Nearly New Baby Stuff Sale

For those of you who enjoyed the Filene's Basement wedding dress sale, I think I have the next big adventure for you -- the National Childbirth Trust's Nearly New baby stuff sale. Venue: the activity room at a community center, about the size of a standard elementary school classroom back home. The room has pushchairs (aka strollers) and furniture near the single entry door, then two long tables running the length of the room with Ziplocks full of gently used baby clothes in package deals. These are not organized. Toward the back, clothing racks with single-item sales, usually heavy coats, especially cute items or other things more conducive to hangers. Along the periphery of the room, bench-seating covered in miscellaneous items such as books, toys, tights, bottles/sterilizers, nipple guards, etc. So you could walk the path of a capital letter "N" and cover most everything, that's if you could walk the path.

There were likely at least 100 rather pregnant ladies (and some sleepy little cuties) packed into the room on Friday. According to my breastfeeding instructor, late Sept. and early Oct. is peak delivery season (something about the influence of Christmas and New Year), so perhaps there were a few mothers out there trying to snatch those last few items to complete their nursery setup and baby wardrobe before the big arrival. With only an hour to work, and an IKEA shopping bag in hand, each of us meant business when we approached the various tables. The usual exclamations about cuteness were kept to a minimum as mums looked for the best deals on pricey commodities. The exclamations that did ring out tended to be along the lines of "Oh, no! I have to pee" or "It's stifling in here."

I was very proud of my preparation for the event. I had generated a list of needed clothes and supplies, catalogued items already in hand (including the spiffy items loaned by Aunt Rose and transported overseas by Aunt Helen & Co.), and had a good idea of what I still needed. Having already started the registries, I also had some clue about prices of things over here, which is why I was inspired to engage in this insane garage sale in the first place. To give you an idea of how cool the prices were here, these two items are a snow suit (mittens attached) and a sleeping bag for someone 0-3 mos. The sleeping bag is used to substitute for blankets overnight or on cold outings. If I were to purchase them new, I'd easily expect to pay 20 GBP. Going to this lovely sale, though, I managed to pick up snow suit, sleeping bag, cute rain slicker, reversible jacket, sweater, 2 nightgowns, 6 onesies, t-shirt, hat, 9 pairs socks, coveralls, a cute pants suit and 6 sleepersuits. All that for 27 GBP! Only two items were must-haves because of cuteness, but it's definitely a decent start on the passenger's wardrobe.

Once my haul was in hand, I scootched between tables (yes, I did actually manage that in my current state without knocking too much over) and joined Lauren (another student's wife) in line. Since there was only one cash box in operation and one door in or out, there was a hefty line. After 10 or so grueling minutes waiting in the stifling heat as latecomers disappointedly picked over the disheveled remains of the sale, we finally reached the fresh air of the outdoors. I went home and updated the registries to eliminate items no longer needed. Today I picked up a closet organizer to act as dresser for the little one, now that we've got a wardrobe started. In the next few weeks, I can start washing things with our clothes and have them all ready for when she (September is a she month) finally arrives.

Major congrats to Ed (Dan's groomsman) and Natalia, who welcomed their little Anna Isabella Morrell this past weekend!! She looks quite cute.

Harry Potter Tour

I'm guessing most of you have heard of Harry Potter and seen at least one of the movies. Part of the fun of Harry Potter is that although there are a few references to locations in the "real" or "muggle" world, Harry enters into a whole world that is hidden within that world. Since we've been here in England, we've been able to uncover several familiar elements from the wizarding world as seen through the Harry Potter movies, so I thought I'd share some of our discoveries with you.

When we first arrived in the UK (after our little ordeal at Heathrow about not having valid visas), we took a train from London to Newcastle. We departed from King's Cross Station, the same one Harry uses to get to Hogwart's School of Wizardry and Witchcraft. This station is the main hub for trains bound to the northeast of England, so we are obviously well-placed to find more Harry Potter places where we live than anywhere else in the country.

It didn't take us long to find Diagon Alley. Though in the movie, we're led to believe that Diagon Alley is someplace in London, we found that at least the imagery in the movies is based a place in York. The Shambles, as it is called, is a series of narrow streets in York that have been home to shops almost from medieval times. The top floors overhang the bottom ones so that when people emptied their chamber pots back in the day, they didn't dump them on their downstairs neighbors.

While Dan was enjoying a conference on global health issues in Oxford, Brent and I went exploring the town. We discovered that Christ Church College served as the setting for filming several scenes for the Harry Potter movies. Christ Church is the grandest quad and boasts the most distinguished students, including 13 Prime Ministers. Seemed like a fitting setting for a movie about an incredibly prestigious school for wizards. The Tom Quad, pictured to the right, takes its name from the seven-ton bell in the tower. It has called the undergraduate curfew (9:05 pm, since it is 5 minutes West of the Greenwich Mean) since 1682.

The dining hall at Christ Church should be a recognizable twin for the great hall at Hogwart's. Even the staircase leading to the dining hall had a somewhat familiar feel. Sadly, the dining hall was closed when we visited, so we only really got to see the entry stairs.


