Out of all my exchanges, I'm pretty sure this is the best gift I've ever received. The amount of effort, thought and cool gifts that went into this was absolutely awesome for me. So I think I need to start with a little background. I'm a student at a boarding school in the UK, and I've always been pretty busy with heavy academic work, riding and playing the violin. As a result, I've never really learned to cook, and for the last couple have been sadly watching, as my friends used our house kitchen to make exciting and tasty dishes, while I was stuck with home-bake pizza and highly repetitive school food.

So in my profile, I basically mentioned in passing some stuff that I'd like to learn. Cooking was basically at the top of that list, especially as I'll soon be at university, and was probably going to starve. But hopefully, no more. What "Al Scarface Capone" has provided me with is a pretty comprehensive introduction to cooking.

The first thing I received was a message on RedditGifts - I was abroad when I got it.. This mentioned that three packages were on their way to my house, and included a mysterious Google doc, that I was not to open until the gifts arrived. Resisting my infernal curiosity, I waited until I could get home, where a sizable parcel was waiting for me. Even though this was only half of the gift, I was pretty hyped already. I opened the packaged to find cooking gear waiting inside. A (very high-quality) pot and pan, a Pyrex glass roaster, a large loaf tin, and some wooden spatulas. To be honest, I didn't really know what all this could be used for, but I was pretty amazed at the amount of stuff. Cooking gear is expensive, right? However, even I knew that something was missing. Recipes. So I went to check on the Google doc.

Mr Capone had basically written me his own cookbook. Ten pages of what looks like his own recipes, written out by him. I was pretty amazed at this; with advice on what to cook when, and what would be easy for university, this list is absolutely fantastic. The choice of recipes was also great not just do they all sound pretty delicious, but there's a diverse mix, and they seem easy for a beginner like me. I, for one, am very much looking forward to "double chocolate nutella cookies." At this point, I basically had to promise myself that I would use this opportunity. He put in so much effort that I kinda owe it to him now. Thanks so much.

Anyway, the next morning, the second package arrived. A baking tray. The metaphorical cherry on the cake (no pun intended), I thought to myself. I then realised that he had said three packages. So there is more! Sure enough, the next day, a "multi-purpose' knife arrived. My cooking set was complete, and very impressive. Our woefully underequipped kitchen at school may now have what it needs for me to actually learn to cook, so I don't have to scavenge food of my (mostly) more competent friends.

So, wow. You really went the extra mile for this one, Santa Capone. I really hope that you (and everyone else) enjoy your exchange as much as I enjoyed mine, and just maybe have a Santa that's as thoughtful, knowledgeable and generous as mine was. It means a lot to me, and your gift will end up being useful for the rest of my life.