Another one from deep within the MHAM draft posts that never made it to air…until now.
Back in 2021…
I was thinking to myself the other day “you know what? There aren’t enough podcasts in the world. And golly, there sure as heck aren’t enough opinions being shared around. I should do something to rectify this immediately!”
Or, alternatively, I saw an advert for the free podcasting creator, Anchor, and thought I’d give it a shot.
Several coffees later and some playing about with low-budget graphics and ta-da! A podcast was born:
(Before you say anything, I really cannot stress the low budget-ness of this production. Low budget in the sense there is none.)
Who knows what will become of this, but basically it’s me talking to myself for up to half an hour and in episode one I talk about what lead me to start writing a blog. If you enjoy the concept of a one-woman natter then you’re in for a right royal treat.
I honestly could not be selling this venture harder if I tried. It’s just something I’m giving a go at for a bit of fun.
Surprise, surprise, it didn’t catch on and after forcing myself through four recordings I stopped podcasting and went back to pure writing. I think as much as anything it was the realisation that podcasting with free software is difficult (in that I found the free to use software incredibly limiting and of overall poor production value).
I’m currently in the process of getting the original recordings saved (would you believe it, the platform appears to give podcast owners no access to downloading their own work once published).
For now, enjoy the bittersweet car crash that was the MHAM podcast and who knows, maybe I’ll revive it one day on better terms.
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Work blessed upon me the opportunity to take off a few days (otherwise know as “use it or lose it”). While boyfriend Ben toiled away with delights of his own, I used the opportunity to spend four (and a bit) days in and around Chichester in South England.
Day 1 – Winchester
On my drive down to Chichester I stopped off at Winchester for half a day.
Top tip: expect to be persistent with parking. I drove around the two “park and walk” car parks on Worthy Lane for thirty minutes before striking up a conversation with a pedestrian and taking his space when he left. Park and walk car parks are limited to four hours maximum stay.
It had been years since I’d visited Winchester, when the city was a source of escapism from my studies at Southampton University. Strolling around some of the quieter streets I found a building that included a brick laid by one of Swindon’s historic mayors, a claim to fame worthy of a photo.
Winchester Cathedral is where I spent the bulk of my time. First at the cathedral’s café, tucked away behind a high wall at the front of the cathedral, and then in the cathedral itself. The last (and coincidentally first) time I visited was in 2011, which ultimately swayed me into the decision to pay £13.50 for entry (valid for a year).
As well as hosting many examples of beautiful architecture, the cathedral also contains a memorial stone to Jane Austen and a permanent exhibit, “Kings & Scribes”. The three levels of the exbibit include the cathedral’s history, original biblical scripts and a King James I bible. A personal highlight was the the Bishop Morely library, full of old dusty books on pretty much every topic known to medieval man. Friendly volunteers were on hand throughout to answer questions.
Jane Austen memorial stone
Inside Winchester Cathedral
Filled with a hefty dose of history and teacake, I headed back to my car and drove onto Chichester and the little cottage I’d booked. I spent the evening with a ready meal and got an early night, ready for the day ahead.
Day 2 – Chichester
On my first full day I made the most of everything outdoorsy the city had to offer. This started with coffee and homemade cake at the Canal Café, a volunteer-led operation at the Chichester Ship Canal Trust. A lovely way to spend an hour people watching.
On the balcony of the Canal Café, Chichester
In what was meant to be “ten minutes one way, ten minutes back”, I ended up taking a leisurely stroll along the length of the Chichester Ship Canal.
The canal itself is a pleasant walk, flat terrain with information boards dotted along the full course. This stretch is also believed to contain the view that inspired the famous “Chichester Canal” painting by artist J.M.W. Turner.
The view that inspired Turner: Chichester canal, with the spire of the cathedral visible in the distance
I caught one of the frequent buses at Chichester marina to get back into the city centre (the circular route involves walking along a stretch of very busy road with limited footpaths).
In the afternoon there was time to visit The Novium Museum, a free to enter museum which features sizable remains of a Roman bath house, alongside permanent and rotational exhibitions on the history and culture of Chichester. It’s also the home of the city’s tourist information point.
In the evening I dined at Franco Manca, Chichester. They put me in the window, providing a lovely view of the Cathedral at night. Sadly, service was pretty poor, I felt like I’d been completely forgotten about.
Day 3 – Arundel/ Chichester
Waking up slightly later than planned, I made the fifteen minute drive to the town of Arundel to be greeted with ample parking in one of the main car parks.
Top tip: Stays of over four hours = a sharp increase in parking charges, so consider taking the train if you plan on visiting for the full day. Trains run frequently from Chichester to Arundel station, which is about 15/20 minute walk from the town itself.
