How was everyone's Bank Holiday? I hope you didn't miss me too much while I was away.....
Anyway! I'm back now and I thought I would fill you all in on my weekend in Portsmouth.
Portsmouth is a home from home for me. It's where I spent the most important 3 years of my life studying at University; it's where I found some much needed independence, and it's where I met my best friends. Portsmouth is full of happy memories for me and I loved the opportunity to go back and meet up with my girls again. However, being a Bank Holiday weekend, there was a slight obstacle in the form of a rail replacement bus service standing between me and a hassle-free journey. Why on Earth they decided on a Bank Holiday to rake up the railways when the sun was out in full swing and there were dozens of festivals going on I'll never know. Nevertheless, I made it and the bus soon spat me out at the City centre. I was due to meet the girls Sophie and Aisha (Becky was still at work, due to finish at 3) for lunch so with my bags in toe, I headed over. I'd not seen Aisha and Sophie since Aisha's baby shower last September. Now of course baby Evelyn had arrived so I was going to also meet the newest member of our friendship group, to say I was excited was an understatement. I walked over to the shops to meet them both and it was like we'd never been apart ( I know, cheesy but true)
It was so strange to think only 3 years previous we were all freaking out over University work. Now we were all adulting and forging new paths for ourselves. At 3 Becky came over to join us and we all got chatting about our lives while Evelyn sat in the pram looking cute and probably wondered why these strange women were gurning and staring at her. It was great to spend time with the girls all together again, it was great to hear what they've all been up to. That's the only thing about University, you come from across the country and in some cases even the world to study, you make so many new friends and learn so much and then after 3 years you go back home and you're left with uni blues and the promise to keep in touch. I feel very lucky to still be close with all my best friends from University, even if it's just annual visits, it's great that we still take a small break from our busy lives to reunite.
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| The Hard at Portsmouth. See right: HMS Warrior |
Now for the hotel. So to preface this, I had only paid £70 for two nights so I knew it wasn't going to be the Savoy or anything. However, I wasn't expecting a bed quite this bad. I had also forgotten that it was a shared bathroom (well it didn't cross my mind to check as I took it for granted most hotels were en-suite) Arriving up the several flights of stairs (bare in mind I'd already walked an hour from town with my bags) I did what everyone else would do after arriving in their hotel room, I went to test the bed out by sitting on it. Oh boy was that a bad idea. Immediately after I sat, I sunk. Yes, yes, I'm overweight blah blah, but this was no simple weight-bearing issue, this was a structural issue. I discovered after lifting the bony mattress that there was a HUGE dip in the divan base of the bed. "You get what you pay for" I sighed as I got up and unpacked. But suddenly my bladder awoke from it's slumber. I needed to pee but someone was in the loo already! This was to be an issue that would come up again many times during my stay.
Having already seen Aisha off on the replacement rail bus an hour before, we were going to spend the evening at Becky's watching a film with a takeaway and wine. A girly night in- something I'd not had for a while- and it was something a desperately needed.
After an evening of food, wine and laughter, I headed back to the hotel and THAT bed. I had mixed feelings. Turns out that the dip was conveniently placed around my butt area so I woke up slumped in a V formation. It also turns out I can sleep pretty much anywhere and in pretty much any position. I wasn't going home until Monday morning so I tried to make the most of my last day in Portsmouth. However before I was to do this, I was faced again with a familiar problem. I needed to pee and shower but someone else had bagsied the bathroom before me. Dammit! I implore you to never take an en-suite bathroom for granted, I certainly never will again! Eventually after an hour I got in the bathroom, much to the relief of my bladder. I was now ready to go out and enjoy my last day in Portsmouth and the last day I had with Becky and Sophie before Becky went to work and Sophie went home.
By Sunday evening I found myself milling about Gunwharf Quays alone again but instead of going back to the hotel, I decided to exercise a little self fulfillment and go to see the new Pirates of the Caribbean film by myself. While you may all shudder in shock and disbelief, I believe in the power of self preservation and the ability to feel comfortable and fulfilled in your own company as well as in the company of others. As for the film, it really needs to stop now. Even having a fifth Pirates film is too much and I got the impression throughout that this was a film clutching at straws and it had a plot that probably involved a lot of panic thinking "how are we going to quickly tie this franchise up?" Having said this, it was nice to see Johnny Depp in his most iconic role again and I'm glad I went to see it. I would however advise you that if you have access to any 2 for 1 offers, use those!
In summary, my little weekend away seeing my uni girls was lovely; they're all doing this adulting thing very well (much better than me by any stretch!) and I'm proud of them all. It's amazing how no matter how much time passes, we seem to pick up where we left off. It was also really nice to take some time to myself as well. It's difficult for me to get much solitude. There's nothing like a darkened room to clear the mind.
With June fast approaching, it's worth mentioning now that I may be patchy with my blogging. I have a lot of things planned in June and I'm very excited. While I'm on the subject of my blog, I have been wondering whether to change from a daily blog update to blogging 2 or 3 days a week instead. Mainly for the reliability factor, but also as I am restricted with time at the end of the day as well. Let me know what you think?
Have a great Wednesday, bye bye for now!
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