May 8th & 9th 2009

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May 10th 2009

Published: May 12th 2009

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Becca V

Stonehenge

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Friday 8th May 2009

I must have slept very well last night! Didn't even hear people come in - I hope I didn't snore!! Today will be a very lazy day. I MUST DO SOME WASHING!!

Went downstairs and caught up with Vanessa. Breakfast still looks appealing - I musn't be hung over then! THANKFULLY!!!

Bummed around for a couple of hours downstairs and found out Vanessa needed to do washing as well. So it was really good to have two of us, we could do a white and coloured wash and it wouldn't cost as much.

We had so much trouble finding laundry to do our washing. We were told to walk down one street, so we kept walking and walking and walking! Couldn't find it anywhere! Walked up and down the road for 20 minutes. Kept asking people where it was. Some people said down the road some said there isn't one on the road. Then all of a sudden some of my clothes just slipped out of my bag. HOW EMBARRASSING!!! I quickly picked up my undies and then somebody handed back my socks. I’m not sure that I’ve ever laughed so hard or

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been so embarrassed in my life!!

We walked a further 10 minutes still laughing about it and then out of nowhere. A LAUNDRY!! It was like finding an oasis in the desert.
It is quite expensive to do your laundry. 4 pound per load plus 2 pound per 20 minutes of drying. So at least with Vanessa, we could do a white and coloured and it wouldn’t cost as much! Both Vanessa and I realised we needed to wash our bras as well. It wasn’t so bad for me because I was wearing my big blue jumper (thanks Aunty Sue!) but Vanessa was only wearing a white shirt. It was interesting to say the least.

Ahhhh washing. We sat around waiting for the laundry to be done and to have fresh, nice-smelling clothes!

Decided to ring Vinesh about the job because I hadn’t heard anything back. He said that they are waiting back for a response from the company about the interview but hopefully early next week. He said that my test results were really high. UK citizens score about 4000 on data entry, excellent is between 8000-9000 and I scored 11000 so that’s really really really

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good. *Fingers crossed*. I apologised for ringing so much but was impressed that I took the initiative to call back and chase it up so here’s hoping for a job.

Clean clothes smell so so good, I forgot how nice to was to have clean clothes! I’ve been such a grot!! Folded clothes so no ironing because I don’t have an iron either! Made it back to the hostel, clean clothes all away and time for food shopping.

I am still converting everything into Australian dollars to compare whether it’s a good deal or not. Only buy things that are a good deal is my motto at the minute!

I’m really into buying pre-packaged carrot, cauliflower and broccoli at the minute. Only one pound 50 for a big pack and I do need to eat my veges. Plus some cheap apples and mandarins. Lunch was really nice of dip and veges!

Didn’t do much for the rest of the day. Went downstairs and met a few new people, Bec Armstrong and Karen Ingold (both from Australia). Bec was deciding to do a tour of Stonehenge and Bath tomorrow, so I may tag along and go for

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One of the rock possibly signifying one of north/south soltice

a look. I was looking for something to do tomorrow and it’s about time I got out of London and saw the beautiful countryside.

Had a couple of cocktails called Jungle Juice. Lauren you should remember them from Bali. In the fishbowls!! So yummy and addictive! Early night to leave by 8.15am tomorrow morning!

Got back to my room to find two guys travelling together (both aged 20) drinking a bottle of wine out of plastic cups in the hostel room. I think one of them had been smoking in there because the room stank, despite having the window open! They found it funny I was going to be in bed early in anticipation for a long day tomorrow. They finally finished their bottle of wine and were like, 'we need another one' but neither of them was going to walk down the stairs to get some more.

Finally they left and I could shut the curtains and turn off the light. Then was just about asleep and someone else comes in. A new person with all their luggage. They were fumbling around in the dark and by this time I was awake, so I told him

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that he could turn the light on. Got to talking for a while, he was from Seattle trying to get a new job. Anyway finally got back to sleep then - ARGH - more people came in. Two younger girls travelling together with all their luggage. Mind you this is at about midnight and they did not shut up!!!!! So frustrating living in dorms! They kept talking and getting organised and then the two young guys came back in and they started talking to the girls! I couldn't believe it! It was so rude!!!

It was really a bad nights sleep.

Saturday 9 May 2009

So after the night before and having an early start to the day at 7am. Everyone else was sleeping peacefully (lucky them). I had organised everything the night before so I wouldn't disturb everyone too much. I shouldn't have worried at all.

