Yesterday I said goodbye to Clare & Joe and their pretty Hackney flat where they really made me feel like home. But before heading off to Bristol, Sara & Steve took me out for my first ever Vietnamese meal – it was amazing! Then they even came with me to Paddington and saw me off so I could be there in plenty of time without worrying about missing my train, and so I wouldn’t be there alone. We had one final drink and chat at a bar there and then I headed out to Bristol, where Lizzie picked me up at the station and took me to her very comfortable house. A couple of old friends were there for a quick visit before heading back to London, so we all had dinner together. Then Lizzie and I sat up drinking wine and chatting until well past midnight. Today we are planning a trip out to the HUGE Marks & Spencer here, but other than that I am happy not to have to plan anything or be anywhere at any specific time … just happy to be here. Haven’t seen Lizzie since the summer of 2001 and it feels like no time has passed at all. It’s so nice to have these couple of days to just relax and catch up before heading back to Sevilla.
casa azahar 
So lovely to have you here Mizz Az! Thoroughly enjoyed our evening with 2 of my favourite Canadians in the world under my roof (I couldn’t have planned if I tried), and then getting down to the serious wine drinking with you a la the old days; only in the old days I never used to finish up with chamomile tea!
M&S here we come! xxx
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Ahhhh… Knickers!
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Isn’t Vietnamese food wonderful? I think it’s my very favorite ‘ethnic’ cuisine.
Your trip sounds wonderful. You do a mean travelogue. 🙂
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Can’t believe you never had Vietnamese. Here in the Washington DC area we are awash in it, and I even stumbled across a Vietnamese place in Swansea once (it’s a long story why I was looking for a decent dinner in Swansea, which nearly killed me with its student caffs).
Garden rolls? Asparagus salad?
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Vegetarian spring rolls, grilled scallops & asparagus, peppery crispy fried squid, garlic beef pho, “shaken” beef, squid & mushrooms, and spicy goat something or other … and all of it was wonderful. I think it was the best meal of my whole trip.
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