Yesterday on an excursion with my grandparents and Aunt Helen, we explored another filming location just to our north, Alnwick Castle. The outer bailey (courtyard) and Abbot's Tower were the location for the filming of the broom flying lesson in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (known here as the Philosopher's Stone). Dan said he could almost pick out Professor McGonagall's window in the castle keep as well. With such a direct tie-in, the castle holds special wizardry tours and has people dress up like characters from the movies. So...museums here employ similar techniques to museums at home (think American Girl tours at various historic homes).

Alnwick Castle has been the home of the Duke of Northumberland (the county where we live) since at least 1309. The first Duke of Northumberland happened to have an illegitimate son named James Smithson, whom he refused to acknowledge. Mr. Smithson dedicated his life to investigating the natural world, traveled the world, published some pretty important findings, and shrewdly invested his earnings to amass a respectable fortune. Upon his death, he willed his fortune to his nephew, or if his nephew died with no heirs, the money should go "to the United States of America, to found at Washington, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men." So even the Smithsonian Institution seems to have its roots here in the northeast of England. Who knew we were going to such a cool place!!

Here is perhaps the least-expected Harry Potter reference. While Dan and Mike were enjoying the view from Notre Dame, I was exploring the achaeological site beneath it. Apparently, there was a Nicolas Flamel (an alchemist, no less) who paid for a portal to be installed late in the 15th century in the church of Sainte-Genevieve des Ardents, located across the square in front of Notre Dame. Weird...how many other characters might be based on real life people lurking about somewhere out there?

Whitley Bay and Baby Supplies

This past Sunday, we went with Celeste and Brent (Celeste is a neighbor in Dan's program) to Whitley Bay to check out the tidepool critters. The thoroughly slimy terrain did provide a bit of a challenge, especially for those of us with center of gravity challenges, but we all had a good time searching for signs of animal life.

Cool finds included sea anemones (brown slimy things pictured), which had their numerous little arms drawn in because they weren't below the water line when we saw them. There seemed to be a billion limpits (little mollusks that look like pointed hats) and plenty of barnacles. The occasional fish were to quick to photograph, or even really point out to anyone because they hid too fast.
Then Celeste spotted a crab, which Brent was quick to scoop up, as you can see in the video. Here is a picture of the little hermit crab peeking out while in a pool shared with limpits. We enjoyed some corn snacks while the crab sampled the local seaweed in the pool. As the sun continued to set (see all the sun in the video?) it did seem to get a bit cooler and the tide started to come in. Because the area we were exploring definitely gets submerged more than head high, we started to head home.

The following section is for those of you thinking, "I want to get something spiffy for the baby, but I really don't know what Sandy & Dan need."

For starters, we're going to be moving around a LOT for the first few months/years of the baby's life, so we're trying to keep our gear to a minimum. We are already talking with various relatives about borrowing large items (baby seat, crib, stroller, etc). So the majority of needs are things like clothes, bottles, diapers and the like. To give you some specific suggestions, I have created wish lists online.

Supplies for UK: www.mothercare.com click on "gift list" in the far upper right. Then "find a gift list" under "Sandy Saha." Mothercare is THE baby store here in the UK, so they definitely have everything, but you also pay a premium for it. My gift list at this site is merely a list of ideas, ranked by their usefulness, with notes about the qualities I'm looking for in these items. You're welcome to purchase items from this site for convenience sake, but I know better prices can be found elsewhere (ie: eBay, eBay.co.uk or www.amazon.co.uk). If you buy from the gift list, my shipping address is already attached there. If you consider buying in US and shipping to UK, remember 1British pound = $2, shipping to UK can take as long as 1 month and it can be expensive to ship internationally (hence the suggestions for online shopping at .co.uk). Our mailing address can also be obtained from either set of grandparents-to-be (or by e-mailing me/Dan). I'll do my best to update this gift list as we get supplies here.

Supplies for US and Grenada: www.amazon.com click on "Gifts and Wishlists" tab at top center. Click on "Baby Registry" then write "Sandy Saha" in the box. I figured Amazon would have the widest selection of possible baby supplies, so I'd be able to register in just one place to cover a variety of needs. This baby registry is generally a list of ideas, ranked by their usefulness, with notes about the qualities I'm looking for in these items. "Must have" here indicates a specific item for which I checked the reviews, it had all the characteristics I was looking for and you'd be safe buying straight from the registry. For clothes, I was forced to select specific items because of the nature of Amazon, but the list shows the types of clothes we'll need while in US (2mos old-4mos old at most) and in Grenada (whenever we go until 14mos old), plus the variety of colors/patterns I feel are gender-neutral. If you buy from the baby registry, my mom's shipping address is already built in. Her mailing address can also be obtained by e-mailing me/Dan. I'll do my best to update this registry as my mom recieves supplies.

There will be no nursery, so no theme to stick to. I have absolutely nothing against receiving gently used items. For those of you willing to wait, you can buy supplies for in the US and then you'd already know gender, which folks have indicated may make clothes purchases easier. The Amazon list especially will be left up through Christmas because those are all supplies we'll be using after that date. Below is a timeline to give you an idea of when we'll be where (good for Saha tracking and shipping plans).

