Brew

So I am back to being a Barista on weekends. Well sort of. As yet I haven't actually made any coffees but instead have mainly been waitressing.

Due to me going permanent this month things are tight with money as I will be going from a weekly paycheck to a monthly paycheck. To ease the squeeze I got a second job for the weekends at a cafe/restaurant called BREW over at Clapham Junction which is a few suburbs and a short bus ride over from my place. I got the gig through a friend of a friend and started last weekend. My first weekend went pretty well as I was given the job of running the food out and clearing tables. It was pretty easy going and it was good to meet a bunch of new people. As always - there are a few Aussies and Kiwis which helps for having common ground and something to chat about.

The cafe is really popular with heaps of people actually lining up and waiting up to 30 minutes for a table. The food is pretty basic but extremely delicious as I have been lucky enough to test it out and if I wasn't working there its the kind of place I would want to go for breakfast. Even though we only have around 20 tables we managed to turn them over pretty quickly and so far I haven't really seen a quiet patch. They even try and combat the weather by having heaters and blankets outside for the tables on the pavement so that customers can enjoy the Autumn sunshine but be shielded from the cold.

The downside of working two jobs is of course not getting a social life on the weekend but right now its more important that I earn money instead of spending money so it works pretty well as a distraction. The other downside is the pay. I will get extra tax so the already meager wage of 6.50 an hour drops to around 5 an hour. While I will never be a high roller earning this kinda sterling it will be enough to buy my tube pass and some food while I wait for my first real paycheck. Once this month is out of the way it will help me save up for my trip to Austria, the rest of my Glastonbury ticket, get some money behind me and kick start my travel fund for next year. I also get the added bonus of tips and after my first weekend I managed to get 16 pounds worth which grabbed a few groceries and paid for a cheap Tuesday movie ticket. Hopefully the job doesn't interfere too much with me discovering the city but as it is only day time hours I still have the night times to catch up with friends and have exciting tales to blog about! It also gives me an excuse to leave the house in the winter months - otherwise this blog would be about my hibernating in my trackies!

Rest Home?...More Like Party Home

Considering how much smaller houses and flats are in London and how dodgy the weather can be its surprising that I have found myself going to a few house parties rather then out on the town. I've always been a big fan of house parties especially big ones and the party I went to a couple of weekends ago was definitely a biggie and a goodie. It wasn't just an ordinary London house party either as it was actually held in an old retirement home and partying in a retirement home isn't something I thought I would be doing for at least another 60 years.

A friend of my house mates, Matt, is living there at the moment as the rent is really cheap (100 pounds a month - for a double en-suite room) so him and the other 18 house mates that live there all invited their friends which ensued for a massive party. The reason he is living in a rest home is that a company bought the building but were unable to develop it until they had permission from the council. To stave off squatters they rent out all the rooms with rent low enough that all they pay is the council tax. Considering we live in the area with the lowest council tax in London it makes for a pretty cheap rent. The only downside is that it is slightly far away from public transport, you have to live with heaps of other people, they only have hot water (which is totally the opposite of what you would expect right?) and there is no internet. If your only in London for a short time or you a really low on cash and wanting to travel its a pretty good situation. Its also a good situation for me because Matt was supposed to have my room in the Pulborough House but decided to live here instead.

Even though it was in a retirement home it was a pretty sweet house party as the already had a pretty good set up with a massive rumpus room/living area, back balcony and garden and a massive industrial kitchen to help you make your drink concoctions. As many of us have experienced the lack of toilets at a party can be an issue but not for the rest home. Every time I needed to go I think I went to a different one. The funniest part was that a lot of the equipment and furnishing from the old residents were there including the things that help lift you in and out of the bathtub and rails to steady you as you get to the toilet which are surprisingly helpful when you've finished a bottle of wine.



The choice of seating was either a massive old floral couch, reclining armchair or wheelchairs. The wheelchairs were in hot demand but were a bit of a bummer as they were the ones that you needed someone to push you in not ones you could move yourself. Its fun when you get someone to push and spin you around to the music (you can't go past lazy dancing!) but its definitely not fun when someone pushes you all the way to the corner of the room then runs off and leaves you there - Thanks Lance. Its also not fun when you push the chair with your legs backwards so you can get back to your friends but instead and run into a group of people's shins. After that little experience I gave up on chilling out in the wheel chairs and opted for stationary stairs and normal dancing.

