Claire and I are in London for the weekend, staying in Gray’s Inn, as usual. Gray’s Inn is such a wonderful place, and a setting in The Spy who Sank the Armada, my first historical novel. The main event this weekend is my Christmas present from Claire, tickets for The Barber of Seville, at Covent Garden on Sunday.
This morning we took advantage of complimentary tickets to a travel fair called Destinations at Olympia. It was quite a show, and it gave us lots of travel ideas. We returned to Gray’s weighed down with brochures. However we have more than brochures to read. I bought a book called The Best British Travel Writing of the 21st Century, and Claire subscribed to a travel magazine called JRNY, at the same stand.
If I were asked to name a few book genres, I’d probably reel off: mystery, crime, historical fiction, science fiction, horror. Travel writing would be way down my list. It’s odd really, because as the magazine JRNY implies, it’s all about the journey. Writing is a journey, as is life itself. The Spy who Sank the Armada is all about the journey of Sir Anthony Standen. The Sun also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway, is travel writing. As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning by Laurie Lee is travel writing. They all describe incredible journeys.
Tonight we’re going to Pizza Express, their rather special music venue called The Pheasantry, on Kings Road. Blue Harlem are playing there tonight. They’ve been one of the top swing, jump-blues bands on the London scene for fifteen years, so we’re looking forward to it. I’ll let you know how the rest of our journey has gone when we get home.