As the ship neared the docks, the Captain came to to get him.  Val got up, grabbed his belongings, and walked onto the deck just as they dropped the ramp.  "We're here." said the Captain.  Val ignored him and walked onto the dock, up to the city.

Because it was nighttime, he headed to the largest inn in the city, a place called Candlehearth, and went inside.  There he ordered salmon, a baked potato, a bowl of apple cabbage stew, and a bottle of wine and went upstairs to eat it.  He spent the next hour quenching his hunger and thirst while watching a dark elf woman sing.  [i]Not bad looking[/i] he thought, [i]maybe I ought to go talk to her.[/i]  He stopped himself though, as his mission must come first.  Once he was well on his way to completing it, then he could think about ingratiating himself with the local elf women.

The next morning he woke up early and walked to the stables.  [i]Why does it have to be so cold here?[/i] he thought as he went to the carriage nearby.  "Where would you like to go?" the carriage driver asked.

"I need to see the Greybeards." he said.  "Take me to them."

"They're up at the Throat of the World, near Ivarstead, but I don't usually go to Ivarstead."

[i]Human Swit, trying get more out of me.[/i] "How much would you charge to go there, then?"

"Oh, one hundred Septims out to cover it."

"I'll give you eighty." Val said.  The man was probably overcharging him by at least twenty coins, at least.  He was human, after all.

The carriage driver thought about it, then nodded.  "You've got a deal friend.  Climb in back and we'll be off."

"I'm not your friend," Val said as he climbed into the crude wagon.