The night ended up being a pretty massive one with me and Shea finishing three bottles of cheap red wine between the two of us plus a few other random drinks we scored a long the way. Fran turned up a bit later with a Mary Poppings bag full of alcohol. Spirit? Choice of mixer? She had it. There was a bit of dancing to music that was a bit too soft and kept getting changed, a few deep and meaningful convo's and a quick nap on Sam's shoulder before we decided to make the trek home. It wasn't too bad especially with the drunken power walk but apparently I talked the ear off Sam telling her the recipe for meatballs. Oh dear. I think the party turned me into an old lady before my time - who else falls asleep then talks about cooking other then grandmas?

Apart from the hangover the next morning it was a pretty fun night out. Although it seems that my hangover albeit extremely bad wasn't as bad as some of my house mates who didn't get to sleep until 8am. Yup thats right 8am. Matt will be at that house until the housing developers decide to kick them out so hopefully there are a few more massive parties along the way.

The Park Tavern

Since moving into Pulborough Road and under the guidance of my house mates I have had a few good afternoons discovering the local pub. The Park Tavern is about a 10 minute walk down the road and is a typical English pub but less dodgy then the other couple around the area. It has a beer garden out the back with a fire pit for those summer days and nights but inside it has a cosy wooden interior for snuggling in winter. It has two lovely big fire places that have big comfy leather chairs next to it and I can't already imagine myself there in winter with a plate of bangers and mash and a glass of red wine thawing out beside the fire.



We headed down one Sunday afternoon with a roast and a drink in mind but unluckily for us the roast had finished for the day. Not to be deterred we still grabbed a meal and sat down with a glass of wine and settled in for the afternoon. I was really chuffed to find that the pub had a book shelf filled with books and a shelf full of board games so there was plenty of things to do while I work on my alcoholism. We picked up Trivial Pursuit and passed the time answering a few questions without the effort of playing properly.

While we were down there we also discovered that the following weekend the Tav was hosting a free hog roast and all we had to do was book in. All week I had been looking forward to the Hog Roast and I wasn't disappointed when Saturday finally came around. We arrived down there at about 4pmm met Lance's sister and her house mates and grabbed a couple of drinks and a table and chatted with while we waited to be served. Once we got our tickets we ran up to the line to discover a pig on a spit out in the beer garden. We were then given a big bread roll with a few chucks of delicious meat and mayor or apple sauce. On the side we got a couple of bits of blacked crackling and new potatoes with mayonnaise. It was definitely the best (and only) free pub meal I have ever been given. Considering you didn't even have to buy a drink (but lets face it who isn't going to devour this amazing food without a cider or wine?) it was the best deal ever. Pat on the back for whosoever bright idea it was because it is a great way to get the punters in. Luckily for us we found out it is happening every weekend in October and November. Hopefully I will get a chance to go back down and grab a couple more free meals over the next few weeks.

I believe that the afternoon of board games and a free hog roast is the beginning of a beautiful friendship between me and The Park Tavern. While I hope to explore heaps more of London and its endless pubs I can say that the Tav will definitely be a place I frequent. Turns out they have a quiz night on Wednesdays and cheap burger Tuesdays so hopefully over the next few months I can give those a go and get to know the place even better. I also plan to be a bit of a tourist and score a couple of happy snaps of the place so keep an eye out! But for now check out their website if you want to take a gander at my new local.

http://www.park-tavern.com/

Dossing

Please excuse my lack of recent posts as it has been aaaaaages since I have had the chance to sit down and write something exciting. My excuse this time is a great one as I have had my friend Shea to stay or whats known as 'dossing' over here in London Town.

Dossing is pretty much another word for couch surfing but its usually applied to people that stay for longer periods of time i.e over a week. Its a new term to me and as a previous couch surfer I felt slightly guilty as dossers usually chip 5 pounds a night for the bills/rent or booze fund for the flat (which I hadn't done - however I hadn't stayed over a week anywhere so I think I'm borderline ok).

