much more to discover

"We reached what I now know was Victoria Park.  Far enough.  Far enough away from territory I knew, that northern spine: Stockwell, Kennington, Waterloo, Charing Cross, Leicester Square, Tottenham Court Road, Camden Town, Chalk Farm, Belsize Park...the uncharted territory of this East London park, without tourists or celebrated views, was mysterious and alluring.  Anna and I came away delirious, appreciating that there was much more to discover.  About London.  And about ourselves."

-Iain Sinclair, Hackney, That Rose-Red Empire

 

Greenwich

a good book

I started reading this novel on the tube, and between Mile End and Tottenham Court Road I only made it four-and-a-half pages in--because I had to read them twice.  They were that good.  And the rest of the book was just as satisfying.  I love Helen Garner's writing style.  She is a master at saying a lot with a little, leaving just the right amount of open space for readers to fill in themselves.

Edinburgh

I went to Edinburgh a couple weekends ago with Rachel and her friend Carolyn. They both go to Brandeis College, and we stayed with another Brandeis girl, Becca, who is studying in Edinburgh for the semester. It was a successful trip. We walked all over the city, went to a couple museums, had a couple fun nights out, ate some good food (deep-fried Mars bar, anyone?) and scaled a volcano!

We liked the section of the museum designed for young children the best.  You are never too old to play dress up:

On our way to the volcano.  Beautiful day.

But very windy!

At the top!

We rewarded ourselves after our volcano adventure with hot chocolate from a place called Chocolate Soup.  So good!

I was enthusiastic about jumping for the camera on this trip.  Behind us is a national monument, never completed.

I liked Edinburgh a lot!  The weather was totally sporadic.  The sky alternated between pouring down sunshine and pouring down rain.  But mostly sunshine.  Apparently, fried Mars bars are a "thing" in Edinburgh.  So delicious, in a slightly disgusting kind of way.  We cooked dinner for ourselves two nights we were there--stir fry.  It ended up costing 2 or 3 pounds a person.  We also ate at a mosque kitchen twice.  The food was delicious, and we got huge platefuls for under five pounds.  My favorite part of the trip was definitely the volcano--so exhilarating!  The wind at the top was so strong I could hardly stand up, or breathe.