Happy 25.

The day of birthing.

I woke up at around 10am because I wanted to catch everyone on the phone before they went to bed, followed by work in the morning. The sky outside was ever so miserable and grey, but thankfully there was no horrific rain like I thought there might be, just wind. Enough wind to bang everything around that wasn't secured down. I wandered in the kitchen to get my bottle of water to have with my cereal bar and was so pleasantly surprised by the cake that had been left for me in the middle of the kitchen island from the owners of the lodge. Under a blue cover with "Happy Birthday Kim" written on the top lay a lovely big round cake with orange sponge and chocolate chips and chocolate cream frosting embellished with two blue candles and the word "Kim". I was so incredibly touched by such a small act of kindness that I had a potter around to see if I could find Helen and John to thank them, but I couldn't. I carried on with my breakfast and opened my few cards that I'd brought with me and was wished a happy birthday by two separate people whilst we exchanged travelling plans.

I took a leisurely shower followed by more phone calls back home to England and a two hour chat with my mom and my sister via the Skype. I'm afraid to say that my birthday was quite a slow day. After straightening my hair and putting on the prettiest dress I have with me and spending a good half an hour on my makeup, I moved into the living room with my netbook and speakers and sunk down in the comfy corner sofa and began watching TV shows on my netbook, all the while watching the clouds moving faster and faster whilst the sky turned to a deathly shade of grey/black outside.

By 5pm, my stomach was growling at me and the sky at the back of the lodge was so dark and heavy that it looked fit to burst with rain, so I thought I'd head into the village and try and beat the showers. At least that way, I'd only have to walk home in the wet. I marched off with my Ipod. Before I got to the restaurant, I was approached by a fat lady on a bench who looked like she smelled who started asking me for change and then when I said I had no change she said she'd be happy to take a note. I explained breifly that I was a backpacker and all of my money was hard earned and much needed and left her whilst she started muttering, obviously upset by my comments.

At the Indian, I asked for a table for one and the waiter looked at me as if I'd said a joke. He spoke to his colleague in a different language and then seated me on a table next to the bar. As I looked around, I realised that his concern was the fact that all the other tables in the place had 'reserved' notices on them.  I thought I'd really treat myself so I had a starter, main, rice and naan together with an expensive class of merlot cabernet sauvingon. By the end, I was absolutely stuffed, so I settled the bill and began the walk home, only to notice that while I'd been sitting, a large blister had reared it's ugly head on one of my feet, and the walk became very difficult.

When I finally got back to the lodge, I lit the candles on my cake and asked one of the ladies that was in the kitchen to take a picture of me. I made my standard wish and blew the candles out before telling everyone to make sure they had a piece because I couldn't manage the whole thing on my own. I sat back down on the corner sofa in my same spot with my glass of wine and began watching more TV shows on my netbook. The people here don't really mix with one another past pleasantries as they are all in couples or families or groups staying for just one or two nights. I didn't mind though. I noticed out of the corner of my eye the sunset that was unfolding through the window so I grabbed my camera quickly and limped out as far as I could to a corner where the land and the hills turn right and I took a few pictures whilst standing out there waiting for the evening to fade into night time. The sky was a beautiful orange glow behind the clouds, contrasting with slithers of deep blue into grey, with spectacular cloud formations of all different shapes. It reminded me very much of the glowing flame of the birthday candle I'd lit earlier. When I got back, I finished my wine and realising that I was the only person still up at ten o clock, I cleared up my things and got into bed.