I
have away half the cake to everyone and still was barely able to fit the
remainder into a large box and a bag.
Thank you very much for the cake, Katie.
I’m not sure it will ever be topped.
I mean, how often do you get to feel really manly when cutting a
cake? I got to behead a dragon then eat
it! So, a couple of drinks, some good
conversation, lots of cake and one short train later, I arrived home and it was
straight to bed as I was exhausted. An
amazing way to celebrate my birthday, to say the least.
Indeed, that next day I turned the wrong side of 25, (26) and spent a quiet morning with my
parents: having a nice breakfast and opening up my presents (nothing makes you feel mature like getting
the bamboo steamer you asked for: a great kitchen item!) before heading off
to Girvan for the night. After a short
walk along the harbour (it was somewhat
windy, so we didn’t stay long) with Ollie, we headed to the hotel to find
that we were just across the road from the sea.
What could possibly make this better?
If you answered ‘a huge set of bay windows overlooking the sea and a
couple of comfortable seats right next to them’, you are correct! Once settled, I was able to spend the
afternoon with a book and a pint of Guinness (it was glorious) with my dad, which was great as I hadn’t just
stopped and relaxed for quite a while now.
I’m usually caught up in planning or working these days. Then, after a couple of hours relaxing, it
was time for a birthday dinner with my parents which included the slightly
unusual haggis and black pudding spring rolls (tasted great). Shortly after
Ollie had decided to fall asleep on my lap, my own body decided it was time for
an early night, as the past couple of days caught up on me.
Fueled by a bad night’s sleep and a full English breakfast,
my dad and I had a short walk along the beach then it was straight to
Kilmarnock to have my scruffy and unkempt locks cut and tidied. Looking somewhat less homeless, my trip
continued onwards to Glasgow (geez, I
seem to do nothing but travel when I’m home) where I finished the shopping
I needed to do and then met my friends Susan and Lewis for some Tapas (Chorizo!), a couple of drinks and a
proper catch-up. The nicest part of
returning home for me is not going out to eat or shopping or travelling around
but instead, it’s actually being able to sit in the same room with friends I
haven’t seen in months and just talk or mess around for a while. It really makes a difference when you’ve been
away for so long.
With the days speeding by, I was on yet another train on the
Wednesday afternoon, again heading into Glasgow (after my obligatory trip to the dentist), this time to have a pint
with Drouin whom I hadn’t seen since last April. A couple of pints in Solid and a good few
hours of solid chat (see what I did
there?) on video games and life, I was back on another train home for
dinner (I was on at least 10 trains
during the week) and an evening of chess with Derek. Now, you might be thinking, why spend an
evening playing chess when you’ve got limited time at home? Well, when I was unemployed and he was as
well, we would usually try to spend one night a week just playing chess and
having a drink and we haven’t been able to do this since I moved. Nostalgia for the win! I even won one (let’s ignore the fact I lost several in a row and concentrate on the
positive)!
Out of the blue, Thursday arrived and it was the last day
with my parents as they had to leave for a holiday on the Friday, so I would be
spending my Friday in Glasgow. Despite
spending a large period of time packing and finding out that the local Shoe
Shop is now pretty dire, it was a peaceful day and night at home. I was able to spend some quality time with my
parents and then relax at home with a roast dinner, some beer and some nice
wine before leaving again. This then culminated
with Ollie’s very own goodbye and by that, I mean he slept on my lap for the
evening and made it a little difficult for me to drink wine. Don’t you worry though, I put in some extra
effort and damn it, I drank my wine!
And then, all too soon, it was Friday and my last full day
in Scotland. The morning was spent at
home and before I knew it, I was being waved off by my parents as I sped away
on the train. Somewhat mournfully, I
settled into my seat and prepared for the solitary journey to Glasgow (whilst eating a sausage roll…so I wasn’t too
mournful) but was suddenly surprised by the appearance of Derek, who had
previously been unable to make the train.
This made my last train journey that much more pleasant. Now, normally I would be quite depressed by
the fact I was leaving home but this time, I wasn’t as bad. Of course, I was sad to say bye to my parents
and Ollie but I knew that Friday’s activities were going to be a great way to
spend my last full day in the UK which made it somewhat better.
After picking up a couple of last minute items, helped by
Derek (as I had two massive suitcases)
we headed over to Michael and Cara’s flat where we would be spending the
night. We then subsequently gave Cara a
fright by wandering into her living room whilst she was in the kitchen but in
our defence, we had actually knocked and shouted that we were at the door. After having a quick chat Cara, Derek and I
headed back out into soggy Glasgow for a coffee at the local coffee shop (in thanks for Derek helping me with my bags)
where Derek caught the attention of the pretty barista. Ever bashful, Derek denied this fervently until
he received irrefutable proof in the shape of some coffee artwork (not entirely sure what it was meant to be
but we think it could have been Sonic).
Finishing our coffees, we headed back to the flat where Cara, like the
brilliant hostess she is, provided us with delicious home-made salsa,
guacamole, biscuit things (can’t remember
what they were) and nacho crisps.
Finally, Michael and Martin arrived and, after some conversation, it was
time for the star of the show.
