Travel Tuesday - Week 4 - Manchester, England - Chapter One Books

TRAVEL TUESDAY

Week 4 - Manchester 

Chapter One Books

I visited Manchester this weekend, as part of a Hen Party. I've visited Manchester a few times but really only for short stays, attending gigs, or as overnight stops on a longer journey. This time I was there for 3 days so had the opportunity to explore a little more. 

The first thing I will say about Manchester is that there is PLENTY to see and do. No matter your interests, how long you are there for, whether you're there as a couple, a family, or a group, you will find something to while away the hours.

We stayed in the Northern Quarter, slightly further out from the city centre, but easily accessible by walking and public transport. It's quite a quirky part of town with comic book stores, vintage and independent clothing, and plenty of places to eat and drink including a little square with bars all around, outside seating, and a lovely chilled vibe. 

Within a 5-minute walk from our apartment, was an escape room for a fun daytime activity, a gorgeous Instagram hotspot serving Cinderella Cocktails from glass slippers (and a great value bottomless brunch) called On The Hush, a giant Primark for the last-minute essentials, and the bus station to get us home to Scotland again. 

On the way back to the bus station after checking out I, of course, wanted to visit a bookstore and found Chapter One Books (also under 5 minutes away on foot). It's an independent bookstore, with a cafe serving various hot/chilled drinks and a great selection of cakes. 

This bookstore/cafe has a lovely look and vibe and seems like a great place to study or socialise. It has various little areas to sit in and enjoy a coffee and cake. We sat in a cute area set up like an old-fashioned living room. Mismatched sofas, 1950s TV, the works. There was even a little library area, low lighting, bookshelves all over the walls, and small tables to sit quietly and study/read. Did I mention the indoor fountain? Yup, there's an indoor fountain! 

When you walk in, there's a pile of board games to pick up and play during your visit. Overall just a really laid back and casual atmosphere, I loved it! They seem to have plenty of events and bookclubs, really turning it into a hub of activity for the social butterflies out there.

I'd say that it is more of a cafe than a bookstore. Though there were books everywhere, they seemed more for display purposes than anything else (I could be wrong!). They did have a little preloved bookshelf though where I found a Karin Slaughter book for £1 which I happily bought alongside my latte. 

From a cafe point of view, it was perfect. Plenty of vegetarian and vegan options and some quirky cakes (one was an avocado cake, and one a vegan Oreo cake) along with staples like lemon drizzle. We had a lovely chilled morning while we waited for our bus. I'd recommend it to anyone visiting the Northern Quarter, looking for a chilled-out way to spend a couple of hours with good books, friends, or coffee (or all three!). A lovely way to spend a couple of hours. 

Here's a link to their website if you want to find out more! 

If, by some stroke of luck, you made it to the end of this and thought "Wow, what a great post, I'd love to read more!" you can FOLLOW MY BLOG by clicking the link and subscribing :) I also post bookish content on Instagram. Happy reading!

Travel Tuesday - Week 2 - Bucharest, Hungary - Carturesti Carusel

TRAVEL TUESDAY

In this week's installment for Travel Tuesday, I wanted to introduce you to one of the most beautiful bookstores I have ever visited (granted, I only picked up reading again in 2023 so my frame of reference is limited slightly. That being said, once you have a look for yourself, I am sure you will agree with me!). I was giddy with excitement the second I stepped inside, I must have looked 

Right in the heart of Bucharest's Old Town, just a few doors down from a quirky Vampire bar with multiple Dracula-themed, beerish beverages, including a random but delicious chilli and ginger beer, is where you will find Carturesti Carusel. It looks quite unassuming from the outside but like the Tardis, seems never-ending on the inside. 

Clean, white, luxurious interiors with gorgeous mezzanine levels, bookshelves stacked to the rafters, and skylights in the roof give so much light to the store. There are sections for every genre imaginable, from psychology to cooking to bestselling thrillers, and everything in between. I loved that they had a section for English translations from Romanian authors, which I was keen to select from (though they had plenty of English language books from many genres and authors). The geek section, which was quite aptly located in the basement, was great fun and I almost bought a ton of graphic novels, board games, and backpacks. I still don't know how I resisted, and I think about it often!

