Ceilidh and double-drip beer

Sorry kids! Haven’t had internet for several days and I know you have all been pining away wondering what in the world could be going on…..and, no. I still have not re-discovered the elf.

So, I am a real student again, with an ID card and everything J My lectures seem like they will be quite interesting and quite more than a little challenging. Our introduction to the Centre for Language and Communication Research included one of the professors telling us several times that, “Yes. It is possible to fail!” Oh dear. Our first day of classes was today (last week was Orientation Week – I ‘went’ to the Pub Crawl with one of my classmates, Katharine, from Iowa, but we kind of turned it into our own pub crawl since we were feeling a little tired of chit-chatting).

Friday morning, 7.00 am, found me walking to the Central train station to catch my train to Derby. The humidity was working hard to make me feel like I was at home, and despite the chill in the air (and the lovely misting rain), I was sweating profusely by the time I arrived at the station. The lined raincoat will probably be appreciated in a month, but at the time I was rather disgruntled with it.

Four hours later, I was in Derby. After having a little indie-pop music party across the aisle interrupt my nap when some vexing first-year students got on the train in Birmingham – errrrrr. I went up early for the LINK Weekend, which was for all of the Rotary Scholars studying in Britain and Ireland this year (150 or so!). My housemates could not leave until after lectures, so they came up with Hiroko’s counselor that evening.

Toodled around Derby, visited the Cathedral and the market and lunched. The Cathedral and the Roman Catholic church, St. Mary’s, were designed by the same architect. (Sadly, I didn’t take a picture of the two towers juxtaposed since I was unaware of this tidbit until later.)

Diagonal from the train station is The Victoria Inn, which is a pub for up-and-coming musicians as well as other live music. David Gray started here! There is a disagreement in Derby right now as the pub, built in 1875, stands in the path of a billion pound regeneration project for the city. If you would like to sign a petition, you may do so at www.ipetitions.com/campaigns/save_the_vic_2005. (Got this from the Derby paper and is meant to demonstrate complete immersion and awareness of items of local concern, wherever that may be. lol.)

Was hosted by John and Jo Sartin, who live in Duffield, a village just north of the city. They are quite lovely and very interesting to talk with – John is retired from the insurance business and his hobby is woodworking. He made this lovely stool and some of the other furniture in the room where I stayed. Friday evening, they took me to a ceilidh (pronounced, kay-lee – this is an Irish/Scottish word meaning “a meeting, usually in a private house to sing, tell stories, play music, etc. – this one was a dance J) at the church parish hall; it was a surprise 70th birthday party for one of their friends. There was even a man in a kilt who danced like the wind! Have decided I like kilts. Party included wine and huge buffet as well! I want one (a ceilidh, not a kilt) for my 70th birthday, so everyone start planning! However, means will have to learn to dance coherently first…..

Saturday – toured Sudbury Hall with other Scholars. Sudbury is about 15 miles west of Derby and this is the hall of the Lords Vernon – the 11th Lord Vernon (from an indirect line) now carries the title, although the property is owned by the daughter of the last Lord Vernon, from the direct line. Females are not allowed to hold the title. Well! (Pictured to the left are herself, Fabiana and Hiroko, two of my housemates. The large green door is the entrance to the loos.)


Had a lovely half-pint at the Vernon Arms (pictured R) with John and some Rotary Peace Scholars from Australia (they are studying in Bradford, England) – the beer was a local brew double drip beer, which was quite hoppy and stronger than single brewed beer. It was interesting.

Evening sent all the Scholars to a Barn Dance in Nottinghamshire – and, no, there were no men in green tights. Much entertainment and music and I even braved it out onto the dance floor at the very end – my dance partner was Yaw, from Ghana, and as neither of us knew WHAT we were doing, it was quite amusing. Fortunately, the scholarship is not based upon coordination.

Sunday – quick meeting with Rotary officials. And then off to Cardiff! This time, I drove with my housemates, Mari (the other Scholar in Cardiff) and Hiroko’s host, Steve. After two hours, the stabbing pain behind my knee almost sent me over the edge, but self-control, self-control. How do I always end up in the middle? Oh, and guess what -- I was a big nerd with my map of Great Britain and Ireland (that the Rotary District so fabulously gave us – I do so LOVE maps!) and followed our progress the whole way home. Steve even took me (since the other 3 were crashed out) on a detour driving through the Welsh mountains from Monmouth, south toward Chepstow to drive past Tintern Abbey!!!!!! It was absolutely a gorgeous drive, except for the removing van that had us going 15 mph; and rounding a corner to see the delicate strength of the Abbey ruins was unreal. We only drove by but I will definitely be going back very soon. It was sad not to be able to stop since the day was perfect for pictures. And my camera was in the trunk. And I was monitoring my map. So I got no photographic evidence. But, no regrets, or else one’s neck tenses up and gives one a headache.

Continue to be obsessive-compulsive and have just finished foam-cleaning the carpet in a good portion of the house J hooray! This is not my first official Act of Procrastination, though, I promise!