Spring breaks

Amsterdam was fantastic. Exactly what was needed to get through the exam period - both at the library and in terms of the growing stack of marking ... I always find it strange to be in a city purely as a tourist. Firstly cause I'm so very much a home-body; not that I prefer to be in my actual home (especially now as we're still in the dingy terrace anticipating the move to our new digs at the end of the month) but because I like to be comfortable and familiar. We got a self-catering place in Jordaan between the Rosengracht and a side-canal. It does go a long way to feeling at home to have a 'home' to go to at night rather than a hotel. If we'd rented bicycles, we'd have fit right in!

The city is so quiet compared to Leeds - and so clean. Take everything with a block of salt, but it felt friendlier and more relaxed. I do think that the fact that there are just less cars on the road makes a huge difference. And the cafe culture! On the corner of our little street there was a little bar/cafe - straight out of some 'olde worlde' black-and-white film - where old men sat playing chess and smoking cigars, drinking innumerable cups of coffee and measures of Belgian beer (La Chouffe). We spent our last night there, playing 4-person chess and drinking beer. It was perfect. Our little flat had a wee garden at the back for a quiet glass of wine in the evenings as well.

Based on that - I could live there. Provided, as I mentioned to my friend over coffee this morning, that I was on permanent vacation. Is it too much to ask??

So now we're back in Leeds. The library is getting gradually quieter as the exam period winds down. Marking, on the other hand, is piling up! But at least it has a very firm deadline for finishing.