One of the other guys staying in the dorm was arriving back to the dorm as I was leaving for breakfast. Met Bec for breakfast at 7.30am. On the tube by 8.15am but the tube we caught we had to change at the next station because it wasn't going

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where we wanted (even though its on the same line). We were quite disorientated once we got off the tube and it was already 8.45am and the tour started at 9.00am. Running around and finally found the place and they didn't have our booking. Thankfully Bec had written down the receipt number.

The bus was nearly full and thankfully there were still two seats sitting together which we could sit in. It was a 2-hour journey to Stonehenge. For those of you who haven't been there, Stonehenge is in the middle of nowhere just rocks in a circular formation to which people have no idea why it was created. Just theories, some of them quite wild but can't be discredited because noone knows.

Walked around Stonehenge for about an hour. They have these little audio-type speakers that you must hold up to your ears unless you have head phones. Thankfully I bough my ipod with me and it was less uncomfortable that way. It was really amazing and different how the stones are there and how they stay up. Evidently one-third of the stones are underground and they used techniques that we still use today in building to

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keep them together.

Back on the bus and travelling to Bath. Bath takes about 3/4 of an hour from Stonehenge. Thankfully our driver knows what he is doing because sometimes I think he will crash the bus!

Made it to Bath and had lunch at this little baguette shop. Absolutely beautiful food but tiny shop! Time to start walking!! Firstly we went uphill to the 'The Building of Bath Museum' that incorporated all techniques used to build the museum.

Next onto Fashion Museum (please note - you will see a lot of photos from this exhibit because there was so such in there! - SO BE WARNED!) - it was fantastic. Some of the dresses I would buy and wear some of them were just a little out-dated. They went through the ages of history including the Victorian and Georgian eras.

We probably spent a bit too much time in this Museum but it was well worth it. Then onto 'The Circle'. The Circle is really interesting to visit. All the house were built in a circular shape to surround a circular park in the middle with lots of trees. It really is stunning to see!

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Next a photo with the man outside the Jane Austen Centre where she wrote Northanger Abbey and a few other novels despite only living their for 5 years. Down the hill towards the Roman Baths and Bath Abbey, and with the entry fee towards the Fashion Museum we were able to enter into the Roman Baths with that ticket. 2-4-1!! WOO HOO!!! The Roman Baths had so much information to take it. It went through all the stages of when it was first developed.

Its incredible to think that so many years ago people from the Romans to the likes of Georgiana Cavendish, Duchess of Devonshire (recently in the movie The Duchess) and her husband and everyone else who was somebody came up to Bath to drink the water for its spiritual powers. They believed it could cure any alignment including infertility and gout.

Jake there was this little minature establishment which you'll see in the pictures that reminds of that game Age of Empires!

There was a part where the water came through the wall and was steaming once it came through because it was so hot. Some of the water in the Baths had

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bubbles coming out of it. I made a wish in the wishing well, but I can't tell you what it was because otherwise it won't come true! LOL!!

There is just way too much to describe about here, you’ll just have to visit it for yourself!

I was able to taste the water and it is actually really warm and metallic tasting. If you look at the photo with the fish spouting water into the vase - that's what where the water came from that drank!

Had to rush through towards the end because I was running out of time. We had to back on the bus at 4pm. I rushed through Bath Abbey which was right next door and ran back to the bus. I got to the bus and it shut the door in my face!!! I was like WTF! It turns out he just needed to move up a little so that a bus could move in behind him. It was only 3.55pm, I still had 5 minutes to spare. Back on the bus and poor Bec, her water bottle opened up and all the water split in her bag.

Felt a little

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Me & the sheep

sick on the way back. Bumpy and windy road so had to just look out the front window and it was a little hot as well. Finally made it back! Took a taxi back from where we were dropped off to the hostel.

Karen moved out yesterday to a place of her own but came back for a drink. Snakebites! Beer, cider and red cordial! It’s not too bad but not my first choice to drink!

We finished up reasonably early and went to get organised for the things I needed to do for the next week. Got back to the room and those two guys were drinking in their again with their bottle of wine and plastic cups.

They were like ‘you’re not going to bed again already are you’. I really don’t like them at all but I guess its because they remind me of annoying little brothers! They finally left so I got my stuff organised for another good day in London.

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