Bath Spa

After an amazing weekend in Barcelona it was time for Lisa to see a bit more of England - more specifically Bath. Bath is the home to the Roman Baths, an amazing cathedral and what we really wanted to see - the Jane Austen Museum.

Both of us were avid lovers of Pride and Prejudice starring the dreamy Colin Firth (and the book of course) so the first stop after dumping our bags was the museum. It was really cute little house a few houses down from where she lived at 25 Gay Street. The beginning of the tour was a introductory talk about Jane Austen and her life in Bath, her life in general, her inspiration for books and the history of her family. After the talk we wandered through the house which had a museum featuring relics of the era including furniture and fashion. They had photos of the time and other interesting facts of the city and the era. After the grand tour we went up stairs to the tea room where we sat in the prime position and by that I mean directly next to a portrait of Colin Firth and ate a proper English cream tea.







After a yummy tea we went down to the gift shop to see what we could find and we went CRAZY. They had so much cute stuff in there I could have bought the whole shop. At one stage Lisa turned around to me and I had about 5 or 6 things in my hand. She managed to talk me down to only buying myself a bag and a key ring both featuring a 'I heart Mr Darcy' slogan. Lisa did actually buy most of the shop but at least she had the excuse of bringing them back as souvenirs.

We then headed back to the hostel to check in properly and check out where we were staying. After popping away our goodies from the museum we headed out to check out down town bath. It was one of those really sunny and warm days and we spent the afternoon looking around the beautiful old town, walking across the Pultney Bridge and looking at the river. Most of the afternoon was spent shopping though as it was a lot quieter then shopping in London and Lisa wanted to check out all the English shops. At the end of the way I am sure we had walked a thousand miles around the town and we were exhausted.








We decided we would just mosey on down, grab some dinner then have a few drinks down at the bar in our hostel. We had heard on the grapevine that night out in Bath could be pretty good because of the uni there and it being filled with students. Unluckily for us it was half term due to it being Easter so the night life was pretty quiet. That didn't stop us hitting the bar. Somehow a few drinks down in the hostel bar ended up being a all night lock in with the hostel bar staff including Lisa's first Snakebite (strongbow cider and black current) and a few jagerbombs. We ended up getting into our hostel beds at about 6am when the sun was up. Crazy night in a quiet little town.




The next day after a bit of a sleep in and a nice greasy lunch of KFC we decided to check out the Roman Baths. The tour was pretty interesting and I was amazed at how they built these baths so long ago and how they are still working naturally now. We spent a couple of hours checking it out and even popped our big toes in the hot spa (kinda gross!). By the time we were done our energy was waning a little bit due to lack of sleep so we skipped swimming in the other Baths and spent most of the afternoon chilling out in a cute little cafe before heading back to London on the train.





I was so sad to go home because even though we were only there for one night I absolutely fell in love with Bath. It is such a beautiful city and was so nice to get out of town and enjoy the gorgeous city with great weather and a great friend. I love Josh but it was so nice have Lisa just to myself while he visited family and we could have lots of girlie chats and afternoons shopping. I will definitely be going back to Bath to have a relaxing weekend at the spas in Bath.

Es-pan-a Es-pan-a! Es-pa-na!

Err if you can't tell from the title I recently spent time in Espana - more specifically Barcelona. Avid readers of my blog will remember that I had spent time in Barcelona before but last time ended in a bad note - with my friend Caroline having to go home sick. This time luckily was a whole different story!

Friends from home Lisa and Josh had decided to come over for a visit to me and a bit of a trip around Europe and since it was a long weekend (yes it was Easter - yes I am behind on my blogging) we decided to fly across the pond to Barcelona for the weekend. We flew out on Good Friday and arrived in the evening to a pumping Barcelona. After a quick check in we went straight out to complete our only mission for the day - get some tapas and drink some sangria. We went for a wander down the Las Ramblas (where our hotel was conveniently located) before heading out to the harbour to a waterside restaurant and had tapas. Luckily for us it was a restaurant with pictures on the menu so all we had to do was point and yes 'this this and this'. Me and Josh had spent the whole plane ride telling Lisa just how good Patatas Bravas were. For those who haven't been lucky enough to taste this delicious dish - its basically potato wedges with chilli aioli but for some reason they just take a thousand times better in Spain. They also served us our first (of many) jugs of sangria which was my first since my sangria overdose at Pamplona last year. The first one took a while to get down but after that I was back on the wagon.




