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Buda and Pest

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  Oh brave new world in which we live. As the shroud of Omicron falls once again to obscure our new-new-normal, the importance of escapism has once again risen. And so, as an early Christmas gift, I give you 10 minutes of it, by writing about the wonderfully surprising city of Budapest.  A short break in Budapest was planned a few months ago in the post-pre-covid freedom era of 2021. This time unsolo, I had two of my closest companions with me, so the feel of the trip was a little different to Lisbon (my other escape this year) from the beginning. All I knew about Budapest, frankly, was stag and hen dos. Quite honestly, I was afraid that the place wouldn’t take me much further than the Norwich high street of my teens on a Saturday night. For this, Budapest, I must apologise. My experience was quite different. At face value, Budapest (pronounced Budapeisht) seems a city, like many others, split in two by a river. In fact, Buda and Pest are two cities united by the river. This f...
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A Post-covid Microadventure

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“There’s nothing better than just bucking trends and saying yes I’m going to do that. Because really, it doesn’t matter. No one else gives a damn.” ~Wise words from a wise person. In this case, she was referring to my recent decision to go solo across the seas, to the undulating capital of Lisbon, Portugal. I was rolling along reluctantly on the 59 bus to work, wincing at the concept of another gruelling shift tackling the relentless post-Covid tsunami. The thought of going ‘back to Europe’ sprung into my mind; I immediately grabbed the thought with both hands before it could fly off. Clasped with a tight grip, I found some cheap flights to Lisbon and booked. There. Done. Eek. Yay? All before I got off the bus at Waterloo. Fast forward two weeks; hostel booked, four night shifts done and I’m in the queue for my warm Prêt tomato and cheese croissant at Stansted. My pre-flight routine (we all have one) was dusty, and the first mouthful of that deliciously calorific pastry brought back in...
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