This is a big city, and quite intimidating, I have had this feeling before when arriving in large cities, I think it is the enormity of a place and being a complete unknown that takes a few hours to get used to. I sort of liken it to the uncomfortable feeling I get when entering an unfamiliar bar or pub and I don't know where all the exits are in case I should have to leave in a hurry.
Everywhere I turn someone is warning me about how dangerous this place is, at the Washington monument this morning, one chap said there were more tourist muggings here than in Myanmar, a strange analogy as I thought only 4% of Americans had passports, how come they know so much about European politics and the security situation for tourists in former Burma?
Finally found some decent coffee in an Eritrean corner shop, thick with the smell of steam and roasting beans, I ordered the Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, double shot with a twist of lemon for starters. No way can I abide those double half fat skinny caramel mocha latte bollocks everyone seems to order here.
I am told by the barrista who is Eritrean that his country grows no coffee of their own and import it all from Ethiopia (their bitter foe!) he explained the skill lies in the blending and the roasting of the beans to achieve the right balance between bitter and smooth, well he has done a damned Capital job - as the fog from a late-night-got-to-finish-my-book session so that I can start Crime and Punishment (don't ask why I am reading this it is a long story!) has now cleared and I am feeling more upbeat about what lies ahead.40 seconds, that's how long you have to cross the streets of Washington, and they seem to be timed, so that by the time you have cleared the street and walked the block you have another 40 second wait before you can cross. Bloody hell it takes ages to walk a mile in this place - nobody seems to be jaywalking so I had better not start now and spark another loyalist uprising.
I need to find the Jefferson monument, maybe his musings on enlightenment and pursuit of liberty and freedom with raise my spirits.
Free wireless access is in abundance here in the US, everywhere I have been, I have connected online instantly, which is great as I don't tend to travel with guide book or a map, and normally arrive in places without having even booked my first bed for the night. A word to the wise don't ever do this in LA, but here in DC it seems to have worked out fine. I am currently in the cafe in Castle Smithsonian, checking on the BA industrial strike action (could have called that kid Mickey I met in SV - and he would have known!), updating my blog, checking up on the sale of my house, just bought some more shares in Lok'n'store (where all my worldly possessions are currently residing in Farnborough) and have transferred some more money from savings to "checking" as they say over here.
Where has the day gone, I have got to go and visit the Natural History Museum and see the Hope Diamond before they close.
Pic: Washington Monument early morning - 30/1/07
No comments:
Post a Comment