I like moving. I always have.

Last Monday we moved to our new apartments. Our original arrangements were not really working out, so we lobbied for a move and a move was had. Five of us CS majors are in one apartment, and Tom and I are in another. Click on the slide show at the right to get to my pictures and check out the new digs.

We are operating sans internet, but in every other respect an upgrade has been realized. The neighborhood is nicer, the view is better, we have a washing machine and the landlord is wicked hospitable. "Landlord" actually carries misleading connotations in this case. Mirko, his wife and his kids live below us, and they are all very welcoming. Less than a week we have been here, and already they have twice insisted that we come in and sit for some drinks and snacks. As if that were not enough, we were also sent up a generous portion of homemade cake and croissants a few days ago. So we're doing alright.

I bought a lighter a couple of weeks ago not because I smoke but because it is something that people just expect you to have around here. Walking around without a lighter is rather analogous to walking around without pants or a shirt. Last night, for instance, I was waiting at a bus stop around midnight, and the one other person standing there asked if I had a light. He spoke in Croatian at first but switched over to English upon request. I was happy to help him out, and we proceeded to chat a bit until the number eight showed up. It turns out he is part of the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra (which I did not know existed) and had toured in the US. He said they had traveled around the East Coast and would soon be doing the same on the West Coast. Small world.

Speaking of small world, I was walking down the street recently and ran into three students from Emerson College. Apparently, about eighty of them were in Dubrovnik for a week, and it turns out that one of the three that I met is from Franklin, MA. Franklin is the next town over from my home town, and it was fun to have a conversation, albeit brief, in which I could say simply “140” and have it known that I meant Route 140 in the Franklin area.

I have some coding to do now. Remember, I am here on the pretense of academic pursuits. I should probably get on that.

Bok.