Yes, it was time for us to play Dungeon and Dragons: my
first time doing this with the group, as opposed to over skype and it was
glorious.
To begin with, Michael had
been brewing his own beer and had his bath filled up with the bottles of it, so
we broke these out to try. Overall,
quite good I thought and I look forward to trying more in the future! There is just something about homebrew that I
really like and it added to the fun of the night, trying it out and talk about
raising the bar: making the drinks for the night as opposed to just buying them. Then there was the Dungeons and Dragons
quest…which was impressive to say the least.
I am talking about a 20 feet long roll of wallpaper with printed maps
all connect to create a hugely compelling, interesting and immersive story line
for us. Epic doesn’t even begin to
describe it. Derek had went all out with
the quest, which really made my first time (playing
with the group, you filthy minded people - Ed) really entertaining. So, I spent my last night in the UK with my closest
friends, playing an exciting game of Dungeon and Dragons whilst drinking some
good homemade beer (and some not homemade),
eating amazing pizza and cakes cooked/baked by Cara (seriously, you’re awesome Cara, for doing all that) and enjoying
some of the best conversation I’ve had in a long time…which included the phrase
‘Pee on portal: electrocuted’.
After contently retiring for the night (still mid-quest), it was time for a full fry-up breakfast which, as always, is a great way to start a day: even a day when I’m about to leave the country again. Hell, it even had homemade potato scones! After the delicious meal and after several cups of coffee, it was time to finish the quest! Breaking out the wallpaper again, we ended the quest fairly quickly but not before Cara had made us scones. She is a baking and cooking machine.
Then, we all headed off on a real-life adventure (I know it was real life as I didn’t have to roll a dice for everything I did) to the library, losing Derek in the process (He had to go home…we didn’t actually lose him) and then stopping for another coffee where it was finally decided what we were going to do with the afternoon! I WAS GOING TO HAVE A SHOWER. I mean, we were going to get some delicious hoagies for dinner. After my shower that is. Jumping into Martin’s car, we headed back to our old haunt from university to pick up our hoagies. Basically, the story behind the hoagies is that we used to order them so much, the guys would know us as soon as we rang up and actually referred to us as the ‘hoagie guys’ on several occasions. So, we picked them up for my last meal and headed back to eat and to watch some TV before Martin and Michael drove me to the airport (Cara had been defeated by the hoagies) and kindly waved me off just before security (thank you guys for that). And that was it, the end of my time at home. My flight back wasn’t exactly exciting but I did get an entire row on my Glasgow – Dubai flight which meant I could sleep stretched out. It was glorious.
I would like to thank both my
friends and family for giving me such an amazing week at home. The hardest thing about living in Nepal is
the fact that I am so far away from you all and one of my biggest worries is
that I will be slowly forgotten, as stupid as that may sound. But it is weeks like this when I am reminded
of how amazing both my friends and family are and astounded by how easily I can
slot back into people’s lives, as if I had never left. So thank you all (both family and friends) for looking after me when I’m back; for
putting up with the silly and selfish requests I have; for actively providing
delicious me food you know that I have missed; for driving me around or
accompanying me on trips; for giving me a place to sleep; for taking the time
out your lives to see me; and for just being the best friends/family I could
ever have possibly hope for. You
genuinely have no idea how much it means to me and I hope that one day I can
repay all of you. Thank you.
Pick of the Week
Valkyria Chronicles – I played a
demo of this a couple of years ago, and as I wasn’t too keen on turn-based
strategies at that time, I largely ignored it.
However, fast forward to today and I now love the game and can’t
recommend it enough. Basically, the game
follows the militia of a small country as they face the invading army of a much
larger and powerful country and during this, you get an insight into the
characters lives and personalities as well.
Whilst the strategy side is not the most detailed in the world (but it
is fairly solid), it’s the story and the characters that really catch your
attention. The overall story details
your advances on the enemy (done in a
book form, where there are several cut scenes, followed by a large battle plus
the option to customise your squad and their equipment and train them as well)
but it also details the emotions and personalities of your teammates as well
e.g. highlighting racial tensions, rebellion and friendship as the story
progresses. This really allows you to
emphasise with your squad and makes it a much more immersive experience. Graphically, it’s cel-shaded but I enjoyed
the style and in terms of game play, it is a fairly simplified but solid
strategy approach with 5 classes and one vehicle: Sniper, Scout, Shocktrooper,
Engineer and Lancer (Tank destroyer).
Each of these has their own strengths and weaknesses and each turn, you
get a certain amount of movement and one attack. Finally, each individual character has
‘traits’ that you have to account for e.g. some may fight better in the desert
and another may fight worse in a claustrophobic environment. This does add a nice layer to the game, on
top of the regular strategy. A great
game, so check out the demo!
Music of the Week
Easy choice this week: Rob Zombie - Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown. Why? Because this is some of the coolest and funkiest metal music out there, with a video to match.
Ok, so that’s it from me and I’m
afraid that there won’t be a post this Sunday as I will be in Hong Kong. That’s actually half the reason this post is
late, to try and reduce the length of time between my posts (that and I’ve been
hugely busy all week). Anyway, Hong Kong
post next week! See you then.
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