Hey mama rock me.

So you thought I wouldn’t have anything to write about seeing as I’d just been sat inside all day, huh? More fool you! Prepare to be subjected to the ramblings of my brain after it’s been under-stimulated for the better part of a couple of days.

So what did I do on my days off? I started by writing the previous entry, which you’ve no doubt read by now, before charging some camera batteries and the like so that everything’s ready when I can walk around again.

An American woman in the lobby wanted some coffee and I told her that there was free coffee in the kitchen. As it turns out, she wanted an American sized serving of European coffee because American coffee tastes ‘like someone poured hot water through a dirty sock’. It’s a fairly apt description, and one which can also be applied fairly accurately to their beer if you substitute the hot with cold.

I took advantage of the fact that I’d brought some videos with me and watched some 24 while I looked at some sexy guitars on the internet. When it was time for lunch I relocated upstairs to the dining area and cooked a meal. I threw in some spices, pepper and hot sauce and it tasted really good. I’ve certainly had worse in restaurants.

While I was cooking I got talking to an old man from Seattle who seemed a little eccentric. He’s over here for a conference on Islamic terrorism and what can be done about it. I invoked rules 1 & 2 and gave some very diplomatic responses to his questions on my views.

The weather outside has been fairly bland all day so in that respect I haven’t missed a lot. On the other hand I had planned to visit more museums so I wouldn’t have been outside anyway.

Sean came in after working on his research and invited me to Georgetown to meet some people he met at another hostel. I would have loved to but I thought it for the best that I stay in and rest the leg. There were rumours of free tacos circulating in the evening, but the limit on the number of people had been reached, so we went for a quick walk to get some food from somewhere close by. His friends ended up canceling as they had to work.

I started talking to a really nice guy who teaches singing in high school. His adopted son lives in Nashville and he called him up to ask for a few recommendations for good things to do when I’m out there. He sounded a bit like he’d been put on the spot when I spoke to him, and I suppose he had, but between him and his friends they gave me a few suggestions which is good. I’m sure a black man with a ginger, gay son doesn’t raise any eyebrows.

After our food we came back to the hostel with a view to watching a film and bumped into Sarah who we’d seen the night before. After a bit of talking we went through to the TV room. Some other people had just put on Spy Games so we sat down to watch it.

It was then pretty much bedtime after I’d had a drink in the cafeteria, where I overheard what has to be one of the greatest quotes ever: ‘I’m opposed to microwaves’.

When I woke up the next day my leg was a little better but still not perfect, and I was concerned that if I tried walking around all day I’d just make it worse again. Unfortunately this meant that I would have to remain in the hostel for another day, which is a little frustrating as there’s still so much I want to see here. The idea was that with any luck it would clear up enough that I could do something in the evening, or at the very least be able to make the most of my final day in D.C. on Thursday before I caught the bus in the evening.

If there’s any consolation, I suppose it’s that of all the things here, the museums are the ones which can perhaps be experienced most authentically by looking at pictures, and I’ve done most of the monuments and landmarks already.

I’ve also taken the opportunity to catch up on the uploading of my photos which has been oft-interrupted so far, so if I do manage to lose my computer over here at least I’ll have copies of most of the photos I’ve taken up to this point.

I know hostels are used by a diverse range of people, but one thing which has surprised me is the number of other people who stay in using laptops during the day. Of course, it’s possible that they’re all afflicted with various ailments as well, but I’d be fairly surprised. I will concede that the couple in front of me had spreadsheets open and did seem to be having a fairly in-depth discussion about their contents. I can’t say for sure though, because I don’t speak oriental languages.

The throat/headache combo hadn’t really got any better so I decided to get some fresh air and sat out on the patio after lunch for a bit of guitar playing action. It’s just a real shame the action’s so high it’s not very playable.

A little while later I saw Sean again. As I still wasn’t sure about how my leg would hold up we sat down to watch Blazing Saddles in the tv room. All of a sudden people arrived and we learned that there was a communal screening of No Strings Attached scheduled, so Blazing Saddles was sadly interrupted and we stayed to watch that instead. Verdict: generic rom-com with the welcome bonus of Natalie Portman in her underwear.

After the film we went back to the patio with the guitar to play some more songs. A little while later we were receiving rounds of applause from a table of German girls nearby before being joined by Hacob, an Armenian who is studying in London. I managed to lose my plectrum, and it was soon time for bed.

This morning I had breakfast, said goodbye to Sean, showered, and packed before checking out. I walked to the Greyhound station to buy my pass before returning to the hostel for lunch. It was then that I realised I’d left my food in the kitchen and no longer had my keycard to get back there. Luckily the guy on the desk was very helpful and let me in. As the leg is still a bit on the tender side I decided to cook lunch and then just relax for a while.

It was shortly before this that I realised I had somehow managed to lose yet another pair of sunglasses. I’m fairly sure I’d not lost a pair in my life before this trip, and yet somehow since coming here I’ve managed to lose two in two weeks. I really hope this doesn’t become a habit, although to be honest they’re probably buried somewhere in one of my bags.

It’s now almost time to leave the hostel behind and return to the Greyhound station to head to my next destination. Interestingly enough, some of you are so impatient you seem to think I’ve already departed but I can assure you I have not. Even though I haven’t been able to do everything I wanted to do here I’ve still had a lot of fun seeing what I did manage to see and speaking to the people I’ve met.