Well, I made it! The plane rides weren’t anywhere near as harrowing as the one from Japan to Vancouver (almost all turbulence) and because I wasn’t travelling with Jarrod, I actually got to read! Any of you who have seen Susanna Clarke’s “Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell” know what a huge book it is (for those of you who don’t, it’s regular-sized print, trade paperback size paper, and 3 inches thick). I read half of it while travelling, Yes, HALF! It was nice to do that. Now that I’m not travelling, it will be my bedrime book, and I will likely not get thorugh it so fast. I need to do my course reading during the day now. Yay! Course reading!

Travelling from Heathrow Airport to Paddinton Station in London was quite simple (if expensive – £14/$33) except for the fact that I had 2 – 31kg bags, and 2 – 10kg carry-ons. I now know that the backpack I bought was well worth it! It really is a great one! I had many offers from people to help me getting off & on trains, complete with guys joking about me carrying around a dead body;. Little did they know that most of one of my 10kg carryons was 2 books that have a whole lot to do with dead bodies – Gray’s Anatomy & (less about dead bodies, but bodies nonetheless) The Anatomy of Hatha Yoga. (Just writing down the titles of those books is getting me excited about my project! Yay!)

Mouni, one of the owners of the very nice B&B I’m staying at, picked me up at the Totnes train station & quickly drove me up to the B&B on one of the many hills. I thought where we were in Japan was hilly! I am not going to have a problem losing the extra 5-10 pounds I put on in Sasktoon while we’re here! Especially since we’re planning on biking everywhere! I also though that Japanese streets were very maze-like. Japan has nothing on the streets of Totnes! Nothing! When I went out to find the internet cafe & get some supper tonight I managed to find both the internet place and a good restaurant. Both are expensive but I think I’m goign to have to get used to that! I plan on spending a half hour and £1 ($2.20) at the cafe tomorrow (typing this). I am also going to try to buy a bike! And hopefully find a cheaper food source for lunch & supper. Maybe even make it to the college!

Anyways, back to the mazes! Aftetr I had supper, I managed to follow the map to what will be Jarrod’s school. But instead of walking back to the B&B along the River Dart, I decided to take an alternate route. I got a little lost. Not lost enough to panic, but lost enough to lose my sense of direction, even with the map. I did find my way back, by walking up & down more hills. It was a gorgeous walk – stone walled covered in vines, old brick houses, etc. This really is a lovely place. I’ll post pictures once I have my own computer hooked up to the internet, which likely won’t be until October.