RS Ophiuchi (RS Oph) is a symbiotic variable and a recurrent nova (RN).
We have monitored it with the Nordic Optical Telescope and obtained 30
high-resolution (R = 46 000) optical spectra over one orbital cycle
during quiescence. To our knowledge, this is the best-sampled
high-resolution spectroscopic data set of RS Oph over one orbital
period. We do not detect any direct signatures of an accretion disc such
as double peaked emission lines, but many line profiles are complex
consisting of superimposed emission and absorption components. We
measure the spin of the red giant and conclude that it is tidally locked
to the binary orbit. We observe Na I absorption features, probably
arising from the circumbinary medium, that has been shaped by previous
RN outbursts. We do not detect any intrinsic polarization in the optical
wavelengths.