Day 63: 6/2/2018
Today was another good day filled with fun, work, and relaxation.
I got up around 8.30 knowing that the only plan I have today was to go out for a good breakfast in York. P’Gluay and I have not been out for a good breakfast or brunch since we touched down here in York. Since I did some research on where to go last night, I woke up today having a clear thought of where to go.
The restaurant of the day was Barbacan Bistro, a Polish restaurant which happens to be on the top of every review list in York. So, the choice was not too difficult to make. Expecting it to be crowded based on reviews I had read, I was a tad surprised to find that there was only a table before us. We thought it was due to the rain and we were lucky not to have to wait at all.
As soon as we went it, we were greeted by friendly staff who appeared to be very Polish both their looks and their language. The restaurant itself was beautifully decorated and it felt very much homey. After a few minutes of studying the menu, we both decided to order English Breakfast off the menu because 1) we were extremely hungry; and 2) we wanted to try the traditional breakfast.
Their English Breakfast was hearty and delicious. The ingredients were cooked to perfection, especially the mushrooms which we both loved and enjoyed the most. Another favorite element of this dish was the toasts. Unlike other toasts I have tried for this same dish, their specialty toast (which I completely forgot its name) was fantastic, crispy on the crust but soft on the inside. They were also slightly sweet which complemented well with lightly salted butter. We both loved the dish but our first attempt with black pudding seriously failed as we did not like it at all. The waiter later informed us that people either hate it or love it when it comes to black pudding. It is normal for us to fall into one of the two categories.
Before it gets a bit too much like a restaurant review that a journal of my PhD journey, let us move on to another part of the day. (It is still PhD life related anyway. :P)
Then we went to a new Chinese grocery we had never been to before. Overall, it was okay but it might not be worth the trip from our apartment.
We spent the afternoon on making a quick grocery shopping, having lunch at home, and video call meeting with a new Facebook friend. It was a restful part of the week which I really enjoy and look forward to actually.
In the evening, I decided to continue reading Words & Minds (Mercer, 2000) that I had started yesterday. This time, I decided not to stay at my desk. Instead, I moved to a sofa and it was pretty relaxing (this was a part of my reading strategy testing) that I fell asleep after reading there for only half an hour. The situation went downhill when I dragged myself onto the bed and stayed there. Surprisingly, I did not fall asleep but stayed focused for an hour straight. I give all the credits to the book that kept me awake and focused.
A quick summary of the book I am currently reading, Words & Minds (Mercer, 2000), it discusses human communication and how we use language as a tool to think and get things done together and all the matters we do involves language. So far, I have learned so much about language, genre and functions of language. I specially like Mercer’s writing style — not too academic with plenty of everyday life relatable examples — and find this book a good read indeed.
All in all, it was a good day. I felt relaxed, restful and yet productive at the end of the day.
6/3/2018 12.13 am.