Arundel Castle was sadly closed at the time of visiting, but that didn’t take away the enjoyment in having a leisurely stroll around the small streets and independent shops that call Arundel their home.
A visit to Arundel Cathedral is a must for those who can squeeze it into their itinerary. As well as being free to enter, this cathedral is a central feature point on the Arundel skyline and one of the few Roman Catholic cathedrals in England (blame Henry VIII).
Inside Arundel Cathedral
As a side note, I was disappointed to have missed out on Arundel Castle due to its seasonal openings. Given the number of people milling around Arundel, I think the owners may have missed a trick. Another attraction for another time, maybe!
After driving back to Chichester in the mid afternoon, I visited another cathedral (my third in as many days). Chichester Cathedral is free to enter.
Chichester Cathedral
At the time of visiting, the cathedral had an exhibition to celebrate its 950th anniversary. For a free-to-enter site, the standard of this exhibition was high, with colourful and engaging boards, and cabinets filled with carefully selected artefacts from the cathedral’s collection.
Inside Chichester Cathedral
In the evening I ate at the Italian restaurant Piccolino, Chichester. It was very busy, and the prices a little bit on the steep side. They seated me in the front window, which doesn’t usually happen as a solo diner! Owing to the price, I went for a simple pasta dish.
Day 4 – Chichester
I spent my fourth day in numerous coffee shops in Chichester. Reading and writing to my heart’s content, it was wonderful.
Morning coffee and words at The Dolphin & Anchor (a Wetherspoons with great views of the cathedral)
In the evening I ate at Bill’s Chichester. Staff were very friendly (especially given it was a Friday and the place was packed). Bill’s is a popular chain, you kinda know what you’re going to get. Good food, at a reasonable price.
Day 5 – Chawton, near Alton
Driving back home, I stopped part-way into my journey to visit Chawton, near Alton. This little village is quaint in its own merit, but what sets it apart from other Hampshire villages is its connection to literary royalty. 2025 marks Austen’s 250th birthday and by the time I’d booked my entry ticket to Jane Austen’s House I was practically whipped up into a new wave of Austen mania.
Top tip: book in advance, as numbers entering Jane Austen’s House are strictly limited. Once you’re inside you can stay as long as you like, and the small surrounding garden has no time restrictions. Dogs are not allowed inside the house.
Jane Austen’s House, Chawton. It is in this house that Austen worked on and published Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, Mansfield Park, Emma, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.
The house is part staged reconstruction (downstairs), part exhibit (upstairs). Seeing Jane’s writing table and her surviving hand written manuscript drafts on tiny sheets of folded paper, shows that in the literary world size doesn’t always matter.
Jane Austen’s writing table.
After the house, I sat in the garden and read my book, before making my peace and exiting through the gift shop, avoiding all eye contact with the highly tempting merchandise on sale.
The garden at Jane Austen’s House is the perfect spot for a moment of tranquillity.
After Austen’s house it felt only right to pay my respects at the gravesite memorials of Cassandra Austen and Cassandra Leigh, Jane’s sister and mother who are buried at St Nicholas Churchat the other end of the village, next to Chawton House (former home of one of Jane’s brothers, Henry). The interior of the church is pleasant enough, however is a little overshadowed by the long line of people marching past the front door to get sight of the Austen graves tucked around the back.
From Chawton I drove back home, returning by the late afternoon and ready for a cup of tea and a full debrief with Boyfriend Ben. A chilled Sunday followed, before returning to work on the Monday, refreshed and ready to take on the 1000+ emails and twice as many Teams messages and missed Zoom calls.
A wonderful few days with the glorious weather to match. Who says you can’t get sunburn while holidaying in Britain?
AEB
NB: All prices, information and external links correct at time of writing, April 2025
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After years of having my beloved city breaks restricted by geographical borders, in September I travelled to Budapest in Hungary.
Any that wasn’t the only change in scenery…
Ps this video was uploaded later than I planned to because a) life, b) my laptop broke down (and then even longer to get it fixed) and c) once I’d finally put the video together, the file got corrupted during export, causing no end of headaches. But we’re here now.
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Check out this beautiful, hand-made, Japanese silk face covering I just purchased from KatyBeesDesignStudio, on Etsy.
Who needs makeup and filters when you can look this damn fine? (And/or have something covering half your face anyway.) PS – hair was doing its own thing that day, it could not be tamed for love nor a litre of hair-care products.
It’s so incredibly comfy to wear and comes fitted with a top metal strip and slot-in space for a removeable air filter, should you wish to have one. Even before I’d had chance to put it on, I felt like an utter princess from the packaging presentation.
