Got time to fix the shingles...

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The sun's been out solidly, except at night, for about 3 days and London's been basking in an early taste of summer. It's reminded me a bit of how school holidays used to be, except I haven't been to the park to play footy as much as when I was a kid as all my mates are at work. Dad was always doing stuff round the house in the summer, and so to complete my nostalgia trip, I've got Dennis (he's not my dad, he's from Oak Roofing Services, Orpington. If you need a new roof, they're the men for the job.) putting a new gussett (or something) on the roof as we speak. There'll be a picture of him somewhere on this blog...not sure where or how that works yet.

Anyway, I'll stop rambling on as this entry is supposed to be about my preparations for travelling. Once I finished my last job in The City, I got on with some proper man's work and unlike Shakin Stevens, I found I had more than enough time to fix the shingles and floor, oil the hinges and mend the windowpane. My tip for Shakin Stevens would be to get your dad round to help as soon as you can as you'll get things done a lot quicker (thanks a million dad). I've learnt a lot over the last couple of months; how to lay tiles, how to plaster a wall so it looks "rustic" (cheers Gav!) and these days I even sharpen pencils like a craftsman. That's right, with a Stanley knife. Try it, it's brilliant and you'll feel like your dad.

While waiting for various bits of paint to dry, I enjoyed a long series of appointments with my GP where we discussed which innoculations and medication I'd be needing for my trip. After a few visits I started to suspect that I might be better off going to see the experts and so paid a visit to the helpful and friendly people at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases (HTD) in London.

After handing over the equivalent in Sterling of Nepal's GNP, the rather cute nurse even managed to keep a straight face as I told her I'd been advised by my Indian GP that I didn't need to have rabies shots (30,000 people a year die from rabies in India). She also somehow managed to make the injections pain free. So far anway. I've got another one to have before I leave. If it turns out she's actually a doctor and by some strange chain of events ends up reading this blog before my next appointment, I could be in trouble.

Unlike when I miss an appointment with my GP and end up in the Naughty Book, when you miss an appointment at the HTD, for example when you don't allow anywhere near enough time to get your Indian Visa, they just slot you in when they're next free.

If you can't get away for a holiday to India, I advise you to take a day off and go to the Indian High Commission in London to get yourself a tourist visa. My guess is that the Indian Tourist board work closely with the people at the High Commission to create a genuine slice of Indian chaos and atmosphere to make people like me even more excited about visiting the country than I was before.

Well, the upshot is, that apart from moving the contents of my house into storage, taking my cats round to meet their new dad and having several beers with the lads I'm all set to go. I've talked about going travelling for about 12 years so you can imagine I'm dead excited to be actually doing it. I'm nervous too, and worried I'll miss everyone so much I'll have to come straight back (not really that worried haha).

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Photos

Dad
New floor in the kitchen? No problem!

Dennis on the roof.
I can see your lounge from here, mate!

Crystal Palace Tower
In the distance, you might have to squint.

Comments

[Mom]

You forgot to mention new \\
You forgot to mention new 'Swiffer' skills and 'Meals R Mom' catering .com Have a Great Trip and take Great Care of Yourself. Will miss you LOADS xxx