It's Raining At Cambridge

Ok all, I know it's been a long time. Computers are somewhat hard to come by here. Apparently, since they have such fabulous libraries here, they don't depend on internet access. Go figure.

Here are some excerpts from my recent e-mail to Jeffrey about my stay so far:

Ok, so here's what my day is like.At 8:00, I am up and get off to breakfast. Breakfast is like.. well, not unlike the cafeteria when you worked at the museum.. that kind of deal. a line where you get what you want. We have English breakfast though, which varies. Yesterday I had what looked like undercooked fried eggs but were in fact merely glossy poached-like eggs (very good) with toast and a piece of ham. Today was french toast. No syrup here though, just marmalade. Ew. In addition to the varying selection, they seem to always have corn flakes, or whatever they're called. the kind with and without sugar. I have some. With orange juice.After breakfast, we have to be at our classes by 9:15. It takes me about 15 minutes to get there. My college (dormitory) is right on the edge of the city center, so I leave, take a right, turn right on the corner, and walk all the way down to the teaching buildings. I cross a bridge on the way, which is where the punting begins. in the day time guys stand around with signs so you can hire them to "punt" you around.My first class is "Romanticizing Shakespeare". It is a class I wanted to switch, but then I thought I must have chosen it for a reason and made myself keep it. So far it is my favorite class! It's nice, I think because he explains a lot.

That class gets over at 10:45, and then we have a "plenary lecture" promptly at 11:30, which is a lecture for everyone in the shakespeare program, regardless of which smaller classes they are in. No coffee allowed in any buildings, by the way (not any food item but water as well).After the plenary ends at 12:30, we have time for lunch. I have taken to going to the college that has a dining option -- it's a lot like the hospital cafeterias we've been too. Bigger "pick what you want and pay" with actual meals. So far the meals have not been familiar enough to make me choose them. I have learned, however, that it seems anything they make with a tomato based sauce -- soup in particular -- is pretty good. then I walk back through a garden like area towards our teaching site.

Our second class begins at 2:00pm. I like this professor a lot, but the class is tiring. No desks to lean on, just a regular seat, and for an hour and a half. He's not quite as organized as the first professor and assumes more knowledge (perhaps rightfully so). Interesting but by this time, and after the plenary, I have become quite tired.That class gets out at 3:30, and we're done for the day, really. The shops close at like, 6pm around here, so today, for example, I rushed back into town so I could find shoes. There are tons of streets and alleys filled with little stores. Easy to get lost but small enough that it's not hard to accidentally end up on a recognizable street again. I found a lot of new streets when I was looking for shoes. In the middle of town is a market... a ton of tents where people come every day to sell stuff. There is also a play theater down an alley near my college... I thought you would like it. Keep in mind that everywhere I'm telling you about is surrounding by old, old, buildings and tiny streets with tiny sidewalks. I know, it's whoville!

Anyway. Nothing we have to do until dinner at 6:30. That requires promptness as well. They don't get mad at you, but the dinner is served so you miss food if you don't show up on time. We get a little appetizer first.. a melon, a small serving of soup, tonight a little mosticcoli like dish in a tiny bowl. Then comes, on a three hole serving tray, the salad (a very light oil dressing, hardly there), a vegetable, and usually potatoes of some sort. Tonight little potatoes, last night little breaded potates, etc. Then comes the main dish. Tonight it was some kind of fish. Very dense and tasted a bit like tuna. Yesterday was roast beef, which was alright. the first day chicken -- very good. After dinner is desert with tea or coffee. The first two nights were really really good. Tonight not so much. Tonight was like fruit cocktail with strawberries. I ate the three strawberries in mine and left the rest. Last night was this absolutely awesome sugar coated banana nut muffin type thing. Yum.. Mom would have loved it. The first night was stawberries with sugar and cream to pour on them.Dinner gets over about 7:30, and we are really done for the night. There are optional concerts and lectures, like the strings one tonight, but we don't have to go. Optional.

So far I have walked around after dinner, then fallen in to bed and slept soundly until morning when I do it again.I like it though, and I'm on the edge of loving my room. The other two girls from CMU don't like there's that much. One dislikes her building, the other her room.. mine is nice. Except for being on the third floor. but it has a bed in the corner, a dresser, a closet with a tiled sink/mirror/light, a amoire, two chairs, and a desk. Very cozy. My window looks out onto the main street where people hang out at night. My room is on a landing with one other room. I may have mentioned that to you before. So in between the two rooms is a toilet and a little, kind of dirty and sparse kitchen.What else... I need to take pictures for you. the buildings here are beautiful The grass and landscaping is also beautiful at the colleges. There are signs all over that request everyone keep off the grass.

About British Airways... They run the movies soon after you get on, and they run previews first. Then they all start at the same time. Then previews run until all of them end, and they restart them. So I watched "Guess Who" and then a bit of "Constantine". There are little packs on your seat when you come in. A little back pillow, a light blanket in a plastic bag for you to open, and a bag with socks, "eye shades" (those eye things you put over to darken things), a tiny toothbrush/toothpaste, and... something else I think. They offer beverages often, and the meals weren't bad. Ravioli for dinner. I suddenly feel like I've told you this, so I'll stop for now. ;-)

--

The cheap way out for now... that's all I'm writing. I have a feeling there will be a lot of excerpts on here in the days to come.