Unfortunately for us the weather in Barcelona wasn't on our side and so our plans of laxing out on the beach were foiled. Instead we decided to take a cable car and funicular up a mountain to check out the fort. The views once we were up there were amazing. You could see the whole of Barcelona city including the sagrada familia and Gaudi's gardens off in the distance. You could also look out into the beach and waterfront as well as the blue blue ocean. While we were up there the sun came out and me and Lisa had a bit of a 'if you had told us when we first met that we would be sitting here in Barcelona together we would have said your crazy' moment. After checking out the views and wandering back down through the fort we made our way along the sea front to find something to eat.







By this stage we were famished and we had been craving some more Spanish food and after a few false starts we were struggling to find somewhere that was open/serving food/didn't look like a crack den. However a few more metres down by the water front and we hit gold. A jug of Sangria, Salad and Paella for three for €10 each. Bargain. We sat down and ordered before guy could even greet us. It took about another 30 minutes to come out and by this stage tensions were high but when the plate of Paella came out it not only did it look amazing it tasted fantastic. Would have to say it is probably one of the best meals I have ever eaten in Europe. And even I would have to say thats a big call. As a person who isn't an avid lover of seafood I braved the muscles, prawns and calamari and enjoyed every bit. The rice was perfect and the whole thing just tasted like the ocean. Even typing this now makes me drool. Oh and the sangria wasn't bad either haha.



After a good feed, good chat and a top up of Sangria we were lucky enough that the day had brightened up and the sun was out. We had been planning on going on a cycling tour but we decided to give it a miss and head down to the beach to have a walk along the water while the sun was out. Once we got down there I have to tell you I couldn't keep the grin off my face! It was the first time my feet had hit sand (not pebbles, not dirt but ACTUAL sand) for the first time since July last year. Being on the beach and seeing the water and having the sun shine down on me is not something I get to experience too often in London and I have to say I miss it. After a quick test of the water (it was freaking freezing!) we wandered along and found a bar to get another drink.

We managed to stumble across a cute little bar that had a bit of a Moroccan theme to it with lots of little lanterns and couches and pillows so we grabbed a couch and layed out in the sun while we got cocktails brought to us. We spent the afternoon drinking Cava sangria and mojitos while people watching. The game of the day was to spot the tourist or local. Man side bag = tourist, sunburn = tourist, double denim = tourist, tracksuit = tourist, shorts and singlet = local. Basically it was just lots of tourists but still a fun way to people watch and kill the afternoon. That night we wandered back up to Las Ramblas to a bar to watch the Barcelona FC game. We had a few local beers before getting food at a yummy restaurant and heading back to our favourite little bar for a few more beers. Overall it was a pretty cruisy boozy day but never the less the perfect way to spend time in Barcelona.






The next morning we woke up to drizzle and wind so we decided instead of riding around the streets on a bicycle (we eventually just gave that idea a miss) we would get on one of those hop on hop off buses so we could see more of the city. It was a good tour as they have the commentary on what is around you and the history of the sights so we got to learn a few things about the architecture of the city and other interesting facts. We drove past the Sagrada Familia which is the church designed by Gaudi that is still under construction after decades (and yet to have a set finish date. We decided not to go in as the line was around the block but we got a good view of the outside. The next stop was Gaudi's park which was a collection of a few of his architecture designs in a big centre. It has several mosaics, tunnels, gardens as well as buildings that look like they were made out of gingerbread. That man must have been on some kind of trippy acid I have decided. It was really pretty and a good view of Barcelona at the top even though the whole place was crazy crowded. After the park we jumped back on the bus and went out to the Barcelona Stadium where the games were played but just had a quick glance at the outside as we stayed on the bus and headed back to the hotel.








That night we decided we would head to a dinner and flamenco show. We had another paella (which was no where near as good as the last one) and Sangria (still yum!) before the show started. Once the show started I was completely in awe. I had seen a flamenco show when I was in Barcelona last time and if I thought that was good I was crazy! This one was ten times better with both male and female dancers and some great costumes. I was a big disappointed they didn't have many big flamenco dresses like you expect but they were still amazing. The dancers were so talented - I don't know how they make their legs move that quickly. The music was live and they had a collection of singers, drummers and guitarists on stage creating the music. It was such a great experience and I am so glad that I had decided to see another one.




The next day was our last in Barcelona and since we had to be at the airport at 3pm we didn't have too much time for sight seeing. We decided after a leisurely morning we would wander over to the Barcelona Arc Di Triomph and the gardens where Gaudi's fountain is. Unluckily for us the fountain had been turned off and closed which was a shame because it would have been stunning. Still it was nice to get out and about and have a wander before jumping on a plane.

