On Monday we moved into our new flat. Since we were able to negotiate for storage space in the garage, we decided on the two-story flat near the Stray. None of our stuff has arrived from Tokyo, so we are using loaner furniture and household goods from the base. We have one sofa, one easy chair, a double bed, one night stand, one coffee table, one end table, a dining room table and four chairs and the most basic of housewares. We have a coffee pot that doesn't work. Army-style linens: two starchy white flat sheets, pillow cases and thin pillows and a scratchy gray wool blanket. I will be sooo glad when our own stuff arrives! No radio. No TV. We have a British washer and dryer which means the loads are small and it takes about 1.5 hours minimum for one wash cycle! Yesterday, I spent the day cleaning out the kitchen and discovered that, though we have plenty of cabinets, there are no drawers whatsoever! We'll have to improvise for storage of cutlery and utensils. We also just realized there is a street lamp right outside our bedroom window. Even though the window has full length drapes, it is still quite bright in our bedroom at night. Brad says, the light doesn't bother him, but I've had trouble falling asleep and am thinking of getting some black-out blinds for the bedroom windows. Of course, no place would be perfect and we are still quite happy with our new apt. The rooms are spacious and the landlord used muted colors throughout on the walls. There are mint green wall-to-wall carpets throughout. The only rooms without carpet are the kitchen, laundry room and one bathroom. The other two bathrooms have wall-to-wall carpeting, something we found to be quite common in the houses and flats we looked at. We are guessing it's because a tile floor here would be quite cold, especially in the winter time.

We have been enjoying exploring the neighborhood. We are just a 15-minute walk from the bus station, the train station and the city center. In another direction there are many interesting restaurants and shops. There are a few antique and second-hand shops near us that don't look quite as pricey as the antique stores in the city center.

Our landlord and landlady are a very nice British couple. They spend half the year in Florida (north of Orlando in a community with lots and lots of golf courses). The other half of the year they live in the same building as us on the upper two floors. They are quite friendly and have given us a standing invitation to join them for their weekly get-togethers with other neighbors at a nearby pub.

Tomorrow we plan to attend the Great Yorkshire Show. It's like a county fair in the U.S. with lots of agricultural displays. It takes place about a mile from our apt. and we plan to walk there as we imagine traffic and parking will be a nightmare.