The flat we put a bid on seems like it will be really hard to sell when that time comes, and the owners want more than the market value for it, so unless they take our second low offer today, we'll pull out and formally keep looking for new places. So, in anticipation of this, last night Simon, Marius and I went to check out two flats. One was fairly nearby, and I loved it, the second was by the beach, and I was not totally in love with it. The first one was a ground floor (meaning first floor in the US) flat and it has a bit of private garden in the front and a huge shared drying green in the back that is dying for some tender loving care. The bedrooms are miniscule, but manageable. The living room is nice and roomy with high ceilings and original crown moulding. The kitchen is a huge dining kitchen with brand new counters and cabinets, and a huge walk in cupboard. The bathroom is a shower room, which will make bathing the kid for the next few years interesting..... But new and lovely. The building is an old red sandstone tenement and in a nice neighbourhood close to Simon's work and walking distance to a great park and duck pond.
The second flat we looked at is by the beach, which I love. But it's in a newer (probably 1930's as opposed to the 1880‘s/Victorian buildings we have been looking at) building with no real character on the outside. It needs some modernization and upgrading, is on the first floor (that's really the second floor in the US), has NO parking nearby. But is has ocean views and overlooks the elementary school's playground and field giving it a really open feeling, and it's a lot cheaper than the other places we've looked at - meaning we could afford to buy a used car if we get it(this becomes important further down). So, we have a lot to think about in the next few weeks. We'll still keep our eyes open though to see what new comes on the market that we'd be interested in.
Right, well, so we were driving back home from looking at this beach flat and about a quarter mile away from our flat in one of the busiest intersections in town when all of a sudden the car died. It just stopped completely in the middle of a turn. Cars were honking like we were idiots and zooming around us giving us dirty looks. I just held my hands up, like "what am I supposed to do..." So, Simon got out and pushed us onto the main street in the bus lane. Thank goodness a car with two young men stopped and asked us if we needed a jump. We had no clue if that was what the little car needed, but tried it anyhow. And it worked! For 20 seconds that is. Then the car died again. They jumped it a second time and it died a second time. So, then we (Simon and the two young lads) just pushed the car onto a side street and it is still sitting there as I type.
I was reluctant to have these two kids give Marius a ride without his car seat, so we told them that we could walk home just fine. Marius was in his orange snow suit, so I wasn't worried about the cold. We got all of half a block, when we walked past a house of one of the professor's in Simon's department. This is the guy who let Simon stay with him for the first 2 weeks while he was setting up everything for Marius and me, so he knows them pretty well. And I thought, I could walk home in the cold, or we could knock on their door and get a lift in their new Jag... Needless to say, we had a very short ride home in a super nice car!
Oh, and the AA part, no, I wasn't drinking and driving. The AAA equivalent here is call the UK Automotive Association, or AA. Since we'll need a tow, I figured joining now would just about make up for the cost since the price of a tow will likely be about the year membership with AA. So, Tuesday I will call AA and get my first tow to the garage. I hope it won't cost too much to fix, as the car is a heap of junk and we don't want to spend anything on it. But since it was given to us for free we can't complain too much. We just want a "real" car with 4 doors. But first a flat, then we'll have an idea of our budget and can buy a car or not afterwards.
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2 comments:
Sorry -- I just couldn't help but wonder... did the jag have a car seat as well? ;) You know, just to be annoying :)
Good luck with the apartments! I'm sure you guys will find something that has the three Bs (in Spanish: Bueno, Bonito, y Barato) :)
I just found out that I did not get the other fellowship... so... I'll have to look for something else (maybe) to do for the second year we are here... wha!
No, no car seat in the jag. We could have gotten ours out of the car, but the ride was litterally 2 minutes on residential streets at 9:00 on a Thursday night.... Not that the pieces of crap that pass as infant car seats here would make much difference in a crash. I'm shocked that they are as horrible as they are.
Anyhow, sucks about the funding... Well, you and Chase could always get busy with the baby making!!!
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