Short stack

Travelling bilberry

This is a short entry because I am on a little road trip to the south east, think Miss Marple eagerly leaning on to the steering wheel, peering out on to the road ahead excited for all the possible adventures to come. While it’s possibly a little more prosaic than that there is something about being out on the road by myself, wandering where I may, within of course the parameters of the South East of our misty isle.

My stops have been Bristol, Box Hill and now my ultimate destination, Brighton, with a short day trip on the train to Lewes today. On the train! As many people know the trains in this country are not renowned for anything other than extortionate costs, grubbiness and unreliability. Living in Wales add to that a simple and very distinct lack of them altogether - Cardigan doesn’t even have a station. So it’s with great excitement that I will set forth to get a little putt-putt train for all of 11 minutes from here to there.

It’s not exactly Route 66 or trans Siberian express territory but you know, there’s still a freedom in it, moments of exhilaration as vistas open up - views across the glorious Surrey country side, nostalgic waves as I go through old stomping grounds, vistas closing in as I tootled through old oak woodland (an oak leaf was the part of the council insignia on all my school books during my very brief time at school there). Sadly though the south east is so full of roads, people and buildings, that none of these moments last very long, and before you know it there’s another Greggs, Tesco, roundabouts galore and many, many airport hotels, getting increasingly dingy the further you get from Gatwick.

The main reason for this trip is to visit my mother’s oldest friend who now lives in Hogwarts, as she describes it and she’s not wrong, not far from Brighton. It’s a huge complex set within and around a Victorian gothic mansion. She has a small wonderfully neat flat which overlooks a garden and further on to a small wood. I will tell more of this visit later, but suffice to say there is a book in this fabulous woman - her memories are crystal clear and hilariously funny.

Following this visit my sister and I went to Farleys Farm, the former home of Lee Miller and Roland Penrose. It calls itself the home of the surrealists, but to me it’s Lee Miller’s home. Roland Penrose I can take or leave. She was at the centre of a fascinating group of artists, holding court while bringing up her son and making pickles. But it was her life prior to this that is most fascinating, her work with Man Ray, fashion shoots for Vogue and then of course her astonishing and raw war photography. Look out for the film Lee (13th September release), she is played by Kate Winslet. Kate took actual photographs during the filming using a similar camera to the one Lee used - they are part of an exhibition at Farleys Gallery. There’s something a bit meta about that, really interesting.

I was fascinated to learn that she was also a cook, a really good and adventurous cook at that. My lovely sister bought me her recipe book which is also packed full of glorious photos. One recipe stood out immediately and is one I’m dying to make even though it’s absurd and will cost a fortune. I leave you with it - if anyone makes it before I do please feed back straight away.

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I want to come back at a later date to the joys of travelling solo. I love travelling with my husband, and friends and family, but there is something so freeing, even in such a small pocket of time as this, in meandering solo, and despite the familiarity and ease with which I can travel around this country there is still adventure and very slight trepidation involved. Where will I find that perfect sandwich? Where is the next loo? What is that over there? I’ll go and find out. I’m not a brave traveller so the least adventure sets my heart racing, which is good for my circulation if nothing else. More soon.