It was such a good weekend away and Barcelona is now back up there with one of my favourite places (the list is long!) where as it hadn't been previously. It was exciting discovering a city with Lisa who hadn't travelled much before and with Josh who was a pro and me being somewhere in between. It was great to spend time with old friends and do something that we never thought we would be doing together. It was amazing to be eating delicious food and reignite my love of Sangria and basically overall - it was just fantastic. I love Espana!

Race For Life - Update

So a few weeks ago I told you about the Monday Night Running Club and my attempt to get fit do 10k run in the Race for Life to raise money for cancer. I am pretty proud to say that I have been training semi-regularly and recently did my biggest run yet - 7.5k.

Now I know that isn't much considering many people do this is a warm up but trust me when I say that is the longest I have ever run in my life. It was good to know that I am on my way to reaching my goal. Sammy my housemate is training for an off road run so we got up early one Saturday (ew yuck) and went for a run through Wimbledon Common. It was good to be out in the park rather then pounding the pavement even if it was harder to run on such uneven surfaces and even up a few hills. While we were there we discovered a group of runners that meet every Saturday to do a 5k loop.

Its called Park Run and they are held all throughout the UK. You can register for free and download a barcode and they scan it as you run and every time you do it they time you and you can see how you progress and even work out your personal best. Me and Sammy signed up and hope to do it on a weekend soon (we have both been away at different times) so we can do the 5k loop and see if we can double it one day in our own time. So I am getting there slowly! The monday night runs have turned into random dates during the week - some mornings some nights but I usually at least go for one good run a week!

The only thing I haven't been doing is kick starting my fundraising. I thought since it was only a couple of months away and I have quite a target to reach - £100 I would start plugging away.

If you would like to donate please click here> Every little bit helps and it would be really appreciated not just by me but for those it goes to in the end.


Thanks guys! I will update you on my progress again soon!

Gold Falling From The Ceiling Of This World

THE SUN IS SHINING!! Summer is on its way!

I'm not going to lie... when I moved over here I was worried how I would handle the cold rainy weather. Luckily for me I don't have to worry about that too much because lately the weather has been completely gold. The thing is when these amazingly sunny days come around you see the Londoners make the most of it. If these days fall during the week the parks around the city are packed with people lunching and working on their tans and when its lucky enough to fall on the weekend you head to the nearest park for a picnic, beer garden for a brew or a mates place for a BBQ.

A few weekends ago we had a glorious sunny day so we decided to walk from our house at Southfields through the Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park over to a grassy noll next to the Thames River for a picnic. The walk takes about two hours but there is so much to see along the way that it makes for an interesting morning out. The weather was warm enough for t-shirts and shorts but cool enough that when you were walking up hill you didn't get too hot and stinky. We managed to find a tennis ball and a giant stick along the way and had an impromput game of cricket which amused us for awhile but after we got to the other side of Richmond Park we were ready for a drink and some food. With a quick stop at Tesco to pick up picnic food and some ciders we found our spot next to the river and feasted.

We spent the afternoon eating, drinking, chatting and people watching. After awhile we even had a nanna nap. It was such a good way to spend an afternoon and I know i've said it before but Richmond is one of my favourite places in London. Not sure if the photos will do it justice but its just so scenic and chilled out. I'm pretty sure there will be a few more trips there over the summer.







After a few hours we wandered back to the train to go home the quick way (there was no way we were going to walk back!!) and stopped again to pick up some food before hosting a BBQ at our place. Once we arrived home I was gutted to find that I was sunburnt! What a rookie mistake! The sun at home is just so hot that you usually feel a bit of a burn but since its not so hot I just didn't think and was bright red at the end of the day. Oh well! Lesson learnt! Of course the BBQ included a lot more yummy food and heaps of drinks before heading out for a couple of drinks on the high street near by. We went to a bar called the Ink Room which looked pretty much like a tattoo parlour with a bar. It was a pretty cool place with amazing decor and it was a bit out of the way so it wasn't too crowded for a Saturday night which made a nice change.

