"Are y'all from America?"

What a whirlwind the past few days have been. I knew that settling in would take some time, especially with getting oriented with the city, adjusting to the time difference, and setting up my London life. However, I forgot to factor in how inconvenient it is to use public transportation when you're trying to lug around groceries or go to places in multiple areas. I spent the first day and a half here running around trying to get things that I knew I couldn't bring with me (ie. cell phone or groceries) and attempting to remedy the unexpected (ie. super uncomfortable bed and cold bedroom).

I met with the people at Protocol (the teaching agency I'm working for) on Wednesday and that went well. I got myself all set up to start work on Monday. Hopefully I get a call for work. No more automated Smartfind system like back home. Now I actually get to speak to a human being and they're actively going to look for work for me. =) After my meeting with Protocol I headed to HSBC to set up my bank account. On the way I thought I'd pop into the phone store to buy a mobile and since I saw online that it was close to the tube station I thought it would be quite convenient. Unfortunately I completely missed it and ended up taking a nice long detour walk around the area trying to find it. I'm not even sure where I was walking but I popped into a Tesco Express and bought myself an A-Z (basically a London map book) which will come in handy as I start to supply out here. I found the high street and just as I was about to give up my search and go back to the station I saw the phone store. Yay! Turns out the phone I wanted (cheapest one there) came with a credit so that was a bonus. I headed to HSBC and got my bank account set up with no trouble, just took an hour because the guy was training someone. After HSBC I was going to head to an Argos that was nearby to pick up a mattress topper (my mattress is really springy so I have an air mattress on top which is just as uncomfortable). Unfortunately, the streets were jammed with tourists and other people and I didn't want to deal with crowds so I just went back to Lewisham. Before I got on the tube I stopped into BK because it was right there and I was starving. Turns out they have multiple versions of the chicken sandwich and some come with cheese! Yum. It tasted the same as back home but made my stomach feel ill later (hence why I don't usually have fast food).

The next morning Monica and I got up super early and started our adventure to Edinburgh, Scotland. The plan was to take a bus to Victoria station to catch a coach bus to Stanstead Airport to get our flight. However, we missed the first bus which ended up changing our trip into the Amazing Race. We got to the airport with less than 10 mins until our gate was closing. We rushed through the airport, waited in security and then ran to the gate only to find that there was a giant line because they hadn't even started boarding. We flew with Easyjet which is a budget airline but it was decent and quick.

When we got to the city centre we headed straight for the hostel. First thing we noticed is that everywhere you go in Edinburgh you're either going up or down a steep hill. At this rate I don't think I'm going to need a gym over here. On our way to the hostel a lady stopped us and asked "Are y'all from America?" This is something I'm going to have to get used to as apparently our accents are quite similar (or not easily distinguishable). Anyway, we all walked towards the hostel and then the woman realized she was going to the wrong one so left us. We dropped our stuff at the hostel and headed straight for the Edinburgh Castle. The castle has a very rich history and is a must see if you're ever in Edinburgh.

After a 2.5 hour tour of the castle (we saw EVERYTHING!) we headed for some lunch. We ended up at a tavern on the Royal Mile and had yummy sandwiches, salad, and a pint (cider for Monica). We headed back to the hostel so we could put our stuff in our room since we could now check-in and we relaxed for a bit before heading out for our Underground tour which was awesome! Roxy had told me all about it from when she went to Edinburgh and highly recommended it which helped me to not get too scared when down there. I don't want to go into too much detail about it in case anyone wants to go. Basically, there are a bunch of underground tunnels and vaults where the poor, criminal, and witches used to live. Each vault has a different story about the type of people who lived there and the terrifying things that happened to them. For example, in vault we were separated, ladies on one side and men on the other, because women have experienced a presence or been touched on the one side. The story is that there was a big fire above ground and the people (men, women, and children) were put in the vault to keep them safe. However, the fire had gotten so outrageous outside that it started heating the stone vault, made the wooden door expand and become impossible to open, and the people inside essentially cooked to death. We went on the regular tour but the other ones are supposedly full of more spooky stories (perfect for my family who loves that stuff).

After the tour we decided to wander around the city and tour things on our own. We went to Calton Hill and got wonderful views of the city (which I'm sure are even prettier in the day time). We explored some more, took photos, ate some dinner, and then headed back to the hostel because we were exhausted. We met a nice guy in our room (we were in an 8-bed mixed dorm room) and got to talking. He mentioned that he was going on a tour of the Scottish Highlands and Loch Ness the next day and we thought it sounded so neat that we decided to do it too! Spontaneous change of plans for our trip which was totally worth it in the end! We couldn't get on Peter's tour because it was booked but were able to get one with another company. Before heading to bed on recommendation from Peter the 3 of us went to get a deep fried Mars bar. It was soo sweet but delicious.

The next morning the 3 of us set off early to get some breakfast at the convenience store before heading on our tour buses. The tour was 12 hours long, most of it spent on a bus, but was really awesome. We saw castles, the highlands, saw some whisky distilleries, took a boat ride on Loch Ness, and learned a lot about the history of Scotland. If you ever go to Scotland I definitely recommend going on a tour of the highlands (either on your own or through a tour company). Words and pictures cannot do them justice. There were many snow capped mountains and waterfalls running down them as the snow melted. We had a lot of rain throughout the day so most of my pictures (taken through the window of the bus) are not as lovely as they could have been.

