I have not come prepared for the snow.
Intellectually I knew it was snowing in England when I left Australia. I had many conversations about how cold it would be...and then I packed a lot of summer dresses. I thought long and hard about whether to pack black boots or brown - but never did I consider packing some sort of boot that wouldn't end up breaking my neck as I slipped on the snow.
After another day of cold, wet feet, and yet another shameful and painful stack on the ice, i decided that enough was enough and went off to buy some gorgeous snow boots...toasty warm, grippy on the ice, waterproof and still sexy - they may well be my favourite and most practical shoe purchase of all time. Add to that some sparkly little fingerless mittens and the biggest, wooliest scarf I could find and I finally feel ready to face the snow - only 2 weeks after I arrived.
Sporting my new purchases i braved the snow again today to head to Brighton, on the south coast of England, to meet up with Jenna and re-aquaint myself with my old stomping ground.
They call Brighton a beach. I have always begged to differ. a) there are stones, not sand on this so called beach. b) there are no waves. c) the body of the water is nowhere near the ocean - it is, in fact, the english channel...
However the fact that the city is by 'the beach' gives it a vibe that no other place in england that i've ever been to manages to grasp - add to that the fact that it is the 'gay capital' of Europe (self titled I'm sure but no less accurate) with all the uber trendiness that brings and sports 'The Lanes' - oodles of tiny, ancient alley ways absolutely bursting with itsy-bitsy boutiques, cafes, restaurants and bars and you have found yourself my favourite place in the whole of england in which to spend a day browsing the shops, sip an early evening cocktail, move to a gorgeous italian restaurant for dinner and end up dancing the night away - an itinerary I have followed more times than i can count in my years living only 30 minutes from here.
Today we skipped the evening section of the itinerary but swapped an italian dinner for an italian lunch and caught up over an italian red before hitting The Lanes for some last minute christmas shopping and an organic coffee with gluten free cake.
The thing about Brighton that I love is that you can sit in a cafe in the North Lanes and people-watch more interesting looking passers-by than in any other place in the world - tattooed punks, dreadlocked greenies, gay couples hand in hand...all are a part of the ecclectic background that is the heart of this city. If you to ask me the actual locations I miss the most in England - Brighton would definitely top my list...beach or no beach...I do love this place...
Till next time...
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