Russian Fest / First day of class

Yesterday, I went to the Russian Winter Festival in Trafalgar Square (which does in fact have an "r" at the end--British people pronounce such things "Trafalga." I see already that this will be difficult when taking notes on names and places for class.). I was surrounded by thousands upon thousands of Russian Londoners, all speaking Russian and standing around with life size motroyshka dolls (those dolls within dolls within dolls) and eating blintzes from stands whose menus were written entirely in Russian. So I somehow managed to order a blintz, share some mulled wine, and listen to some incomprehensible Russian pop. It was hilariously entertaining.

Then I walked around London and saw all the sites at night--Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Parliament, the London Eye ferris wheel, the West End theatre district, etc., Very pretty!! Rather windy, but still up in the high 40s/low 50s Fahrenheit-- I haven't worked out Celsius yet--so warmer than New Haven for sure. And then I went over to the boys' flat and helped them make dinner, and we had a lovely little meal for the three of us with place settings and everything. I swear I will come back a natural chef. (Or at least a very experienced boiler of pasta.) And then I planned to go to bed early, but my roommate Laura and I ended up talking until the wee hours. By which I mean 1 AM, since I am still all over the place where time is concerned.

In domestic news, my flat is still great but freezing. Having lived with my darling and wonderful Arizonian roommate these past few years, I've gotten used to heat where possible in the room--and now I can't sleep even under my big duvet. (Is a duvet a blanket? This word is new to me, though apparently it shouldn't be. I can no longer tell when a word is British and when I am just stupid.)

Some fun British words:
lorry = truck
buggy = carriage
aubergine = eggplant
mange touts = snap peas (it means "eat it all," or "eat the whole thing" in French)
tube / underground = subway

The Brits also use different-sized paper, very tall and a little thinner than ours, so nothing fits in my folders. And only once thus far have I barely escaped death as I stepped into the road having looked the wrong way (I will maintain it is the right way). Mercifully, many streets actually have the instructions "Look left" or "Look right" painted on them...too many tourist deaths, perhaps?...

I am a huge fan of British currency, though not so much of just how weak American money stands in comparison. (1 pound = 2 US dollars.) But the British coins are fun shaped, octagonal and mix-and-matched colors, and the bills are colorful with holographic Queens and some even tell a story about the people on them. Maybe I will redesign the American currency to tell stories, and have people collect all the different bills in order to read the whole thing. This could be a new career path for me.

I had my introduction to the semester and my first history class today, which was fun. I'm oddly psyched for classes, notwithstanding my recognition of the nerd factor. But my history professor is this adorable little British man who speaks just like those narrators on the history channel. He summarized the British dynasties from the 1000s to 1600s in about an hour, and made it like a story and I loved listening to him. If all of our professors had fun accents, lectures would be far easier.

Pip pip.