The next day the sun was out again so I headed off to watch a game of Tag Rugby (Oz Tag for those at home) as I had just recently joined a team but since I am completely unathletic and do not follow sport I thought it would be a good idea to check out what I would be playing. It was fun sitting in the park with Shea having a yarn and watching the game which was North London vs South London (South London won!! Whoop!). We then were met by a few other people on our Tag team before heading back to a park near Shea's house for a BBQ and a bit of a practice round. It was quite funny really because we had to wheel her bbq across the road and into the park before getting it going. I think I heard somewhere that this was illegal so whooooops! Anyways while a couple of people who weren't playing cooked our dinner we had a bit of a kick around with the ball and a quick lesson of the rules. We played three on two so it didn't really work all that well but it was still heaps of fun to have a bit of a run around in the sun. A few cheeky ciders and more BBQ food later we had one last kick around before heading home.

It was such a good weekend and despite my sunburnt and sore muscles from all the walking/exercising I was really happy I had made the most of it. The heat and sunshine is something I took for granted at home so I have made a concious decision to make sure I utilise the sun because before I know it it will be winter again!

I Love Rock And Roll

"So put another dime in the jukebox baby"

I recently discovered that a couple of my friends from work lived close by (and by close I mean literally around the corner) to me in Southfields and since one of them had recently moved in they were throwing a 'Rock and Roll' themed house warming party.

As you know I love themed parties and was ready to rip up some stockings and throw on some eyeliner and bring out my rockstar alter ego. The girls came round earlier and we had a few pre drinks and a chat while we watched the Disney version of Cinderella (downloaded so we could compare it to the ballet the night before). Which isn't exactly party movie but was a good kick start to the night.

We were all getting ready and were trying to put together our costumes without ruining good clothes and sourcing things from others as none of us are particularly 'rock chic'. Luckily for us Laura is a make up artist and soon got to work giving Claire smokey eyes and me 'Jenny Humphrey' panda eyes to complete the look. Add flannel shirts and a skull T-shirt plus wavey 90's hair I was as close to rock chic as I will ever get.

The best part about pre drinking at mine was that it was about a 4 min walk to the party and we were already there and ready to rock and roll all night. We soon joined all the other rock and rollers is having jelly shots and copious amounts to drink. Thankfully we didn't actually behave like rockstars and trash the place (well not too bad I think) but it was a huge night!!

The worst part about the night was that in my hungover state I managed to delete all my photos off my camera. Many of which were actually hilarious shots of us being rockstars and many other crazy pictures. Thank god for Facebook I say so I have stolen a good one off my mates page so you guys can see what some of us looked like. Unluckily for you guys the only photo of me from the party on someone elses camera is absolutely heinous so you don't get to see my costume but you get the idea from the photo below!

Forever After

Earlier this month me and my work girls scored a bargain ticket to the ballet. We managed to score a two course dinner and tickets to see Cinderella by the Birmingham Royal Ballet at the London Coliseum. We were all excited about going to see the show as we were all fans of both the story and the idea of going to the ballet and we were especially looking forward to the night because we were celebrating both me and Claire getting new jobs (more on that later). We had decided to get all dressed up in dresses and heels and make a night of it.

We headed to Maxwells and had our two course dinner and took advantage of their half price cocktails to celebrate the new jobs and kick start the weekend before heading to the show. I was pleasantly surprised when we got there that we had fairly decent seats. Usually when you get last minute tickets they are the ones up in the nosebleed section but we were in the dress circle and had a really good overall view of the stage.

Once the show started I was soon mesmerised as I hadn't seen a ballet live since I used to dance when I was little. I have to tell you this is my new favourite thing to do and hopefully I can go to a few more while I am here (believe me I will try and see the Nutcracker at Christmas!). It was good that we were seeing a story that we knew so we could just focus on the dancing, set and costumes rather then trying to understand what was going on. The show was actually quite comical with the ugly stepsisters providing some comic relief as well as equally dramatic when the evil stepmother appeared. The costumes were exqiusite with my favourites being when the fairy godmother appeared to save the day. She turned lizards into coachmen and the dancers had to dance around the stage in giant lizard costumes which was both skilled and hilarious. The tutu's and shimmering dresses took me back to my ballet days when I was little and made me want to start doing it again. Of course the handsome Prince appeared and they all lived happily ever after.

It was such a good night out - not only because we were celebrating but it is always fun to do something a little special that you don't usually do. Especially when it is something as beautiful as watching the ballet and like I said hopefully there is many more of these nights to come!

One Year On...

