Fastest post ever

Sad news: no more jumping onto somebody else's wireless signal for the next little while... I know some of you might think less of me for doing so - but it's pretty pricey to pay for internet access here. We signed up with the British Telecom service for broadband but unfortunately won't have it set up until the 11th of Sept. And so here I am at another internet cafe, watching my time run down and thinking about how I miss sitting outside that other place with my laptop. We couldn't stand the size of the room there, but at least we had free internet - both with my laptop and the computer inside (when you could catch it not being used by somebody else).

Today we went over to Notting Hill in hopes of catching the big annual carnival that happens every year. Walked and walked and walked some more (I'm getting in good shape living here) but couldn't find anything. Turns out that even though it's the weekend now, the carnival doesn't start until tomorrow. So we'll walk and walk and walk to get back there again tomorrow :) Apparently it's a pretty amazing event - thousands of people (including celebrities - ooooh) go there, the shops all have sales, kiosks for food and other stuff everywhere, live DJs and bands from around the world. I'm pretty excited to be a part of that. Will definitely be back to update you all on how that goes!

I'm pretty tired from all of the walking we're doing, but am starting to settle in pretty well. The area we're in is completely gorgeous - walking distance from Kensington Gardens, a huge park with ponds and wildlife and trees everywhere. It's always pretty busy, but you don't feel congested at all, so it's a great place to grab a coffee and relax.

We're going to try hunting down some places that have free wifi hotspots tomorrow since apparently there is one close by. They generally have them in the fancier hotels, which there seem to be a few of in this area. While we were exploring today we found a late-night store that sells wine, beer (1.29 for king cans), hard liquor and fresh fruits and veggies. Interesting mix. But I guess at the end of a hard day of teaching I can always go for a bottle of rum and some oranges.

The clock's pretty much run out for my session here. I'll try to get back on this weekend to tell about our adventures at the Carnivale... good thing it's not like Mardi Gras or you might hear stories on the BBC abut a drunken Canadian singing her national anthem in Notting Hill wearing love beads and drinking rum out of a bottle.

hmmm maybe I'll try that anyway.
Until next time...