As well as the face covering (delivered in a rainbow pager bag), she sent me an air filter in a drawstring bag and some cute trinkets in a little drawstring pouch. You know how I get over little trinket items. It really was the icing on the cake
Katy hasn’t sponsored me to write this post but it’s been a long two years and it’s been a while since I got excited over something as mundane as a face covering. I simply had to rave about it.
Can I just start with the most middle-class, Cotswold drama to have occured this year at Christmas. Mumma B, setting her prized oven mits on fire, by accidentally placing them over a Yankee candle.
The best bit? Mumma B’s first reaction to my panic was to assume the vegetables were boiling over. I don’t think it quite trumps the time I dropped the Michael Buble Christmas CD in a tray of turkey fat, but it’s a close second.
Anyway…
Letters, Books, Pigeons: Christmas 2021
Music
I’m going to start as we mean to go on, with this:
You know what? The more times I watch it, the more times I think there is nothing in here the great George Michael and Andrew Ridgley of Wham! would take issue with.
From the soundtrack to the casual bit of inter breed dating, I only hope, and I truly mean this from the bottom of my heart, that George Michael was able to watch this before his death in 2016.
(And if you think any of this is tragic just remember, this wasn’t even the worst thing I came across. Nowhere near.)
I’m Dreaming of a White…Pigeon
When it comes to Christmas, everyone has a different interpretation for what festivities look like. Some people have robins in snow, in Swindon we’ve got pigeons bathing in overflowing waste drains.
Beggars can’t be choosers.
Interior Decorations
While I’m not one of those who puts up decorations super early, I am a fan of Christmas when it does come along. Anything to get me over the trauma of Halloween.
Genuinely can’t be trusted to watch a 12-rated spook film without freaking out at the slightest jump-scare. Years it took me to get over Disney’s The Haunted Mansion, years.
I put up my tree…
…and proceded to smash up my beloved retro starburst clock, by attempting to hang lights off it. The entire glass dial, smashed into a trillion bitty pieces.
Mazel Tov! (Oh, wait, that’s the wrong religion.)
Moving along…
Shopping
It’s always nice when Jesus graces you with his presence when you’re out and about shopping, even if his eyeless sockets are a little bit menacing.
We buy all these presents, yet not one of them is for him? So humble.
And I’m not going to lie, arguably the gifting has already peaked this year. That happened recently when my family teamed up to buy me a whole set of matching Next kitchenware.
My goodness, it’s so beautiful.
Huh? Sorry, what were we talking about? Oh yeah, presents.
I mean, at the same birthday I also got given this:
Honestly, the embarassment of opening this in front of my family, alongside Next kitchenware. Not just that, reading the blurb out! Trust me, it gets worse. Deary me, my cheeks were not ready for that leavel of red. (Thanks Matt, mission accomplished!)
Now this, this is the sort of tat I can get into.
(But not buy.)
Hang on a second, I’m sure I’ve seen something like this before.
My goodness, talk about nerve!
That was on sale for £2 less in 2019!
It set me up to be in a right unimpressed British emoji-type mood when my younger sister pointed this sign-board out to me.
No, just no.
Ignoring all of the random shop items, this year my best purchase has to be, without a shadow of a doubt, my new fountain pen.
I bought the pen, then proceeded to Google how to make it work.
There’s definetely something ironic in using the internet to lookup the basics of how to use a pen.
Letters
One of my favourite things I like to do every year is write Christmas cards. This year, with so many of my colleagues based overseas that meant a bit more spent on stamps but heck, they’re worth it.
For clarity, these aren’t the only cards I’ve written. I have more than five friends.
I’m still at the stage of life where I don’t have five million of them to write out, and/or pressing life matters that see every night booked up from 1st August, through to 15th January. I can treat myself to the odd night of pure card-writing, jotting out personalised notes to those nearest and dearest. It gives me a kind of buzz.
What can I say? Some people have alcohol, I have cards. We both have wrecked tounges.
Terrible Christmas Films (No, Really)
When I write cards, wrap presents etc, I tend to stick on one of those terribly wonderful Hallmark-type Christmas films on. Predictable and, I used to think, unoffensive. That was, until I saw this clip:
THEY DON’T EVEN EAT THE FOOD!!
What kind of dining-out date is this? Nu-huh, I’m sorry mate, you can stop juggling those oranges, because if I’m not getting a look-in on that Tupperware box, then you ain’t getting this.
(Close friends have also pointed out countless other things that make no sense in this montage, however I’m sticking firm on the lack-of-food being the absolute worst. Three words; girl, gotta, eat.)
