Weeknote 142

Travel updates, Chilean comfort food and a design exhibition

• Good news this week for train travel to the continent: Virgin Trains has passed the initial approval stage to become the first-ever competitor to Eurostar. Fingers crossed this leads to better frequency towards Brussels, and not just Paris, plus ticket availability and prices closer to what we had pre-pandemic.
• On YouTube, I enjoyed Steve Marsh’s latest Halloween-themed episode, where he visited filming locations from The Wicker Man in South West Scotland. I have a deep nostalgia for that part of the country—it always reminds me of childhood journeys by car to Northern Ireland, passing through en route to the Stranraer ferry.
• On Saturday, I had my first taste of cazuela, a Chilean stew that Mena made. It was packed with flavour and, like many stews, tasted even better the next day.
• Sunday brought autumn sunshine and a visit to the V&A in Kensington, where we saw the Design and Disability exhibition. We both really enjoyed it.