Following the previous, and rather hectic week, I was more than contented to have a relaxed week, with few social engagements. Wednesday I was in York as usual, and with no lunch plans and reasonable weather, I decided to have a little wander around the charity shops. I bagged myself a new dress, a new Hobbs mini skirt (shown further down the blog in Sunday’s outfit), and this delightful vintage trinket box to sit on my dressing table, housing part of my brooch collection.

As I bought some delicious baked goods from the Bluebird bakery, I drifted into a daydream of how days could be spent wandering around independent shops and soaking up the atmosphere before the harsh reality that was the end of lunchtime hit, and it was time to head back to the office. My one hour of freedom over.

The rest of the week was the pleasant flow of routine, until Saturday arrived and with it the sunshine. It was still bitterly cold, but after a morning of playing Lego and a leisurely breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast, we took a daytrip over to Whitby. The cold was biting in Whitby. The first thing we did was to find somewhere for lunch.

Most places were closed (it being January), had stopped serving food, or weren’t dog friendly. Then we stumbled on an unassuming place I’ve never been to, or even noticed before, the Esk Vaults. With signs at the door indicating it was dog friendly and served food, we went up the stairs to find the most welcoming little space. The bar served all sorts of beers and ales. A conversation with the chap earlier in the week had reminded me how much I used to like cherry lager, so I was delighted it was available and, it tasted as delicious as I remembered it to.

Appetites sated with wonderful pizza and nachos, we had a wander around the shops. I love all the little antiquaries in Whitby. Little shops filled with vintage Whitby jet (which I’d really love to collect more of), and cameos alongside Victorian postcards, and Beswick dogs. You never know what treasure you’re going to stumble upon, or what might pique your interest. It really is a quirky place.

By the time we’d had some tea and cake, darkness was falling and the temperature was joining it. It was time to head home.

Sunday, I met the Chap in Malton. I was excited to wear the new to me Hobbs skirt I’d picked up earlier in the week, but once again it was so cold that I needed many, many layers with it. We started off by taking up a comfy spot in a coffee shop with the newspaper to try our hand at the crossword. Alas, we’re both as bad as eachother at those it seems, so more practice is needed.

Afterwards, we perused a few shops including what may be my favourite bookshop ever, Kemps. I could spend hours in there perusing the books, the gifts, the quirky games, and the chap was kept busy fussing the shop dog. Anywhere that has a shop dog is always worth our custom. Then, it was on to our favourite place for Sunday lunch, The Talbot.

I don’t know how many times we’ve been here now, heaven knows it’s featured on my blog many times. The people who work there seem to know us, and the rustic country house setting is always comforting, as is the marvellous food. Sunday was no exception, roast beef dinners followed by ice cream sundaes, before taking the short walk up to the Palace Cinema.

The Palace Cinema is a delightful little independent cinema, tucked up a side alley in Malton and opposite a former Solicitors office said to be the inspiration for Ebeneezer Scrooge’s office in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.

On a cold day like Sunday, you can definitely see the link. We were going to see Babylon, which was in the Cinema’s screen 3. Screen 3 is probably only slightly larger than my living room, seating only 12 people, and it’s old school fabulous. There were only another two people in there for Babylon, a lady and her daughter, so it was almost like a private viewing.

The film itself was really good. Quite gritty, very risque, but having seen documentaries about the rise of Hollywood in the early days, I imagine that even though the stories were hit with the Hollywood glamour wand, some of them were based on true events. Seeing more films is on my list of things I want to do in 2023, and this was most definitely a good one to start with, and perfect end to a relaxed and restorative week.