In the last of my greater european travels while I am still a visa-holding resident of the UK, Jessica and I hit up two of the Greek Islands: Santorini and Ios. Santorini is a scenic, volcanic island-- I think possibly the most popular for tourists. We stayed in a small hotel about 15 minutes walk outside of Fira (where most of the shops, nightlife, etc are located). Near our hotel (Villa Rosa), Jessica had what she deemed 'the best pizza of her life.' We spent our first two days trying out the different beaches, all of which we had to reach [View Full Entry]

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Hi all! During the third week of May, Mom, my Aunt Pam and my Cousin Stephanie made a visit to Old York... and then we went gallavanting off to Italy. But not before I turned in the introduction and first chapter of my dissertation to my supervisor!!! We flew into Rome, took the train up to Florence, then another train to Venice, and flew back to England from there. Of course, we took 'Easyjet,' so the journey there was not exactly an easy one, but we finally made it. Saw the sights, ate the gelato, feasted on pasta, drank amazing coffee, [View Full Entry]

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Hello my wonderful friends and family, How I do miss you! It feels as though it is not so long until I will be home again, though I know I am only half way done. The time does seem to go by faster when the sun is shining, and it has been lately, off and on. Today is a beautiful day in York-- not 'warm' by California standards at all, but lovely just the same. On my walk to work this morning (wearing my winter coat, but with SUNGLASSES!) the sky behind the cathedral was a bright blue. I also heard [View Full Entry]

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Hey there mates, Things are good this side of the ocean, especially because I got to see my two most important boys last week. Dad and Joe came out to York first, and then we did a whirwind tour down to London, back up to Edinburgh, then back down to York...all in just 6 days! FIRST, YORK: Their flight got into York very early, so then there was the challenge of staying awake all day to fight off jetlag. Dad assured me they'd had some sleep on the plane, and they'd be fine. So, after a quick unpacking session at my [View Full Entry]

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Hello all my peeps, So last week was my 'reading week' in the English Department here at the grand ol' University of York, which basically means we had no class and were supposed to get ahead on reading. Which I did, but I decided not to sit around and do it in York, as is my usual routine. Instead, I took a quick trip up to Edinburgh to spend Valentines Day with Mia and her dad who was visiting from the States (pics of that to come...), and then I hopped a flight over to Prague to spend a few days [View Full Entry]

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This is my first entry in a long while. I had a fabulous, relaxing holiday back home in California. I loved seeing so many of you... it made coming back to classes and research quite hard. The first week back I moped quite a bit. However, after a few sunny days and with the first flowers blooming in gardens and fields, things really are looking up. My courses this term (South African Literatures and Documentary/Ethnographic Film) are both extremely interesting. The works we have been reading for South African Lit are all new to me, but compelling and emotional... I actually [View Full Entry]

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Okay, so I know I just wrote a journal, but I had to write one more today just to inform all of my fellow Americans about a traditional UK Christmas practice... if you already know about it, well done there! So, if you've seen Billy Eliot, Bridget Jones... any number of Brit films with a scene at Christmastime, you are familliar with the little colored paper crowns that are worn. These hats are part of a tradition, an IMPERATIVE tradition, known as the Christmas Cracker. I will attach some photos from the WONDERFUL Christmas party that Tim and Philippa, owners of [View Full Entry]

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Okay, this is the second attempt at getting this journal up... wish I had broadband in my room; instead, I am forced to trust the completely UNtrustworthy computers in our English Graduate lab :) Hello everyone! I am writing you with the exciting knowledge that I will be home in less than a week... crazy. This may have been the longest 2 and some months of my life, in good ways as well as difficult ones. Let's just say I am ready for a rest, that is, as soon as this last essay is completed. Now, to fill you in on [View Full Entry]

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I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I have to admit, I was a bit sad that I was going to miss this all-American holiday/ eat-fest, but in the end, my housemates really came through. We had close to thirty people at our dinner last night, with much more food that we could handle. There was turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy (even vegetarian gravy that I could actually eat), cranberry sauce, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole-- you name it, we had it. We even had some international additions, including a fabulous spicy curry dish courtesy of my [View Full Entry]

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Hello Loves, (Everyone here calls me love, salespeople, bartenders, ladies who ask me for the time... somehow I find it cute and not like the salespeople who call me 'sweetheart' or 'honey' back home... funny.) Not too much news to report (I say that now, but by then end of this entry, I am sure my verbose nature will have kicked in), but plenty of pictures to add. It is officially COLD in York. Even the people who actually live here are commenting on it, so I don't feel like too much of a complainer. I think I am beginning to [View Full Entry]

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