I'm Baaaack...

*sigh* Well, after about ten days without internet access, I have looked through everyone's blogs and fear I am thoroughly behind. Life, I suppose, goes on. :)

I have, in those past ten days, moved from my first apartment to a hotel room to a new apartment. Today is my second day in my new place (and the first day my internet access has been up – heaven forbid it work right away, of course :)). The change from apartment to hotel to apartment has been quite the study in possible living conditions…

The hotel was quite a change… If I were marketing it, I’d call it “cozy.” But I’m not, so I’ll call it small. Maybe even tiny. Whatever you call it, room and bathroom taken together were smaller than any one room in my previous apartment…

I had: a bed (a twin, slight step down from the former king size), a chair, a side table, a TV, and two (luxury of luxuries) bedside nightstands… each of which sported a funky lamp shaped and colored like a peach. Go figure. One thing I did not have is any place to put my clothes. Granted, there was a closet, but it was about five inches deep, so you’d have to hang things sideways, and at that, there’s only about enough space for four items… but that’s okay, ‘cause there were only four hangers anyway. There was no dresser. So, my clothes remained (wrinkled) in my bags, which sat between my bed and the window, allowing me to get out of bed on the other side (provided the bathroom door was shut). Of course, I had no way to cook for myself.

But don’t let the above description fool you. As rather eloquently stated in the Lemony Snicket movie I saw on the way over here, “there is always something.” Sometimes there are a lot of somethings. You just have to have the proper perspective. Try the below description on for size:

The hotel was a cute little bed and breakfast. The building was a renovated wood one: the outside was wood, the floors were wood, the window frame was wood, all the furniture was wood. The staff is terribly nice and helpful. Unlike in my apartment, I now had a normal, honest-to-goodness shower and a TV with cable. I got to watch Spongebob Squarepants in Russian and The Simpsons in German. I had two little green plants on my wide windowsill that added a nice touch of life. Oh, and that window looked out, not onto the noisy street, but to the back courtyard/alley. And I didn’t really lack for food. The place was, after all, a bed and breakfast, so I told them when I wanted to eat in the morning, went down, and they set my meal in front of me. And some breakfast it was: meat of about three varieties, cheese, and egg in some form. Oh, and there was strong Latvian coffee and orange juice and bread (rye, white, and wheat) and butter. And don’t let me forget the “breakfast dessert” – some sweetened and fruity something that came as you finished the first bit. Hard life, I know :). And, to try to keep from eating out, I found a little grocery store and picked up some nuts, dried fruit, rolls, and Nutella spread (a personal favorite). (The name of the grocery store, ironically, was Mini Maxima :).) Even the smallness of the hotel room began to grow on me. It was really… kinda… cozy… :)

And if that was nice… well, my new apartment must be something akin to heaven. It’s even bigger than the other one and furnished much more beautifully. Gone is the functional kitchen table, the straight-lined yellow couch, the brownish-green bedroom, the tiny bathroom. Here, it’s all dark wood with brass hardware and brocade upholstery. My bedroom is accented in blue and cream (much more to my liking) I also have a great admiration for the tiles used in the incredibly spacious bathrooms (yes, plural). Some of the more random pluses are skylights, screens on most of the windows, and a dryer (to accompany the washer). It’s located in a courtyard-like area filled with upper end shops, so the neighborhood is nice and terribly quiet. As I go to work I have the choice of going through the park or past the block-long 24/7 flower stands, which smell excellent and contain more colors than I’ve ever seen in one place. In fact, I went by there on my way home the other day and now three coral roses grace my coffee table in the living room. I can also fix my own supper in my own kitchen now… There’s something therapeutic about coming in after work and sifting through my foodly possessions to create a good tasting combination – and then consuming it :).

Well, that covers my accommodations for the past while… but, of course, I haven’t spent all my time indoors :). I’ll have to update my goings and doings as well – but another time. Currently dinner and laundry call :).