still here

[derien]

Trying to decide if we'll make a break for Madrid, but that'll be probably at least $4,000 we can't afford at all. Have been trying to somehow convince myself that we could run up to visit the ever-fascinating wolfie_sara but really... we're feeling kind of poor at the moment, even if Virgin picks up our lodging bill and some of our food. The phone calls I've had to make alone are astronomical sums.

We have settled on a favorite breakfast place, I believe. :)

Yesterday we did half of the Millenium Walk, but were unable to cross the Millenium bridge because of a fire. Or they said it was just a fire, but I think they'd evacuated at least one office building judging by the crowd we saw when we did get to the other side of the river.

Today we did laundry (yay, I had spotted a launderette a few days ago when we were walking around!), watched the news obssessively, had headaches, and saw the original copy of Alice in Lewis Carrol's own hand at the British Library (free, yay!). Plus all sorts of other things like illuminated manuscripts and Beowulf. ;)

ETA: I can't get into my regular email, so if you've written me you can send it again to my yahell email if you use the link on my LJ profile - I changed it so that's my default email, for now.

Comments

[littleredhead.livejournal.com]

Alice! well, that's one neat thing. and breakfast is always good. I've been thinking a bunch about you guys & hoping you are doing ok...I'm sure it's a very odd combination of 'whee vacation' and 'oh my lord I want to go home'. but at least you're in good company.
I hope we still get to see you this weekend but of course we will play it by ear; you may want to nest & recuperate. (I postponed my surgery, so we can easily reschedule to next weekend.) (and ha, don't I wish that was your biggest concern at the moment!)
xoxoxox and more good-luck thoughts...

[(Anonymous)]

As it seems we're still scheduled for flying on Saturday, at the moment (we've been wondering every day if we'd see a change one way or the other, given the number of people who have to be moved at this point) we'd really LOVE to see you this weekend! :) And talk about our adventures and misadventures... We do need to nest a little - all our laundry will be dirty at that point - but if you feel like coming down to Freeport we can look at the changes in the landscape of the back yard together. We didn't get to plant anything but wildflowers before we left, but I imagine a lot of things are probably coming up by now.

And you'll have to tell us all about why you postponed your surgery again.

yeah, that was me...

[derien.livejournal.com]

I seem to have a hard time logging in. Well, I'm just not used to having to do it, I always keep it logged in at home.

miss you!

[(Anonymous)]

Looking forward to a breakfast state-side with you my dear. hope this volcano thing is not scary and that you are enjoying your extended vacation. i know that i would be!

...is there anyway you can bring that ash back to P-town so I can get out of work for a week!? love ya. be well. ~ Pheobe XOXO

[sospan-fach.livejournal.com]

Oh, God, you poor buggers. It's been a nightmare, hasn't it?
Crossing fingers Virgin will pay for the lot - someone bloody well should!

I recommend breaking into the nearest RAF airfield, hotwiring a Tiger Moth, and flying back to Maine beneath the height of the ash-clouds. :P Other than that not-so-helpful suggestion, nada. Sorry.

Whilst I am very much hoping for your sakes you are not still down there on Saturday, if you are, I shall see if I can try and make a visit to London! Or even one evening this week, if I can find out a) when the late trains are, and b) where you are stuck at the mo.

Also: Argh! I was just down in London Tue and Wed with work for the Book Fair! And I thought you were still at the Novotel, so I rang up to see if they would put me through to you so we could arrange a quick meet-up, but they said you weren't there any more, and I hadn't a clue how to contact you or find out where you were staying, so...

...argh, indeed. :P

(My kid brother, and another lad from his school, and 2 teachers, were due to fly back from their school trip in Poland on the day Mr. Volcano started up. They're still over there, and recently elected to hack back over land and sea. So, last I heard, Jon was having breakfast in Dusseldorf this morning! Whilst we are teasing Mum a bit about her fretting slightly over her Poor Disabled Child Stuck In Europe (and, most specifically, whether PDC has enough clean clothes and underwear - seeing as PDC is an 18-year-old lad, we doubt he is overly concerned about that ;)), he's apparently loving the holiday extension and having a whale of a time. :D As one would if one doesn't have to be paying for it oneself!)

Chin up, nolite des bastardes carborundorum, and hope you manage to enjoy your extended time here (as it seems you're making a concerted effort to do). At least the weather's nice...?

[(Anonymous)]

oh my god I'm such an idiot for not letting you know where we were! *kicks self soundly!* We're at the Travelodge King's Cross (Grey's Inn Road), but we'll be leaving Saturday. :( I know it's expensive to get down here, though - now I have some concept of how expensive! - so I don't want to beggar you!

[derien.livejournal.com]

er, that was me of course.

[sospan-fach.livejournal.com]

Ah, you're not an idiot! I should have checked beforehand (just assumed you were still at Novotel, obviously didn't read through your LJ properly), but was running round trying to sort everything for work, and didn't think to ask if my boss would let me off the leash long enough till we were already down there...

Are you definitely on a flight Saturday, then? Is there hope? Or should we start co-ordinating Red Cross packages?

[derien.livejournal.com]

Still no word from Virgin as to any change for us, so we're planning on Saturday, and if my last anonymous post didn't go through we're planning to head for Heathrow around 11AM, but probably won't go through security until about 1400. :)

And re meeting up Tuesday - maybe it wouldn't have worked even if I had changed my email address on livejournal sooner. I could wish for a mobile phone which would work in England, but then again I could wish in one hand and... yeah. :)

to be more specific...

[derien.livejournal.com]

We really don't want you to spend money you can't afford, seriously. It's kind of expensive! But if you are thinking about coming down we want say you'd be more than welcome to come down on Friday any time you felt like it, hang around, show us what we can do on a Friday night, (sounds lame but we've been in before dark every day) stay in our room, and keep us company on the way to the airport on Saturday.

[sospan-fach.livejournal.com]

P.S. WHat time Sat are you going? :)

[(Anonymous)]

We probably should leave about 11AM on Saturday, to give us time to get there on the tube and to check in if there's a big mess at the airport. We don't actually fly out until slightly after 1500, so I'm thinking 1400ish we'll go through security.