It was so much fun having Shea back in London for good. We met on our Topdeck tour (like many of my London friends) but apart from Oktoberfest and one random day in July we hadn't spend much time together since May. It was good that she chose to doss here first so we had a chance to catch up and chill out together. Its also good for her as I have such a big room and such chillaxed housemates so she had a chance to relax after travelling for months and the opportunity to start her job/flat hunt in the comfort of a home rather then a hostel.

Words of wisdom for those who are thinking of moving overseas or anywhere else really - ALWAYS have more money then you think you should. Shea was like me and ended up in London with nothing after using all our travel funds for partying in Europe. When you first arrive in the city the last thing you want to be doing is staying indoors on a lappy all day without the money or opportunity to explore. How else are you going to know if your going to like it if you cant' even check out the local pubs... I mean... neighbourhood. Also, if you haven't ever worked in hospitality think of taking up a weekend job in a cafe or pub. When I arrived in London I didn't have much luck finding a hospitality job but since then I have seen so many places with signs in the window or adds online. Almost all of them need experience though and while they won't be your dream job and they pay is pretty average you will be out and about meeting new people and at least having some funds coming into your bank account.

I know that his post may not be that interesting for people who aren't planning on coming over but I feel like I should at least share a little bit of wisdom and the things I have learnt since I have been here. Now that I am back to being a loner and have my laptop readily available I plan on posting regular posts this week to catch you guys up on what I have been up to recently - including the party I went to in a retirement village, my Pamplona friends reunion and my new job!

Great View, Great Food, Great Booze and Great Crew

After a massive weekend at Oktoberfest and a week struggling to keep my eyes open at work I was looking forward to a lazy weekend with a long over due sleep in. As many of my mates were out of town visiting Cornwall or visiting family I was slightly worried I would be bored but it turns out I had a fantastic weekend.

Friday night was spent having a couple of drinks with the girls from work before heading home and being greeted as I walked in the door by my house mates to a home cooked meal of Cannelloni and glass of wine. It was a perfect way to relax into the weekend. When I woke up the next day (more specifically the next afternoon after a massive sleep in) the sun was shining and it was a clear day so we decided to make the most of it and get the train out to the Richmond to have a picnic by the river.

With a quick stop at Tesco's to stock up on nibblies and a carton of cider we made our way along the river and found the perfect grassy spot on a hill over looking the river. Luckily for us we had good viewing as there was a charity boat race on that day so we got to see all the boats coming along the river in their dress up outfits and themed boats. It was also a great spot for people watching as there were heaps of people out to see the boat race.





The hill we were on was also a favourite for little kids to run down screaming so after about half an hour of watching kids stack it, it stopped being funny and started being annoying. I mean they were ruining the serenity!

Even with all the crazy kids running around it was still a great day. Sitting in the sun and eating baguettes with ham and cheese, dips, chippies and drinking lots of cider. After awhile it started getting a bit chilly so we packed up the picnic and headed into a cute little pub to warm up and top up our drinks.




We had planned to walk back long the river the way we came but as the tide had come up it had flooded the footpath which seems a bit like silly architecture but pretty funny all the same.

That night I headed over to my friend Amy's place for a few drinks in her new apartment before heading out down in Clapham for her friends birthday. I had only intended to have a drink or two as I was trying to save money and still recovering from the booze filled weekend. I should have known better. I ended up getting home at around 4am after many many drinks. Lesson for London - a night out is never only one drink.

On Sunday I had planned on heading into Regent Street as it was closed off to cars because it was London fashion week. They had fashion shows and market stalls and other demonstrations. I didn't manage to pull myself out of bed until 2pm so my plans of viewing high fashion were put on hold as I planted myself on the couch and not moving all afternoon. Spent in the company of Siobhan my house mate we watched TV and ate tea and bikkies while it rained outside. While I didn't really use my Sunday to explore the city I feel like I at least did something a little bit English. It was such a good way to spend the weekend and it made me pretty happy to have such great house mates. Its such a friendly and fun house and I think there will be many many good times ahead.