I am not jetlagged. This is a minor miracle - I managed to sleep enough on the plane(s) to survive the journey, but no so much that I had any problem going straight to sleep when I hit the pillow last night at 11pm. Woke to my travel alarm at 10am and made my way to Dean & Deluca where, sadly, Scott Speedman was not making the coffee.

My list of things to do today was not terribly strenuous: eat some food, get a cell phone, check some more housing ads and ring home to say I've arrived safely. I think the call home must have been about 4am Melbourne time, so I can only apologise for that, but I've achieved all the above. I'm blown away by the size of a "small" caffe latte, but they're drinkable, and not as expensive as I'd dreaded.

Walking along M street I encountered lots of fancy dress shops I plan to investigate further in the future. I also spied a vintage shop that was called (wait for it!) Creamcheese Annie. Now I'm definitely checking that out. I have largely managed to avoid tourist sites so far - I saw Georgetown's Old Stone House, but haven't been near the Mall or the Capitol or the White House yet. But I did entertain the guy who helped me with my cell phone (hey, I've got the lingo, straight up!) by showing him the pictures on Australia coins. He liked the echidna.

I was feeling a bit at sea - especially when I got to the old address for Chapters bookshop only to find it had moved - until I got to Kramerbooks. Oh! My new home! Feeling I should get into a Washingtonian spirit, I'm now the proud owner of "The Education of Henry Adams." I have to finish my Lionel Shriver - "The Post-Birthday World" care of Kevin and Jennifer, but after that I expect some serious reading to take place. And at some point I'll go check out this city. Right now, though, I'm happy with a few healthy, sensibly sized meals and sleep.