my first week in Coventry

written beginning November...

back in Strasbourg before the move  

    

and the window in the lving room in the flat

 

my bedroom

        Naomi in the flat

One week in Coventry now…

Martin and Jon came over and did a marathon drive to Strasbourg in a hired van to pick me and my stuff and help me move to Coventry last Saturday. We underestimated the space needed for the electric wheelchairs and there wasn’t enough room for everything and now there is stuff left in Strasbourg. Driving through Luxembourg and Belgium, we arrived in Coventry (after a key pick up and tea stop at Jon and Martin’s houses) at 5 am. They got all the stuff unloaded and put the bed together for me – those two guys are heroes in my books! They then left me to it and went to return the van and home to recover.

The flat is brand new. I figured out how the dishwasher worked. The fridge freezer only arrived this morning after a week. The washing machine seems to have a leak at the pipes..good thing I have lots of clothes. I wonder if I can send the laundry bill to the landlord! I think I need to find a cleaner soon. There is parquet flooring everywhere but the rooms are not very big and I cannot shut the door after me in the bathrooms – one is an en suite shower. Gian kindly took off the door to the bathroom and fitted some curtains because I couldn’t effectively use either of the bathrooms properly. There is a step into the shower.

I like my new flat. I come through the garage because it is the easiest way to get in. It is in the city center next to Coventry Market with lovely fresh produce and spices etc. Naomi, who came for the weekend, and I went food shopping and came back with lovely okra and fresh Cornish mackerel. There was rabbit at £1.50 each but we were too late – they were sold out that day. Banks, the rail station, the cinema, and restaurants are all within a stone’s throw away. I have no Internet or phone yet which is a bit of a problem for communication and administrative stuff. 

One week into the job and I am getting to grips with it. My colleagues are all very welcoming and we go to lunches quite often together. We’ve been to Brown’s where they give generous helpings but the salads are surprising – for me anyway..have to remember to ask for green salad next time. We have also been to the Herbert Gallery where the food is less copious but very good. The fish and chips were excellent. One day I shall explore the museum part of it.

The office is quite cramped really…all open space but access with a wheelchair is not so easily maneuverable. The disabled toilet is in the next door building..HOWEVER, the building is being renovated so it will be different next year. Let us hope it will be done before the end of my one-year contract.