On that note… *returns to phone to scroll through her tailored Facebook adverts*
Serves me right for being an insomniac. And, on the topic of sleep, a late night pop to the shops to buy some milk and I spot this:
“…Does it come with a receipt?”
Coffee
Oh, hey! Almost forgot. It’s December now, so that means my diet is even more whacky than other months* (*let’s be honest, my diet is hardly enviable). Did someone invite me to go around all the coffee shops, drink gingerbread lattes and not eat anything until evening, when I have a three course meal?
(Not that I ever want to have a three course meal, even two courses is an extreme for me, but because it’s December suddenly that’s a thing. Gonna get me a sweet, sweet latte, bigger than my tiny wrist can hold.)
Anyway, yes, yes that’s me. And I will read a book in there and no, you will not have a hope of kicking me out until at least two hours have passed, and not a minute before.
Unrelated note, does anyone else get life this after getting heavily involved with an emotional book?
“Walking through the dark and cold drizzel of town, after a 2+ hour coffee shop reading session. So full of mixed emotions right now, I genuinely don’t know whether to cry or feel inspired. Just me, or does anyone else have to take a lie down when the book feel get this intense?”
Turns out, it’s just me.
“Ink not coming out of fountain pen” is a niche search entry, I’ll give you that. Maybe not quite as popular as Ariana Grande but heck, you’ve gotta keep these traditions alive.
Conclusions
You know what? Stuff it! I’m just gonna book myself on a professionally accredited course to learn about unicorn magic…
…and go watch the Swindon Wildcats play down the local rink.
In fairness, it was such a good game.
Wait, There’s More!
Before you go, remember that video I included at the start of this post? Well, guess what? The creator only went and made an improved version and/or (to be honest I’m not entirely sure which) sequeal a few years later! Yeah, I know!
Better still, the soundtrack features the musical stylings of Cascada, covering Wham!
Honestly, between these music videos and that pictre of pigeons washing themselves in waste water, I really don’t think Christmas could really peak much more than this.
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I was having a chat with someone at work the other day and it got me reminiscing about the first solo adventure I went on back in November 2018. Wow, three years has flown by! Since then I’ve been on three further solo trips and I can’t wait for normality to return once more so I can get back into exploring Europe without limitation.
I loved Bruges with all my heart, as much for what it did to me as much as its physical beauty.
One moment will forever stick in my mind. I’d taken it upon myself to visit a number of the churches in the North of the city, where very few tourists went. Alone in Sint-Walburgakerk church, an elderly volunteer, latching onto the excuse to perform, struck up the organ and began to play the most beautiful music. With every gentle note I started to reflect, thinking about all the things I’d accomplished in such a short space of time. I’d gone from being put down as the timid country mouse studying History and clearing wedding tables at 2am, to a smartly-dressed Financial Services professional, working in the City of London. And in a that I was there, in that church, travelling without anyone’s permission, approval or, indeed, moaning. I didn’t need to justify myself to anyone, not anymore. I was me.
In the same way I’d found myself silently weeping in Prague a year ago, over someone who’d rather sit in the hotel room 50 yards away than be with me, I was crying again. But this time something was different; the tears tracing down my hot flushed cheeks weren’t bitter, nor cold, they tasted sweet. In an empty church in Bruges, I was hit with a sudden burst of clarity. After all this time, I’d finally discovered what my heart had been missing all along. I was proud of myself.
Bruges was just incredible, second only to Arvon writing course (but then, to compare the two experiences would be like comparing chalk to cheese).
Most of you will have seen this already but hell, I’m sharing it again. Here is the Windows Movie Maker video I put together after I got back from my first solo city break to Bruges. Filmed on a (very) humble iPhone 5.
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I’ve just got back from my writing retreat and, newsflash, it was beyond amazing.
Full retreat cohort, including course tutor/professional author Caitlin Davies (in the red jumper)
I met 22 wonderful human beings (15 other participants + tutors/guest readers + Arvon staff), and there was so much to take in and reflect on, and every night I felt I like I could burst with creativity (which would have been awkward, as I don’t think anyone signed-up to being coated in chunks of Alice…at least not before dessert).
With so many thoughts, feelings and emotions running through my head, it’s hard to put into extacting words what the past week has meant to me. From 1-2-1s with critically acclaimed writers, to long walks, to sitting down at a desk (in front of a gorgeous view) and hitting word to paper, my time spent on an Arvon tutored retreat at The Hurst (deep in the Shropshire Hills) has been an incredible experience.
A group of us prepare for a mid-morning woodland hike. Photographed alongside course tutor/publishing editor Jacob Ross (second right)
I’ll get something more substanial down soon but for now know this; I’m a very, very happy Alice!
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My Housemate's a Mermaid 