Brixham, Flotsam and Jetsam

Greetings from overcast Plymouth!  I wanted you to get the full effect of my newfound blogging in all of its glory.  You'll notice my posh Rosetta Stone-turned-Skype headset.  It cost a cool 150 bucks, as it seems to be the only element of our Rosetta Stone kit that has gotten any use....I'm disgusted too, pondering all of the lovely things I could have bought with that money.  We VOWED to utilize the well-praised system with regularity but alas, the only thing we've done "regularly" over the last 6 months has been to familiarize ourselves with the finest of local Indian cuisine.

Aside --> if you love Indian as much as I do, I recommend the following places...you know, in case you're ever in Munich or, say, Plymouth:

* GOA - don't worry, I can't read it either.

* The Eastern Eye - exotic, I know.

To get this diffuse blog back on track, I have some photographs to share from our recent trip to Brixham where I exercised some of my digi-cam's color options.  To summarize Brixham, I'll quote you the Chamber of Commerce: "Big-Hearted Brixham - The Little Gem in Torbay".  Gotta love anything branded "little gem".  The site then goes on to describe Torbay as the "English Riviera"...you can judge for yourself momentarily.  Brixham (like Plymouth) is in the county of Devon, way down in the southwest of England.  Allow me to provide a visual:

Brixham is known for it's fish.  That may be it.  To be fair, it was a gorgeous drive through the country/down the coast to get there, and I did find it fantastic in a run down, rustic, coastal village kind of way.  There was something very authentic about Brixham.  It just didn't try too hard to maintain the perfect balance between beautiful and eerie.  We dined in what was the only open restaurant in February, and discovered that, aside from the summer months, dear Brixham is basically deserted save the sailors.  I mean, I always wanted to see a true sailor anyway....just wish I had.  Enough commentary - here are the pictures.

The nautical world is full of great primary color.

Still experimenting with my Blue Period.

Tide was out, but by the time we left these boats were under water.

cheeeeeeese!

Straight out of the Shire, no?!

The color accent option on my camera lets me feel all artsy fartsy.

another Rainbow Row!

Could be a greeting card.  Front: "I'm so blue",  Inside: "I miss you"

(I missed my calling didn't I)

I love the rusty canisters.  I think this is my favorite picture of the day.  It has serious layers to it.

Tide's in.

 

Brixham made us a mean cup'a joe before we left.

** I haven't figured out the best way to format the pictures that I put on here.  When I try to make them bigger, they get cut off.  I'm sure I'll stumble upon a solution at some point...

*** I failed to mention Brixham's true claim to fame: 2009 Guinness World Record for "the most pirates in one gathering" with 1,467.  Our waitress was beeming with pride.  They hope to break their record again this April 30-May 3 at the Brixham Pirate & Shanty Festival.  And we didn't see a single sailor or pirate.  I'm going back...

God Save the Queen!

**** I created this post 1 day after arriving in Plymouth; however, I'm still a noob and hit "save" instead of "post".  Of course, since I'm also spastically incosistent, I didn't notice until now, 3 weeks later, as I attempt my next post.  Read on...


We made it to England, +7 bags.  God Save the Queen!  First stop was the Marks & Spencer Simply Food in Gatwick.  It was all I could ask for and more after a long delay in Munich due to snow, naturally.  Upon arrival in Plymouth, we quickly fell in love with this beautiful, quaint, massively old coastal city.  It far exceeded our expectations, and man, Brits are just awesomely funny.

We needed serious fuel to negotiate 7 bags through the airport.  This woman on the right's all like "bloody Yanks".

Obligatory new-city smooch.

I've already sampled the fish and chips and relaxed with my new friend, the BBC - he speaks English impeccibly.  I think I'm ready to go!  Should be an adventurous week as I scour the town for suitable housing - a feat at which I've become quite skillful.  Modus operandi, you ask?  The World Wide Web, my chucks, and a map (small enough that I'd don't look like Tourist of the Year - an irrational fear of mine...more on those later).  I will readily accept any guidance the concierge will provide me, given he doesn't hate me as I've phoned him no less than 4 times since arriving a few hours ago (I am my mother after all *smiles*).

I'm enjoying life as a blogger, green though I may be.  I only wish I'd have begun sooner, in Munich.  I suppose the internet would have been fundamental in that...

Returning to the randomness that I'd like this blog to maintain, I give you a new list.  This one, of whimsical thoughts that came to me of sleep deprivation and cultural disorientation!

1.  Etta James looks decidedly like cupid.  I just don't see the naken baby with wings, I see this soulful singer.  You pickin up what I'm puttin down?

2.  Cucumbers make water taste so fresh, I can't understand why I don't drop them in a tall glass more often.

3.  I'm no professor, but hearing someone use "could have went" in a sentence makes me cringe.

4.  The difference between tissues with aloe and tissues without is like the difference between cashmere and sandpaper.  Buy the aloe-enhanced.

5. Felt is a neglected textile.  It's innumerable uses and soft durability should not to be overlooked.  In Munich there was a shop dedicated entirely to felt.  I wanted to roll around in it.

6. There is a British sitcom called "Gavin & Stacey" - download it immediately.