It has actually been so many days since it last rained in London that people seem to have forgotten that sun is not the norm.

Which is why so many people looked so surprised when they got caught out in the wintry, drippy Sunday that is today.

Yes, it's back to normal in London.

After a super-intense 2-hour yoga workshop this morning, I was feeling so hungry that I was dangerously close to dashing into the nearest McDonalds... luckily, regained my senses and managed to avert disaster.

Ended up at Tonkotsu in Soho, a baby restaurant in the London scene serving pretty much ramen and ramen only. And it was such a big glorious bowl of noodles and soup that I could cry... (and look at that egg!) 

To reward myself for the amazing discovery, I dropped by a tiny cafe and found possibly the best coffee and definitely the best coconut cake that I've ever had in this city. Having the Guardian and the New York Times on the tables was a definite plus!

To reward myself for the two amazing discoveries, I started planning a trip to the Scottish Highlands as soon as I got my rain-drenched feet in the door. 

I had volunteered to represent Freshfields at the Career's Fair at Edinburgh University in October. The fair was for one day, but I've managed to get the whole week off so had 3 days in my itinerary to fill.

In a moment of genius (ahem), I remembered reading somewhere that the West Highland Railway to the Highlands was voted as one of the most scenic rail journeys in the world. It also provided the backdrop for the filming of the train journey to Hogwarts in the HP movies.


The 7 hour train journey starts in Edinburgh (stopover Glasgow) and ends in Mallaig, a tiny fishing harbour that has apparently amazing fish and chips (I'm sold!). It also happens to be the gateway to the remotest parts of the Isle of Skye, including a place called Knoydart, which is between Loch Nevis and Lock Hourn (Lake Heaven and Lake Hell... yes, literally). Oh, and the remotest pub on mainland Britain, according to the Guinness book of records.

How can I possibly resist? 

In my excitement, I've conveniently forgotten that I don't handle trains very well. BUT I AM DETERMINED TO GO NEVERTHELESS.

Since I can't read on trains, I've downloaded about 30+ podcasts from a brilliant BBC programme called "In Our Time", introduced to me by my lovely supervisor. Topics range from the serious (Goethe, psychoanalysis, shinto, Greek tragedy, the Permian-Triassic Boundary ) to the weird and the wonderful (tea, history of the whale, the unicorn, imaginary numbers, the Zulu nation's rise and fall).

This is shaping up to be such a great holiday that I honestly think I am a genius (amen AHEM).