Advertisement
Published: August 6th 2007
Edit Blog Post
Pouting for Green & Gold
Erin, Dan and me doing our country proud! Although the last few months hasn’t held too many adventures, it has certainly seen a lot of Aussie fever!
Erin and her husband Dan arrived back into London from spending 3 months in Newcastle with Dan’s family, taking up house with Vic and I while they found their feet just in time for Australia Day. Not feeling the Walkabout vibe (famous Australian pubs filled with backpackers & VB) we decided to do something a little closer to home.. Turned up the heating, pulled out the bikini’s and whacked some snags on the stove in true Sheila style!
Vic and I were able to introduce Erin to Vacherin, the catering company we work with, and she is now working full time as a Reception supervisor - I think I ought to start earning commission on the staff I recommend to them!
Not long after settling into London life and finding their own home, another Australian was on our doorstop! Fresh off a 4 week Contiki tour of Europe, Dan M was in town and in need of a roof and some washing up! He had been wearing the same jeans for 30 days un-washed, now that is a real
Aussie battler!
A huge musical fan, Dan had been planning Les Miserables for months, despite being his 7th time! Not something that I would have gone to see on my own, but in it’s 21st year, it had to be done! Musically, it was just brilliant, sad, but gripping and I enjoyed it a whole lot more than I expected!
In return we took him for a compulsory Henery’s daiquiri, and he was even lucky enough to see our second day of snow this warm winter before stepping back on a plane!
So with the couch invaders moving on, I was in desperate need for some fresh air out of London, and it was my adopted Nan and Pop to the rescue! Joyce and Robert from Birmingham were spending some time with their daughter June, and her two sons on term break in Crawly, and invited me to join them for the weekend.
I met June’s husband, also named Robert, at work with the most amazing views over the whole of London, taking an overland train out to the suburbs with quaint houses and colored doors! It was so nice to be with a family again,
Stamps!!??
Am I really that far away? sitting a dinning room table having a freshly cooked meal, a far cry from my stable meal of cup-a-soup! I even introduced them to Friday night, Ugly Betty, the latest tongue in cheek American cult fashion series, which Joyce giggled along too, while serving up delicious home made tea cakes and brownies!
Saturday, after the boys had played football, and Robert and I spent some quality bonding time on the couch watching his favorite cooking shows, we took a road trip down to Brighton on the search for fish and chips on the pier! Unfortunately, with the first peep of sun, many more had the same idea, so instead we de-toured to the Marina and enjoyed a huge hearty meal before taking their youngest, David, to enjoy some of the outdoor rides.
That night it was my turn to help Joyce in the kitchen, but after such a big lunch, we opted for a fruit and cheese platter.. Hmm.. Yum!! Just like being at home with Dad!! I was defiantly sad to leave on Sunday, but after such a refreshing weekend, I will defiantly be back out again!
So it was back to London and back to
Brighton Peir
We didn't quite make it for Fish and Chips, but we did get a drive by! reality.. With the pending issue of my Visa, and what the future holds, it was time to re-evaluate what I wanted to achieve in the rest of my time in London. I’m certainly doing a good job at living in London, but with the exhaustion of work and the time and expenses of travel am I really loving London? I could be doing everything I’m currently doing in Melbourne.. That’s not at all what I want!!
Travel books came out, budget was drawn and I decided the only way this was going to happen was if I gave up the pad of luxury in the beautiful docks for a more modest bed-sit closer to work.. Think of it as ‘Sex and the City’ chic!
Amazingly through the aid of a flat finding agency I was able to find one to move in only a few weeks from now, although tiny doesn’t even come into it location does! I am now only weeks from being a West End girl, moving minutes away from work, the gym and church, (not to mention Selfridges, Top Shop and Oxford St!) I’m now Mayfair through and through!!
Before any of this happened
though, Vic was desperate to get back out on the dance floor after months of watching our spending and making up for the silly season! Although, with her boyfriend James and Erin’s husband Dan getting along almost too well, it was questionable as to weather Soho was going to be the safest place!! Charlie, another Aussie from Crown, was also here to celebrate his first weekend in London, and we were then joined by two other Crown faces, Jane and Margie, and yet again it was a foreign festival and Soho it was!
In all this Saturday night soul searching and a few drinks later, Erin and I decided that with discounted tickets on sale on Gum Tree and various ticket booths in town, we had no excuse not to be enjoying the theatres! Our first stop - Wicked, and there isn’t a better word to describe it! Based on the witches version of the Wizard of Oz, it was a trip down memory lane seeing an amazing take on the development of each character and how they came to be! Now all we have to do is decide which one is next!
And not long until Mum
and I trip over to Amsterdam! In only 6 weeks we will be working together at one of her conferences where she will be speaking and I will be assisting with the Australian representation.. I can’t wait to see Mum and tick another country off the list, and while I’m at it, add it to the CV!
So I’m defiantly heading into a new phase yet again, but an exciting one! Hopefully being closer into the city gives me more opportunities to see more and do more, especially with the summer not to far away! What comes next? We will all just have to wait and see!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.075s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 6; qc: 44; dbt: 0.0477s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
Cat
non-member comment
YOUR PLACE IS HUGE
awwwww i know how much of a change that must be but you have done the best thing... im so excited for all your travels coming up. You really seem to be adding to your adventures.