Catching up

Well I guess it's been a while since I last blogged, so I'd better get things up to date. Where to start though? I could tell you that I'm sat in a hotel bar in Edinburgh, drinking Italian beer having just dined on Thai chicken, but that would be getting ahead of myself.

I guess the first bit is the crafty stuff. CJ3 is now completed and stored away with the other journals that we did previously, but CJ4 is still ongoing and due for handing on to the next contributor on Saturday. The one I currently have is entitled “If I were a seamstress”. Ignoring the fact that I'd actually be a seamster (yes, I had to look it up too) it's a very different CJ than most as it requires us to use fabric as well as the usual paper based pages. After a bit of digging around I managed to find some blue fabric (I think it's polyester, but don't quote me) and a bit of white. It's quite heavyweight and would be perfect for making a suit. I did think of making a little suit to fit the page but somebody else has beaten me to that idea, so I decided to chance my arm and try sewing a suit. Obviously a full one wouldn't fit, so I went for a couple of bits – cuff and collar. For somebody who's sewing experience is normally limited to putting buttons back on things I don't think it's bad at all. The only other crafty stuff has been a set of Alice in Wonderland ATCs, but I didn't get a pic before I handed them over, so you'll have to use your imagination for those.

At the moment I'm very much the travelling man. Saturday was a very enjoyable day in Leeds, sharing a drink and catching up with friends, and meeting a couple of new faces, (plus a visit to Hotel Chocolat of course). Sunday was spent finishing off the CJ, and then packing a bag and jumping on a train for Edinburgh. I'm here for 3 days on an IT course. I had a choice of Manchester, London or Edinburgh – no contest!
I arrived on Sunday evening by train, after a scenic journey across the country. I don't normally like cities, Manchester is cold and hostile, London is too big and too full of it's own importance, and so on. But this place is different, it feels friendly, welcoming, and the architecture is stunning. My employer has a list of approved hotels and I'm in one, the Ramada on Princes Street. It's excellent. Good rooms, brilliant food, and I have a room which looks out over the city, from Carlton Hill, right round to the castle, including the astounding Scott Monument.
Monday night was a visit to the dome to meet up with friends for a drink. The Dome was originally a bank, but has now been converted to a bar/restaurant/conference centre. It is a truly imposing building, with most of the original décor, and still retains a sensed of grandeur. If ever you visit Edinburgh it really is worth a visit. Tonight is my last night so I've done the touristy bit. I've walked around the town taking pictures of the buildings and statues, bought shortbread in a tartan box for work and sat drinking my beer and gazing out of the bar windows over the city.
Tomorrow I'll finish my course and board the train back to Crewe. At some stage I'll have to do the next level course, and I'm really hoping they host one in Edinburgh. But somehow, I think that even if they don't I may well be back here sooner or later.