It was a treat to leave from the Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof…., the gorgeous main train station in downtown Frankfurt. Of course I was completely dismayed to be waiting in a huge open (cold) station at 7 in the morning, but the combination of sweeping architecture and fresh coffee and biscuits kept my senses in awe and my heart warm. It was by chance that my ticket placed me in the first class cabin and I settled in for the six hour ride to London. The route to Brussels was a blur of sleep but the Eurostar train was reminiscent of a movie scene train ride. The staff were ever so polite, tri-lingual, well dressed, and served us a fabulous European lunch. A cold plate of sliced roast beef, potato salad, and another diced-delicious-things salad made me so very happy. The cream puff dessert thing was one of the best small cakes I’ve ever had and I spent the last part of the train ride eyeing my seat mates uneaten cream puff with total shock and awe. Who takes only one bite of something so delicious and what is the weirdness factor if I ask to have her leftovers?!
My train pulled into the southern sea town of Brighton around 5pm and I took a taxi to the hotel my friends had arranged. I was meeting my friend Noa who would introduce me to her friend Liat from Isreal and Tom who was to be our host in the UK. When I arrived I inquired about a room reservation for Tom. “And the last name?” Hmmmmm, I don’t know, I will just wait here for him! LOL They all arrived about ten minutes later and after Noa and I jumped up and down hugging for seven straight minutes, we all became fast friends.
I have wanted to visit Brighton for AGES as it’s the birthplace and home of one of my favorite artists, Fatboy Slim. I’ve seen so many interviews with him talking about the influences of this seaside town, and there’s also his free, live show on the beach DVD that I’ve watched three hundred times. I absolutely was not disappointed. Tom walked us first to the grocery store, where they had to pull me away from my awe and wonderment and every new and interesting thing I saw. The biggest bag of chips ever! $5 Bottles of Wine! Asparagus! Lemons!!! Tom said it was like in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure when they bring Socrates to the mall. LOL, great metaphor. We then walked a bit further to his friend’s home where they were having a fab dinner party in our honor. Emma made these Swedish flat cake things that we dressed with dill yogurt, shrimps, and pickled beets. OH MY – just delicious! Imagine my delight that the side dish was asparagus, and yes, lots of lemon to squeeze on top. Whoop! We weren’t even there ten minutes and an old Fatboy Slim song came on the radio. The girls told me he lives just down the street and it was just all my dreams coming true! I met so many friendly people, including a girl that works for a GLITTER company. Just so happens she needs help with a Wordpress blog so – BOOM – let’s barter. We talked and laughed and danced in their kitchen until 4 in the morning and stumbled home happy and full of love.
The next day we got up midday and walked the boardwalk along the cold expansive beach. I enjoyed the people watching, but was mortified to see people swimming in the freezing cold sea! Crazies! The winds were fierce, but the sun did come out and Tom kept remarking how “hot” it was outside. It was remarkable to see the sun in the winter in the UK and we took advantage by sitting outside drinking british beers (wearing gloves.) We spent some time at The Tempest which was a bar where each table was it’s own cave, and then braved the cold to listen to some sweet soulful singing at the Brighton Music Club. Dinner was at a pub that’s been open since the 1500’s and the walls were covered in velvet paisley. Of course we had to share a traditional Lamb Roast dinner and Fish and Chips.
We took the train back to London and our stop was to walk over the majestic London Tower Bridge. On our way, walking along the River Thames on a dark, misty, cool evening, I passed a man impeccably dressed in a suit and tophat. I really liked his style so I was checking him out and as he walked by I was surprised to see it was the movie star John C. Riley! We continued the night in another cave by the river that was a specialty cheese spot. YEA! Afterwards we walked to Tom’s flat and met his super cool flatmates. I was still a bit hungry, and after only knowing me ten minutes, one of the flatmates made me a steak. Such cool people! It’s going to be a great week!
