Time is passing

There are still a few leaves clinging to the branches of the trees, but we are having our first snows. Marion (an archaeologist from France) and Weina (a physicist from China) and I are going to go down to the Christmas Market by the cathedral today.


Below was my first glimpse of Mainz in Nov. My first day here was a glorious, sunny autumn day. My room is in the Sportshaus. Maybe 8x10 with a shared bathroom and shower. Each floor has a common kitchen. This is a great place to live as it is only a 5 or 6 minute walk to the building that houses the Geography Institute. There is a sportsbar/restaurant with great food downstairs -- open during the week nights. I can catch the bus on the street that goes by the other side of the track. People from all over the world stay here while they train. Left-over rooms are available as interim homes while people like me, or new graduate students from other countries find places to live. We have people from France, Brazil, China, Russia, England, Mali, Senegal, and Viet Nam. That's only the few that I've spoken with. Great atmosphere and incredibly interesting!