We don't have any pictures yet--except for one of a snail we found in our flat (he was very cute)--so I will just tell you about the past few days, and you can expect pictures of the city this weekend.*
Monday was a day of adjustment. Daniel was out at dinner meeting until fairly late, so I did the following things: I walked around the neighborhood, found a canal, left the canal quickly (I think the stretch of it near us is the sketchy part of town), went to two little neighborhood markets, got all caught up on Occupy Wall Street news, and must have done some other stuff I don't remember. Yesterday, I had tea in a cafe because our power was out (and then I read there for two hours), listened to last week's "Wait, Wait" + a few other podcasts, and drew some pictures I ended up quite liking.
Today, I walked about half-way to FHI with Daniel, then bought groceries at the co-op (not the cheapest thing ever, but their pre-packaged spices--they sell nothing in bulk here, gah--are waaaaay cheaper than back home. I will refrain from making a joke about the East India Company, because that's possibly rude), listened to This American Life until the internet pooped out (which it does a couple of times a day in this flat), took a nap, and here I am! Very exciting, right? Haha. Well, it's actually been a pretty good couple of days. Daniel is getting lauds from his peers all over the place, and I'm enjoying both the walks I've been taking and the book I've been reading (Busy Monsters. It's...amazing. I'll delve into more detail on that once I've finished it). The city really is outstandingly beautiful.
Also, these are pretty hilarious:
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| photo by Lee Nachtigal, via funnypicturesfunnypics.com |
We're staying just a couple of blocks outside the Jericho neighborhood. It's pretty hoppin', and not a far walk from downtown, the train station, all of the university buildings, etc. Our current plan for the weekend is (a) to go see Midnight in Paris at the Phoenix Picturehouse and (b) to check out The Old Bookbinders. Daniel got some tips on how to drink whisk(e)y--and suggestions about which kinds are super delish--from a wonderful guy named Andrew who is part of Catherine's New College posse back in Scotland; The Old Bookbinders has one of the less-widely-available ones. We haven't been to a bunch of pubs on this trip (surprising, right? I think it's because we're here for so long and have to buy groceries. Going out every night would be nuts) so I'm trying to find some really good ones to check out on our down days. I still need to go to the Eagle and Child one of these afternoons, but something about the hallowed place that is Tolkein and Lewis' old stomping grounds makes me jumpy. Sure, any ol' tourist could go there and find it charming, but for an aspiring novelist? Places like that have special powers; visiting requires mental and spiritual preparation. Maybe I should go to confession first. Haha.
There you have it. An update. Mostly for my dad, because he's very demanding about wanting the updates. (Love you, papa)
The only other thing is that I miss everybody a bunch. I do, I do. A whole bunch.
Here's that cute snail I told you about.
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| photo by daniel |
over and out.
*Since Daniel spends most of the day at FHI (from, like, 10 to 7), and taking pictures with no people in them is not the most exciting, weekends will probably become picture days. Unless I do something REALLY EXCITING. But, ahem, that's rather unlikely.