i had my first fish&chips last wednesday, and it was amazing. i made M order for me since i had no idea what i was getting, but he chose well (although i'm not sure you could choose poorly at this fish&chips place). i also watched in the loop, which is very funny but not quite my all-time favorite. earlier that day, i had gotten my last check, opened my bank account, gotten tickets for west kirby, and registered with a doctor (yay for completed errands).
thursday was the oxford trip, and since i had lain awake thinking "i have to get to sleep, i have to wake up soon", i was tired. we were on our way at 8:15 am, and were there by 11:30. this left us a bit of time to go sightseeing, so C and i walked to the Bodleian Library and saw an excellent exhibit of precious books (think gold- and gem- encrusted covers). unfortunately, we couldn't take any pictures, otherwise i'd have quite a bit more to post.
after we all met back up, we visited the Pitt Rivers Museum, which is an amazing example of museums in the early 19th century.
after touring the museum and speaking with the curator, we got to break for lunch. since it was a really nice day, C, A, and i decided to get sandwiches and enjoy our surroundings.
we visited the modern art museum (which is not, in general, one of my fortes). it was interesting to speak with the curator, but the exhibits were a bit uninspiring... as in, they made me want to run into the nearest gallery of ancient art. the rest of the trip wasn't all that much more interesting, so i'm going to skip it.
friday i left for west kirby, and was surprised at how little time it took to get there (good news, i know). tim met me at the station although we almost missed eachother because i don't think either one of us recognized the other. we dropped off my bags and immediately set off for a walk around the harbor. i can't even begin to tell you how much i missed that walk. it was windy and cold and, of course, absolutely perfect.
after a while, we got cold and headed back, but not before cutting through one of my other favorite places.
fran returned home shortly after we did, so we had a good chat while she was cooking dinner, and then more good chats during dinner. in fact, most of the night was a wonderful exchange of information: i got to see pictures of their new flat, paintings recently finished by fran (i had forgotten how phenomenally talented she is), and i got to tell them all about you guys. tim still had to finish packing, and although i had intended on getting some reading done, that didn't happen. the next morning was a bit of a rush at first so that tiim and phil could get on the road, but i did get to enjoy a proper english breakfast (yum!!!). fran and i spent the rest of the day walking around WK, taking pictures and remembering stories about every place we visited. this one was particularly good to see:
i even got my first dish of scones and cream. if i'm not careful, i could gain ten+ pounds on the dishes i've been having lately (fish&chips, scones&cream, english breakfasts...). anyway, i left saturday afternoon around 3 and was back in manc by 4:30, just in time to miss this. that night, i went out with the girls to their friend's birthday party. we got home relatively early, so i was able to wake up early on sunday.
i spent most of sunday reading, but took a short trip to the manchester art museum to study the mode and message of their 17th-19th century galleries (an example of empirical collecting). i took a break to go to a comedy show, which was great because it was "new material" night: all their comedians were trying out new acts, so we got to judge. and it was only £2, so that's also good.
monday was R's birthday, so i went over to hers and then out to the font before ditching the group (they were going clubbing and i had to get up for class).
tuesday was mostly boring.
wednesday i got up at 5 am in order to make my 6:30 bus to london. i was lucky and got a really nice cabbie who told me all about the time he spent in canada and the roadtrip he and his family took across the US. my bus ride up, however, was a disaster (kind of). we hit traffic that delayed us for 1.5 hrs, then when we took our break (they legally have to break once for every 3 hours they drive), the break was an hour rather than 10 minutes.
with all this, i was running very late by the time i got to london. to make matters worse (not really, but it still sucks), N's parents house was burgled the night before, so they had no cell phone, wallets, anything-- even their two mercedes were stolen. luckily, they were unharmed and the insurance should cover the cars. anyway, i digress. i picked up my bags and we headed back out in record time, although i had already missed my bus back. then we hit a traffic diversion whilst on the way to the station and couldn't get to the train stop!! to answer your question, no, this was not my favorite day of the week. i managed to make the 5:00 coach (2.5 hours later than i'd hoped) and so got back in at 10. i was supposed to meet D for a drink after he got off of work, but i decided to stay home and not push my luck.
today i've been cleaning, reading, and doing laundry. i've taken 3 trips to sainsburys so far, the last two just for hangers. i'm looking forward to tomorrow though, since i think we're having another girls night out (but not before i go to the doctor, finish my reading, work on a presentation, visit the roman fort...).
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