Halloween: Baby due to arrive in UK
Christmas: Sandy & Dan return to US with little one
Feb/Mar 2009: Sandy and little one join Dan in Grenada
December 2009: All Sahas return to US (whew!)

Egypt -- Cairo

So Cairo is a city of 18 million people all packed ridiculously closely together. The city was filled with apartment buildings that looked a lot like the ones along the Nile -- mud bricks, looking unfinished, no roofs, crammed. Our guide told us there were tens of thousands of people living in the mausoleums in the city's biggest graveyard. Too poor to afford housing, they live among the dead. The city of Cairo has grown right into the Giza Plateau, so it's all one big metro area and the buildings go right up to the pyramids, as you can see.

Cairo was our last big stop in Egypt and by the time we got there, I was really starting to feel some hip pain from all the walking we'd been doing. So...while Dan crawled around the interior of the middle pyramid, I took a nice air-conditioned stroll through the solar boat's museum. This is the actual boat that carried the body of the pharaoh to the pyramid and was subsequently buried at the foot of the pyramid. Archaeologists discovered it pretty much intact, right down to the ropes that tied the various wooden boat parts together. So, they were able to put it back together and generally restore it to the condition you see here.

Even though camels are not native to Egypt, it's tough to pass up the super-cool opportunity to ride around a wonder of the world on a unique form of transportation. For some reason, this was not an activity recommended for pregnant chicks, so I fulfilled my duty as photographer for the experience.

Though this is the biggest sphynx in Egypt, it seems kind of puny next to the pyramids. It's hard to believe this cool monument is slowly being eaten away from below with water seepage.

After a full day of hiking about wonders of the world, and riding a wheelchair through a museum with the bodies of some of the ancient world's most famous people (Ramesses, Hatchepsut, etc.), we flew back to Luxor to catch our flight home. It was just fascinating seeing the Sahara sands creeping up to the green ribbon of the Nile, plus the rocky outcrops that seemed to be eroded into fascinating branchy patterns by years of slow water erosion.

We had a last meal with our friends from the boat. We had great times with everyone, though I seem to have washed the piece of paper where we wrote down everyone's contact info. So...if you know these people, tell them we say hi and we've lost their contact info...

Egypt -- Aswan

Finally, we reached the southernmost point our cruise boat would travel -- Aswan. First thing in the morning, we headed out to the high dam. As you can imagine, we were expecting something like the Hoover Dam with a giant drop and massive power turbines. Well, it's a really important dam because it allows the country to control the annual Nile flooding and protect homes and farmland. Apparently, it just didn't need to be so massive to do that.

The dam is located at the first cataract -- place where the Nile gets too choppy to navigate and generally the southernmost reaches of the Upper Kingdom of Egypt. As the water pooled behind the dam to form Lake Naser, several temples, towns and other human development were at risk of being submerged. You may have heard of the rescued temple at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (see "Don't Eat the Pictures" starring Sesame Street gang). Someone else funded moving Abu Simbel temples to higher ground, but still in Egypt.

Our next stop in Aswan was Philae Temple. We arrived at a smoggy little cove filled with small motorized ferries. I was a little saddened by the quantity of exhaust being produced by having this be a touristy place.

The temple was really spectacular, though, sitting alone on its little island. The original island was submerged just a few yards away and you could still see the rocky tips of that island, plus some sticks rising from the water marking where the temple used to stand. The location of this temple was threatened by the English dam installed before and just a little down river from the High Dam. There were mud marks on the temple and the nearby islands showing the flood levels after the English Dam was installed and before the temple was relocated.

Philae Temple had some fun history, including being a refuge for early Christians escaping Roman persecution. With such a southerly location, the temple was definitely a stretch for Roman control. So the Christians scraped the faces off the deities on the walls, modified altars, put crosses on entrances, even cooked and lived in parts of the temple.
Dan was impressed by this temple resident, who had assumed the classic Egyptian Sphynx pose for the photo.

During a tour of the Nile River in Aswan, we visited a botanic garden and noticed a lovely ficus tree. Dan wistfully recalled his beloved ficus, which we have entrusted to our sister-in-law Shirley's care in Atlanta. We wanted to share this picture of the ficus with Dan's tree to encourage it to continue to flourish in its new environs.

For our second day at Aswan, I rested because I was pretty darned tired. Dan got up way before the crack of dawn and took a bus to Abu Simbel. This temple kind of marked the southernmost point of the Upper Kingdom during the reign of Ramesses II. It's a temple deifying himself and another one deifying his favorite wife, Nefertari. Dan was fascinated on the three-hour ride back to Aswan through the Sahara as it was his first encounter with mirages. They're difficult to capture on film, but you can see here how the hills look like they have reflections in some water just in front of them. Luckily, Dan was in a nice air-conditioned bus with a cooler full of bottled water and a police escort for quick communication to help if the bus broke down.