I didn't think it was going to happen, but today I actually enjoyed both English classes. I had sort of begun to enjoy the advanced class, but never felt I had a handle on the beginning class. It was purely an accident. It had nothing to do with the plan I had prepared. Just before the class began I asked about the vegetables that would begin appearing in the market as the weather got warmer. The students got out their dictionaries and started looking things up and calling out or walking up to show me the English names. I wrote them on the white board and then named a few they had not mentioned to see if they were familiar with them. Then I asked about flowers, then fruits, then trees, then animals from the forest. They really worked hard and fast, looking for the English words. We practiced them and made sentences, etc. We did do part of the lesson I had planned. We practiced a list of questions they might use when they come to the U.S. to visit us and the names of places.
After class, one young woman came up and read a message she and her husband had prepared to tell me that "Winter" time ends between Saturday night and Sunday morning and "Summer" time begins, so I would need to move my clock forward one hour. It must have taken quite a bit of time for them to prepare that message. How thoughtful.
The students also brought a copy of the newspaper article for me and were pleased that I had said what good students they were. The article was on page 7 but our little fat faces were front and center on the front page, right below the mast head. Slow news day, I'm figuring. By today, we are probably lining bird cages all over the city. Of course, I couldn't read it, but I did notice that occasionally a word that looked like joke appeared in the middle of something I said - I answered a question about food something to the effect that zeppelins were delicious but so big, but Daiva told me they were quite small, for example. At least the reporter understood that I meant no disrespect - I hope.
https://picasaweb.google.com/118279613107347865536/StoraAntis?authkey=Gv1sRgCLSB5omS7K6hHw
The pictures are of the restaurant where we ate dinner tonight. In case you wonder how it was that we felt so free to take pictures of the bathroom, we ate early and were the first to arrive for dinner.
The restaurant is on the next street from us, in the basement of a building that burned in 1856 and is a protected monument.. We go past it daily, but had thought it was just apartments, until someone at church mentioned it being a really good restaurant. Ten years ago, the owners of Stora Antis opened the reataurant, leaving the brick walls and ceilings uncovered and decorating with old radios, old musical instruments and other neat stuff. It has two small rooms. The outer room is pub style and has the bar. The other is a white tablecloth sort of place with a table for 2 and 2 tables for 6. It would be worth the trip just to see the place, but as you can see, the food is beautiful. Presentation, presentation! And it is absolutely delicious. It specializes in dishes from Russia, Poland, the Ukraine and the Balkans. The little cucumber vases with carrot flowers surrounded by red and green lettuce with bits of leek for leaves were elegant. I had salmon, and Del had calamari. It was a large, large tube that had been sliced and rolled back so that it looked like a blossom.
The most amazing thing, however was what came in that beautiful bill box. The total for 1 wine, 1 beer, 2 entrees, 1 coffee and 1 hot chocolate plus U.S. style tip was $45. Can you believe it?
Tomorrow is Del's teaching day. I will do my chores, and then I get to baby sit Levi for a couple of hours. Woo Hoo!
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