The saying ' Time flies when your having fun' has never been so true. Can you believe it has been a year since I left home and started this adventure? It feels like yesterday I was standing over my backpack stressing about the t-shirts to shorts ratio I had packed and wondering if I could someone get away justifying that fourth pair of shoes. A whole year ago I was saying teary goodbyes to all my friends at home and feeling scared, excited and anxious about what was to come. It was hard and scary and exciting and nerve wracking but it is completely and utterly the best decision I have ever made. I have never been so happy as I have been during my time in Europe and my living in London. There has been some down times and some more tears but overall it has been a fantastic experience and I am looking forward to continuing the amazing times in the next couple (or many? who knows) years.

Well! Since I've basically filling you in on whats been happening during my time here I thought I would do a quick summary of what has happened since I left.

Countries Visited: 20

England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Austria, Spain, Albania, Portugal, Monaco, Vatican City, Amsterdam, Belgium

Countries That I Have Stepped Foot In: (yes this is a real category)

All of the above plus - Montenegro, Serbia and Singapore

Houses Lived In: 2

Nicknamed the 'Egyptian House' due to all of my housemates bar one being Egyptian Elsenham Street was my first residence in London. I lasted all of 6 weeks there with my non social and quite frankly disgusting housemates before the roof fell in and I high tailed it out of that house as fast as I could.

I then spent three weeks dossing with friends before making my way to

Pulborough Road - which we all know was the best thing to happen to me in London. I love it here and am extremely happy to call my housemates my London family because I know that they care for me as much as I do them and they will be friends for my lifetime.

Housemates: 12

In one year I have lived with 12 different people. 6 people in the Egyptian house of whom I am still unsure of their names and 6 my crew at Pulborough. When I moved in there was Fran, Lance, Sammy and Siobhan. Since then Fran has left to go explore South America so we got Jules in and Siobhans boyfriend Matt came over to join her.

Jobs: 3

First job was Topshop - This still makes me shudder. I have not stepped foot into the Oxford Circus Topshop since I got a new job and have enjoyed my time away from that awful place. I think that my dislike of the place has significantly helped my bank balance because I saved so much money not going in there.

Second job was at the NMC - The Nursing and Midwifery Council where I have been doing admin since August. While it isn't my dream job I have enjoyed working with lots of cool people and have made some of my best London friends there.

Third job was at BREW - The Cafe at Clapham Junction (not far from where I live) where I worked on weekends to supplement my income so I could save for more holidays. I was a waitress and it was good to get more hospitality experience (if I ever need it again) and meet some new people but after a few months I got sick of working every weekend.

Nights out on the piss: 1000's

Hahaha ok clearly I'm joking. But there has been a lot.

Festivals/Occasions attended:

Weddings - My cousins Susie and her groom Billy's wedding in Ireland. It may not be a world wide known significant event but it was one of the most important things I could have done during the year I have been away.



Anzac Day - I was lucky enough to be at Gallipoli for the Dawn Service ont he 95th anniversary of our troops landing. I got to share this very amazing experience with my Dad, Sister and two uncles who had all made the journey to Turkey after the wedding in Ireland.




Pamplona (Running of the Bulls) - I was there for the crazy messy insane experience that is the opening ceremony of Pamplona and the scary yet thrilling running of the bulls.



Oktoberfest - By far one of the best experiences of my life. I spent three days drinking beer with Shea and my cousins Johnny, Robyn and Nick. Steins were huge, the pretzels were salty and the fun was non stop. Dancing on tables and using school girl german to chat to the locals is something I hope that I never forget.



Firsts:

House - There were a few things I did for the first time since leaving home with the main one actually being moving out of home! No longer living with Mummy and Daddy and while I miss their company (especially Mums cooking) I am loving doing my own thing and having my own house (even if there are 5 other people in it).

Wedding - The occasion wasn't just an important part of my trip but the first wedding ceremony I have ever been to!

Sailing - the first time I have ever sailed a boat was in Greece and it is definitely something I would be keen to do again. Those three days out on the water were amazing and I am happy that the Captain Vanessa and First Mate Arron from my boat are now living in London with me. They are also now dating which is great because at their wedding I can say I was there when they met and fell for each other! hahaha



I am sure there are many many other firsts that have happened while I have been away but these are the biggest!

There have also been many other adventures, events and happenings along the way but I won't repeat myself because if you have been following my progress through this blog then you will know all the details and excitements of my life in London.

For those of you at home who are readers I just wanted to say while I love my life in London I still very much call Australia home and I miss everyone one of you. For those who don't know me but happen to have stumbled across this I hope it has informed you and inspired you to travel and visit other parts of the world.

There is much more to come from me soon as I know I have been a bit absent from blogging. Be prepared for an overload as I have about a months worth of shenanigans to fill you in on.