Family visit

Clearly, I'm long overdue for an update here...

Survived my first graded assignment -- a group presentation for Television Cultures. Got a 65, which is about equivalent to an A- here. Will get my first essay back on Tuesday -- I'm really not too worried.

More importantly, my parents came up to visit the past few days. A brief summary:

-Wednesday -- Dinner at a nice vegetarian cafe near the B&B where they're staying
-Thursday -- Parents visit Lincoln (I'm sure they'll provide more details) during the day -- dinner at an Indian restaurant
-Friday -- My evil twin, Nathan arrives. Lunch at another vegetarian cafe, then some sightseeing -- first, the "City of Caves" -- look it up -- which is, bizarrely, entered through a shopping mall. Corny but fun. Then, to Nottingham castle (not actually a castle) which is a 17th-century (I think) mansion housing an eclectic art collection and historical exhibits. Dinner at a Latin American restaurant.
-Saturday -- Visit Nottingham's liberal synagogue, where Dad gives a d'var torah. Then, a visit to the university campus, and my very messy room. Back into town, took the tram a ways out and back just for the heck of it. Dinner at a Thai place (doesn't beat Middletown, but it suffices), then I said my goodbyes to Mom and Dad. In all honesty, it was pretty tough on me. But I'll manage. Nathan and I then headed off to the JSoc (campus Jewish Society) Purim party, which was... fun.
-Sunday - Nathan and I will meet up, wander into town, and eat lunch at a Vietnamese place. Then, we'll say our goodbyes as well -- not so big a deal as with my parents, because if all goes according to plan, we'll see each other in Paris in about 3 weeks or less.