Today we moved from our very small and spare hotel room to a very roomy and cool "holiday stay" flat in Greenwich. We'll be in our temporary flat for 3 weeks while we seek permanent digs somewhere in London. Unfortunately, I gave in to my jet lag this afternoon and did not wake up from my long nap in time to take pictures of the flat in the daylight, but we will do that tomorrow and, until then, I'll describe it.
We were picked up yesterday evening by Patrick, the guy who represents the owner of the flat (The owner, apparently, is an artist...and not a very skilled one, unfortunately for those of us who are staying in the flat and are faced with her art for sale at every turn). Jim promptly tried to hop into the drivers seat of Patrick's car. We are getting better at not getting run over, but the steering wheel on the opposite side of the car phenomenon is still baffling us. We careened through the streets of London and invaded the privacy of a Nigerian lawyer who was staying in the flat while we poked through all of the rooms. The flat is three stories--tall and narrow--with a garden/patio in the back (too cold for that now, though) and a big, modern looking kitchen on the bottom floor, along with a sitting room which has a twin bed/chest built into the wall. Patrick decorated the room with lillies. In the kitchen, there is the smallest washing machine I have ever seen and there is no dryer, but, in the bathroom there are drying racks suspended from the ceiling, where we can dry our clothes. British flat design doesn't really leave room for washers AND dryers...or closets.
The second floor is where the main entrance is. There is a small living room with a TV and pull out couch. Down the hall is a spare bedroom and up some steep stairs is the third floor, where the master bedroom and a huge bathroom are. We have lots of beds here, in the event that anyone comes to visit us in the next few weeks. Can't say that for sure about where we'll end up permenantly.
The flats are in long rows down the street, with alleyways that lead to the Greenwich park, shopping areas, etc. We can hear the people next door walking around, babies crying, dogs barking. We're not far from the tube or the DRL (some other train system). Jim brought home a baguette and some delicious cheese that he got out in little markets here and there and on Sunday we'll line up at 10am to go to the Blackheath (neighboring village) Farmer's Market, where we can buy fresh local produce, milk, cheese, meats etc.
Tomorrow we are off to explore Hampstead Heath, where our friends Dan and Meg live. It's listed as one of the most beautiful walks in one of my London tour books.