After significant dilly-dallying, I eventually chose The Fox Was Ever the Hunter - Herta Müller which is a Nobel Prize-winning book that brilliantly, poetically, and hauntingly depicts life in Romania during the final few months of the Ceausescu Regime. It's a daunting read, with descriptions that, at times, are quite laborious and unnecessarily verbose. I felt out of my depth reading it (I should have expected that since it won the Nobel Prize for Literature). I'll link the review here when it's posted. 

Bucharest is a beautiful city, growing in stature and becoming more modern and metropolitan every day. I first visited in 2018 with my son for his 16th birthday, and even in that short time, it's become much more accessible and travel-friendly. I recommend visiting whether you're a book-lover or not. The Transylvania/Dracula tours are exceptional days out, the restaurants are incredible, and the beer is top-notch! The Old Town is beautiful and there are new hotels and places to be popping up everywhere. It's a top destination for me and I'll be back at Carturesti Carusel again, you can count on it!

If, by some stroke of luck, you made it to the end of this and thought "Wow, what a great review, I'd love to read more!" you can FOLLOW MY BLOG by clicking the link and subscribing :) I also post bookish content on Instagram. Happy reading!

Travel Tuesday - Week 1 - Vienna, Austria - Shakespeare & Company Booksellers

TRAVEL TUESDAY

Time for the first installment of Travel Tuesday! 

What a way to start, with beautiful Vienna. I visited the city in April 2024 as part of a jaunt around some European gems. Vienna is the capital city of Austria and sits on the river Danube. Vienna is famous for its ties to the arts, especially music, with Mozart and Brahms being just a snippet from a long list of famous resident composers and musicians. 

Our visit consisted of copious Weiner Schnitzel and visits to microbreweries, sampling the local beers, in addition to fuelling my literary obsession. I made it my mission to visit some unique and unusual bookstores while traveling, and boy does Shakespeare & Company tick all of my boxes. I also visited the Austrian National Library, which was incredible and will be the subject of a future installment of Travel Tuesday.

It's in a really accessible part of the old town of Vienna and gives old-style English pub vibes (with the hanging Shakespeare placard outside). After a brief celebratory jump up and down, clapping, I couldn't wait to go inside!

This bookstore specialises in English language books and what I loved about it was the absolute lack of order in the books. They're in stacks, on bookshelves, in boxes, wherever you look there are more books. This is great if, like me, you pick books based on cover art/title, read a bit of the blurb, and then buy if it takes your fancy. If you want a specific author or title, their staff are very knowledgeable and helpful. 

There are little rooms to wander through and get lost in the stacks and although quite small, the store is packed to the ceiling with volume after volume. I spent a good half hour simply running my fingers across spines (not as creepy as it sounds!) and made my way to the only section of the store that had signage - English translations of Austrian books. 

To give myself some boundaries while travelling, I limited myself to one book buy per city (a good decision, that I regularly cursed myself for!). I also wanted to find authors from that country rather than picking up books I could easily find closer to home. My choice of book from Shakespeare&Co. was A Game of Chess and Other Stories - Stefan Zweig which now has pride of place on my bookshelf. I loved this book and all of the stories, happily rating it 5*. I'll do a full review and post a link here when it's available. 

This is one of my favourite bookstores, no razzle-dazzle, just a good, old-fashioned hotch-potch of books. Having organised chaos allows readers to discover books they didn't know they needed and the vibe was relaxed and peaceful. No sales tactics, just readers quietly perusing and the familiar muted hum of bookish conversation. 

Shakespeare and Company has a website with maps and public transport information to help you find your way there. 

If, by some stroke of luck, you made it to the end of this and thought "Wow what a great post, I'd love to read more!" you can FOLLOW MY BLOG by clicking the link and subscribing :) I also post bookish content on Instagram. Happy reading!