After the highlands we went to take a boat tour of Loch Ness and searched for Nessie. We actually met up with Peter on the boat as his bus wasn't far behind ours. We also met another Canadian who was from Etobicoke. The small Canadian patch on my bag not only distinguishes me as a Canadian and a tourist but is also a conversation starter piece! While on the boat it started to rain which was fine since I had my umbrella. All of a sudden the rain started coming down really hard and was like a tsunami so we decided to go under for cover. Unfortunately we were already pretty wet at this point. Nonetheless, the boat ride was fun and I get to say that I saw the Loch Ness monster who you can see on my video below!

Click here if you want to read more about where exactly we went on the tour. The website has a link to a flikr account with pictures that our tour guide Brian swears he took. They're beautiful nonetheless.

When we finally got back from the tour we were pretty tired but hungry. We relaxed at the hostel for a bit, went for dinner, and then to a pub for a couple pints before heading to bed. The next morning we got up early again to catch our flight back to London. We got the wrong directions from the guy at the hostel which caused us to miss the bus (again, I know!) and arrived at the airport 5 mins past our gate closing time. Fortunately our flight had been delayed 1.5 hours so we weren't late! We got some breakfast, relaxed, and then took the long journey back to London.

You may have thought after my multiple early morning days that I would just stay at home and relax. Nope! I did some errands, had dinner, then went out to karaoke with Nicole and some friends who were visiting from back home. The night was great until I missed the last tube by a few minutes and had to text Monica to find out how to get home. 3 buses and 2 hours later and I got back to Lewisham around 2am. I slept in the next day until 10am and went to the Portobello Market with Monica and Chris. The market is in the Notting Hill area which has very cute houses and is quite posh. There were many stores with things out of our price range. Sundays aren't the best for the market because not all of the stalls are open but I was able to get two nice scarves and Monica bought a cute bag. We'll have to go back on a Saturday to see what it's really like.

So now it's Monday and my official start day for work. I got up at 6:30am and got ready just in case there was work but unfortunately there was none. Oh well, maybe I'll experience London kids tomorrow.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles

I will preface this post with I got to London safe and sound with relative ease. If you'd like to read the long detailed version then proceed. I blame my love of history and literature for my detailed account. =)

A 4:30am wake up call by my alarm after going to bed at 2am was very unwelcome. I hit snooze once, maybe twice. When I finally pushed myself out of bed I quickly gathered together my things, woke up Mom, and did my online check-in for my flight. After a quick good-bye to Dad who was still sleeping we went out to the car (which I had to uncover from snow) to drive to the airport.

The morning didn't start off the best at the airport and I was hoping it wouldn't be an indication of how the rest of my travel day would go. To begin with, the electronic signs were malfunctioning so I couldn't see which line I was supposed to go to. I proceeded to the nearest one where I showed my boarding pass and asked if I was in the right place. The Air Canada employee said yes so I joined the long winding line only to find out when I got to the agent that I'm in the domestic line. The plus side is that because that line took up so much of my time I got to by-pass the giant line at the international booth and go right to the front.

On I went to security where I had to finish the 3 sips of my Gatorade before they would let me into the line. No problem. I took off my bag, jacket, scarf and placed them in the bins and walked through with no issues. Then without explanation a security person says I will have to wait a few minutes and calls over her colleague. She says I have to come with her and to leave my belongings with the other attendant. Knowing that I had a fair amount of cash and Mom's camera in my purse I refused and asked if she would be responsible for my belongings if something went missing. They agreed to let me take my purse with me. I was brought over to a giant electronic machine and was motioned to go inside. I can only assume that it is one of those body scanners and I refused to go in. I told her that if she'd like to search me that's fine but I'm not going in that. She said 'ok' and directed me to follow her back to where my other belongings were, told me to hold out my hands, then put them in my sweater pockets, then hold them out again where she waved some magic wand over them. I asked what it was and she just smiled and said I could grab my stuff and go. WHAT!? So my options are go into some giant electronic radiation machine or magic wand? I've been searched a couple times before at the airport which is fine because they're doing their job but at least they answered my questions. I would've been less annoyed if this lady had just responded, it wasn't 6:30am, and I had my coffee. Rant over.

Finally through security I continued to my gate which was quite the distance away. Before I got there I saw a Tim Horton's and despite the super long line I knew I wouldn't function without a coffee. I didn't know until I received my cup but Roll up the Rim had started and it was just my luck that I won a coffee as I'm leaving the country. =(

The flight itself was great! There weren't enough people on the flight so they had to shuffle some around to even out the weight. I had a window seat and no one beside me so I was able to stretch out and had extra pillows for behind my back. I watched 3 movies: Due Date, Never Let Me Go, and Score: A Hockey Musical. I fell asleep part way through the last one though because I was pretty tired.

Getting through customs was fairly easy but the line was ridiculously long so by the time I got to the luggage carousel there were only a few bags left, including mine. I gathered them up, went to the taxi stand and found out that it would cost me 80 pounds to take a taxi to Lewisham. That's equivalent to around $125 Canadian so I opted for the longer and less expensive route- the tube. Trying to carry all my luggage up and down the stairs to get to each station (I had 3 transfers, including the bus) was not easy. I think that makes up for the week of not working out before I left. haha. Finally, just after midnight I made it to my new house to be greeted by Monica and Chris who waited up for me.

So it was a long journey but relatively painless. A few bumps along the way but nothing I couldn't handle. I'm glad to be here and now I just can't wait to get over my jet lag.  =)

Time to go!

I figured this link would be appropriate as I head off to the airport.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7RLcq4Kn3Y

Current mental/physical status: slightly hungover (thanks Mom, Tina, and Gordon), tired, excited and ridiculously nervous!!!

Stay tuned

I'm leaving for London in exactly 1 week and I thought it might be a good idea to get a blog up and running so that everyone back home can be updated on my adventures. I hope to update it regularly with details of my teaching and travel experiences so make sure to check back often. =)