Document 888

Correspondence from Canada: Letter 40 - 03.05.82

Author(s): 852

Copyright holder(s): Name withheld

The Maggie
3rd May '82.

Dear Mum & Dad,

I hope that this reaches you before you leave for foreign parts. Have a great holiday; relax and enjoy yourselves. By the time you return I should know if I'm going to Egypt or not - I expect news any day now.

Despite some cooler weather (and a flurry of snow on May 1st and 2nd!), summer has truly arrived. I've invested in a pair of ultra-cool Foster Grants which flip up at a mere touch of the lens, and an incredibly hip sunhat. It's a kind of straw fedora - like Humphrey Bogart wore. People keep laughing, and I don't know why. It was either that or a baseball hat to shade my eyes - and I'd rather look like an idiot than a slob.

The Maggie has been deadly quiet for a few days. Only a few people are left. However, some new folk, including Adel the Egyptian and his Costa Rican friend, Rafael, are moving in this week, so we should have about 20 this summer. It should be good fun: we've got Greeks, South Americans, New Zealanders, Africans and even a few locals. I'm moving rooms to a single upstairs. It's a nicer room than I have now - with a VIEW out the window instead of a tree and a wall.

The threat of floods has receded although the St. John was close to bursting its banks here, and several highways into town were blocked. From here on in the worst we can expect is temperatures of 100°F and humidity of 90%. When it gets like that you can't breathe. I'll end up looking more Egyptian than Adel!

I phoned Carole yesterday and she got back to Germany all right, to go through another phase of jet lag. She's starting work editing and translating her Arabic text now.

I went to the travel agents today to find out about plane fares home. I think you'd better sit down. If I return Halifax → Prestwick it'll cost $694 single, and $724 return. I doubt very much if I'll be able to afford the full fare once I've paid for my thesis being bound and typed etc. However, the student travel service is very good and I'll try to figure out the cheapest way home - maybe I'll go down to Boston and come over stand-by, after shipping some luggage home. I've a month or two yet till I really know what I'll be doing. If I'm going to Cairo, the AUC will pay my fare there, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. That could mean I wouldn't be home until Christmas at the earliest, though. And if I'm not going to Cairo, I might stay here till Christmas if I can get a teaching extension.

And I'm settling down to my thesis. I've an awful lot of reading to do, and the good weather isn't helping my concentration. Still, I've made a start at least to the introduction (medieval rhetoric), and chapter one (Dunbar's high-style poetry). I've got a rough outline planned and I've worked a schedule out with Prof. [CENSORED: surname]. He likes what I'm doing, which is encouraging. The first month or so will be the worst as I cram the essential reading and work out what I really want to talk about. After that I should be coasting. I hope!

I haven't had any letters from you since April 18th I don't think - is everything functioning over there in war-torn Britain? Or are they censoring overseas mail? The more I read about the Falklands the more I think Britain is making a gross fool of itself. The Argentinians may originally have been in the wrong - although I believe their claim to the islands is understandable, and probably even justified - but I think Britain is over-reacting hysterically. I don't think Air Commander Thatcher has ever got over the SAS attacking the Iranian embassy. She's too trigger-happy.

Anyway, have a great hodilay... soak in some sun and see a few sights. Tell me if a benign Communist system really works - I mean, what are the state hypermarkets like in downtown Dubrovnik?? Best wishes to all,

Love,
[CENSORED: forename]

Information about Document 888

Correspondence from Canada: Letter 40 - 03.05.82