Back to my trip up north....I booked a Virgin train that would only take a couple hours to get up there. Fortunately for me I still fall under the discount category so after purchasing a railcard I got a super cheap train ticket. The card doesn't expire until the end of 2012 so even after I turn 26 I will still be able to save! Yay for cheating the system! Anyway, I took a late morning train so that I would have as much time with the fam as possible. The train ride itself was decent. I got there early enough that I got a seat, listened to music on my ipod, read the paper, and played countless games of Angry Birds. Oh how addicting it is. The most amusing part of my trip happened within 10mins of the train leaving the station. Keep in mind that I had previously read about issues with Virgin trains and people having to stand even when they had reserved seats so I made sure to get there early enough so that I would get a seat. I checked the electronic display beside mine and it read "available"! Yay for me! So back to the amusing bit...a man approaches another man behind me and a conversation started about who the seat belonged to. The standing man argued that it was his seat and that he had a reservation and a ticket showing this. The man in the seat refused to get up claiming that the display said it was available and sometimes this happens. The two men really started getting into it and one was spewing out many profanities. I had my headphones on and music going the whole time but could still hear their constant bickering. It would stop for a bit, I assume the man kept standing there and staring at the man in his seat, then someone would mutter a comment such as "you people" and it would kick off again. I couldn't see what was going on but I chuckled with amusement at how two grown men could act in public over a train seat.
The train was delayed, no surprise there, so I ended up taking another train to meet up with Jamie who picked me up in his work truck. He had to do some errands in Blackpool so we drove off down this tiny back road that basically has enough room for one car yet it's used as a two way and people do not slow down. It was slightly terrifying and I realized why he wouldn't use it when he first came to the country. Blackpool looked like a run down hole. I'm sure it's nice and lively during the summer months when people go to the beach but since England doesn't get much summer weather I can't imagine myself going there. Nevertheless, it's a massive party zone for hen and stag dos so at least they're making some business. Once we were back in Lytham we took it easy for the night, ordering Chinese and watching tv as we had a big weekend ahead.
Christmas Eve was filled up with prepping Christmas dinner and drinking. Nicky and I spent most of the day chopping veggies and potatoes, getting the turkey ready, and making a neat dessert called a croquembouche. It's basically a bunch of profiteroles stuffed with a yummy filling and piled into a cone like shape. It turned out pretty well for a first time and it tasted delicious. Jamie also participated in the cooking by preparing his own blueberry pie. That evening we went out for drinks at a local bar with Nicky's family and friends. It's such a small town that everyone knew everyone there. I was introduced to so many people that it was hard to keep up. Not to mention that a drink was constantly appearing in my hands so I had to keep up with that. Overall it was a great night but we ended it early as Christmas was going to be a long day.
On Christmas morning I woke up feeling slightly under the weather but soldiered on nonetheless. We opened presents and then got ready to start the day. Nicky's family came over for some champagne (the proper stuff, no Cava on Christmas) and we finished preparing the dinner and put the bird in the oven. Next we headed to see more family and have more champagne. At this point I felt so bloated and full from the night before that I couldn't even drink water. By mid day it settled down and I was back to being myself. We got back to the house and enjoyed the wonderfully cooked meal. It was absolutely delicious. After some dessert, which I'm not sure how we fit in, we played some Trivial Pursuit and relaxed for a bit. Nicky's parents went home as it had been a long day. However, the day was not quite over for us. Next stop was Nicky's aunt's house where there were more drinks and Christmas merriment to be had. It ended up being a great time there as well. My glass was magically filled with wine throughout the night even without me noticing it left the table in front of me. We played some charades and stumped the men with our amazing lady brains. After a few hours we headed home for a well deserved sleep.
Boxing day was a very lazy day. The three of us stayed in all day watching movies, playing video games, and eating pizza. After the busy days proceeding a restful day was certainly needed. The next day Jamie drove me to the train station and I made my way back to London. It was a short visit with the family but certainly nice to be able to see them for the holidays. When I got back to the flat I had to start some laundry and prepare for my holiday road trip which was starting the next morning!
The train was delayed, no surprise there, so I ended up taking another train to meet up with Jamie who picked me up in his work truck. He had to do some errands in Blackpool so we drove off down this tiny back road that basically has enough room for one car yet it's used as a two way and people do not slow down. It was slightly terrifying and I realized why he wouldn't use it when he first came to the country. Blackpool looked like a run down hole. I'm sure it's nice and lively during the summer months when people go to the beach but since England doesn't get much summer weather I can't imagine myself going there. Nevertheless, it's a massive party zone for hen and stag dos so at least they're making some business. Once we were back in Lytham we took it easy for the night, ordering Chinese and watching tv as we had a big weekend ahead.
Christmas Eve was filled up with prepping Christmas dinner and drinking. Nicky and I spent most of the day chopping veggies and potatoes, getting the turkey ready, and making a neat dessert called a croquembouche. It's basically a bunch of profiteroles stuffed with a yummy filling and piled into a cone like shape. It turned out pretty well for a first time and it tasted delicious. Jamie also participated in the cooking by preparing his own blueberry pie. That evening we went out for drinks at a local bar with Nicky's family and friends. It's such a small town that everyone knew everyone there. I was introduced to so many people that it was hard to keep up. Not to mention that a drink was constantly appearing in my hands so I had to keep up with that. Overall it was a great night but we ended it early as Christmas was going to be a long day.
On Christmas morning I woke up feeling slightly under the weather but soldiered on nonetheless. We opened presents and then got ready to start the day. Nicky's family came over for some champagne (the proper stuff, no Cava on Christmas) and we finished preparing the dinner and put the bird in the oven. Next we headed to see more family and have more champagne. At this point I felt so bloated and full from the night before that I couldn't even drink water. By mid day it settled down and I was back to being myself. We got back to the house and enjoyed the wonderfully cooked meal. It was absolutely delicious. After some dessert, which I'm not sure how we fit in, we played some Trivial Pursuit and relaxed for a bit. Nicky's parents went home as it had been a long day. However, the day was not quite over for us. Next stop was Nicky's aunt's house where there were more drinks and Christmas merriment to be had. It ended up being a great time there as well. My glass was magically filled with wine throughout the night even without me noticing it left the table in front of me. We played some charades and stumped the men with our amazing lady brains. After a few hours we headed home for a well deserved sleep.
Boxing day was a very lazy day. The three of us stayed in all day watching movies, playing video games, and eating pizza. After the busy days proceeding a restful day was certainly needed. The next day Jamie drove me to the train station and I made my way back to London. It was a short visit with the family but certainly nice to be able to see them for the holidays. When I got back to the flat I had to start some laundry and prepare for my holiday road trip which was starting the next morning!
