Saturday Shopping

Saturday morning at Morrison House--our flat is the second floor or the first floor over here. We have many windows but they are on the sides and back. We do have a little balcony useful for testing the temperature. The ground floor has offices for tutors.

We have had perfect weather here--crispy cool and sunny days and the warmest winter on record. On Saturday we saw our first frost. I hoped it would be on the trees as Cambridge has stunning frosts but today it just covered the grass,

quite beautiful when looking down on the foliage of this ground cover.

We went over to Newnham, a small village close to Wolfson. We took our big red shopping bag--a Christmas gift from Brett--

and loaded up with fresh plaice from the fish truck,

whole meal bread and caramel squares from the bakery,

curry powder, a newspaper, and daffodils from the Deli which is small and expensive but has one of everything, even a post office and laundry. Owned and run by an enterprising and gracious Indian family (who have relatives in Charlotte), it has been here for years. One of our retired friends has his food delivered from here every week.

We popped into the Co-op, cheaper, and even smaller--it can get very crowded and difficult to navigate, especially with backpack or big shopping bag. But we get things like milk and soap powder here.

The Butcher shop is lovely with the freshest vegies out front, delicious meat and lots of interesting condiments inside, such as a really nice Jalfrezi sauce here that I use for seasoning veggies and meat.

Later, we went into the City Centre. Saturdays, especially now during January sales, bring in many shoppers. The buskers add music and and entertainment. There was a band playing an energetic "When the Saints Go Marching In," but I couldn't get close enough for a photo.

Our favorite is the musician in the litter box! I left him a good tip; although I am not sure how he collects his tips!

Kevin's favorite store--Club Outfitters--where you can get all manner of College apparatus--ties, scarves, socks, sweatshirts, china, baby clothes that show your colors. Johns is the bright red, the red blaze and where the word blazer comes from.

This window sports the undergraduate commencement robe with white fur for fifty pounds and also reflects the University Church, St Marys.

The other view of St. Marys, with bicycles parked and flyers on gate--a common site in Cambridge. There are many bicycles here and I worry about getting hit by them as they go very fast. I'm sorry I missed the photograph of the cycling father pulling his daughter in a cart where she sat reading a book. Another missed one was a young man followed so closely and rhythmically by his big red dog that they looked tied together.

The market has several green grocers and this is my favorite. The signs tell customers where the veggies and fruit come from. The big carrots and potatoes are British grown. Another kind of potato comes from Israel and sweet long red peppers and oranges from Spain.

I enjoy looking at the fresh flowers and plants in the market.

I took a list and we were able to get a lot accomplished--too often we are distracted by all the sights that we forget what we came for. Then home again. Then supper-- the plaice was delicious--and good tv, a new Danish series Borgen about a woman Prime Minister and an old favorite Midsomer Murders.

Later we went over to the College Bar for a Bailey's Creme, a special tradition we shared with our friends Australian Jennifer and Steven Pickard whom we knew in Durham. We enjoyed the conversation with the bartender Jeremy from Queens, NY and a hockey player from Canada.