As we’ve already established, I’m a bit (very) extra when it comes to birthdays. So when Red Letter Days asked if I’d be interested in trying out one of their experiences I jumped at the chance to go for afternoon tea at a local five star hotel for my birthday.
Bovey Castle is a luxury hotel on Dartmoor, with views across rolling countryside on the outside and roaring fires, cosy wood panelled rooms and attentive staff on the inside. It’s a beautiful place to spend a birthday.
I took my friend Elly and it was such a luxury to a) miss the school run and b) eat delicious food in opulent surroundings while chatting. A lot. (A lot of chatting and a lot of food.)
Afternoon tea at Bovey Castle comes with a generous array of food (that three tier banquet pictured above was just for one person). As well as three different types of sandwiches there was a mini pie and sausage roll, plus four different types of cakes and an almond cake along with the scones. Elly’s allergic to nuts so her spread contained equally delicious alternatives.
We sat and ate and chatted and ate some more for a good two hours. It was so relaxing and I love that the hotel has lots of different rooms where they serve afternoon tea, so there’s an intimate, chilled out atmosphere instead of a rushed busy one.
So yes, the afternoon tea was IMMENSE. I highly recommend it and I love Red Letter Days long time for inviting me along.
One of the things I’ve always loved about celebrations is the food. And a birthday isn’t a birthday for me without some kind of food-based activity. Yesterday involved brunch with my parents, afternoon tea with a friend and a delicious supper with Si.
As we already know I don’t do diets and yesterday was a bit of a revelation for me as I think it’s probably the first birthday in a few years where I’ve not felt one shred of food-related guilt. In years gone by I might have felt guilty over scoffing the cake or vowed to do some kind of detox after a day of celebration excess. But I now know this is a weird kind of binge-restrict cycle that is never positive and, even if it might be seen as normal because so many people do it (we all know someone on a detox or a post-holiday diet), it’s not healthy.
I feel like I’m starting 35 with so many new life lessons and realisations. Things I thought I already knew – and might have understood rationally but didn’t necessarily truly FEEL until the past year or so. This excites me.
Anyway, here’s to birthdays, ditching diets and celebrating our love of food with friends and family. Happy happy days.
**
Thanks to Red Letter Days for working with me on this post. For more information about how I work with brands check out my Work With Me page.
Leave a Reply