Hostels, Obama, and Notting Hill

It’s been well over a week since my last update so I suppose it’s time for another. Much has happened since I last posted. I’ve moved from the spacious flat in Wimbledon to a not-so-spacious hostel in Central London, which is one of the reasons I haven’t been able to sign on the Internet as frequently as I’d like since the WiFi signal is often very weak unless I go downstairs. I think a few of you can attest to this as I’ve been kicked off the Internet multiple times in the midst of conversations.

Anyhow, being in the hostel is definitely a huge change, but I’ve adjusted to living here for the time being. It helps that the other girls are kind and respectful and they’ve lived here for a while so they know the area well. We all come from different backgrounds so it’s a brilliant mix of cultures. Their language skills are impressive as they’re all at least bilingual. I love meeting people from all over the world. They have such interesting stories to tell. One of the girls, Emma, is from France, but she’s done a lot of independent traveling to places like China, Panama, and Egypt.

One of the benefits of my move is that I now live close enough to the BUNAC office to walk there. It’s nice because I’m taking the Tube less and becoming more familiar with the city and my surroundings. I can walk to the park and have even gone by foot to some of my interviews. Although the public transportation is reliable, it’s great to not have to depend on it all the time. The fresh air is so relaxing!

What else has happened in the past week? I found a church to attend. It actually happened by accident. Although it was in the back of my mind to look for one, to be honest, I wasn’t actively searching. My mind has been preoccupied with other things. One of the girls I met through the program, Kay, and I had talked about going to a museum last weekend. When I sent her a message about possibly meeting somewhere, she mentioned that she was checking out a nondenominational church service in South Kensington and invited me along. I’ve attended more traditional services in the past, but I enjoy nondenominational ones, too. The congregation at this church is young and a nice size, and the atmosphere is so welcoming. It’s very much a community, and I like it.

In other news, the United States certainly wasn’t the only country celebrating on Tuesday, 20 January. London, much like most of the world, joined in on the festivities. In honor of the presidential inauguration, Madame Tussauds, which normally has a £25 admission fee (approximately $37), was free to all Americans who held proper documentation. Earlier in the week, they had revealed Barack Obama’s wax figure in the Oval Office for the first time. Kay and I had a lot of fun taking pictures with the Royal Family, Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, Einstein, Julia Roberts, and of course, Obama. After the museum, we had lunch and then went over to the International Students House to watch the inauguration. It was crazy to see the crowds on television, but there isn’t a doubt in my mind that if I had been home, I would’ve found a way to DC to witness history. Kay is from the DC area, and I think this was the first time we both felt a twinge of homesickness.

On Wednesday, I had an interview with another recruitment agency in the morning and later, I met Kay in Notting Hill. It’s such a cute area! The plan was to walk down Portobello Road, but it was a little colder than we had expected so we spent most of the time in bookshops in the area. We found one that sold used books for as little as 50p so I bought two: Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood and Follow Your Heart. Just what I need, more books. Later that night, I went to the pub meet and met other people who are here on the program. I got a chance to talk to Carly, who is one of the girls I had been talking to via Facebook before coming to London. She was lucky enough to have spent the four months prior to coming to London in Dublin.

Aside from the interview I mentioned before, there have been others. Thursday was supposed to be a more relaxing day as I didn’t have anything specific planned, but that all changed when I received a call about an interview in the Canary Wharf area. Since they’re looking for someone to start immediately, I agreed to go in later that day. The interview went well, and he offered me an office position, but I’m waiting to see what happens with a couple of the other places. Yesterday, I was interviewed for a position to help prepare for the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. Apparently, it’s a rather huge event. I made it through the first round of interviews and should hear about the next part soon. I have several other appointments set up for next week. Things are moving more quickly now, which is a relief.

Yesterday, Kay and I visited the British Museum. We weren’t there for too long, but there was enough time to see the Rosetta Stone, Cleopatra, and some of the Greek exhibits. I think we’ll go back some other time to see the rest of the galleries.

And now I’m off to meet Kay and her former flatmate, Bree, at Portobello Road again because the large market is open today. It should be fun.

Better Late Than Never, Right?

I had meant to create a blog well before I left Pennsylvania, but life was a bit hectic at the time. Two and half weeks later? Well, here it is finally. My plan is to update this on a fairly regular basis. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep up with it. We'll see..

Anyway, it was quite an adventure getting here. You would think that by now, I would have mastered packing lightly. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case. The important thing is that I made it. My European life has been anything but dull. London is an incredibly exciting place in itself. While looking for a job, I've been temporarily living in a cozy flat in Wimbledon with three law students: a girl from South Africa and three guys from Hungary, Bolivia, and Russia. Diego's girlfriend just moved to London from Paris to complete an internship and her thesis, so it's definitely a full house. They're all very nice though and have been helpful with all the questions I have about how to most efficiently use the public transportation system, where to buy the least expensive groceries, and perhaps most importantly, what areas are the best locations to look for a flat.

Wimbledon is a beautiful area, but it's pretty expensive and a bit far from Central London, which increases the price of taking the Tube. I would prefer to live in Zone 1 or 2, if possible. I've viewed a couple flats I had found on gumtree.com, but they weren't exactly places I would want to live for a prolonged period of time. It's difficult to look for a flat because I would potentially like to live close to where I end up working. Since I haven't found a job yet, I don't want to commit to a flat. I've been looking at hostels that are closer to Central London and therefore, closer to the BUNAC office. I visited a couple and one of them is fairly new and the facilities are nice. Since it'll be easier to get to interviews and such from there, I may move to the hostel soon.

As far as a job goes, I have several interviews scheduled for later this week and next week. I've been sending my CV and cover letter everywhere. The program has a rather extensive database where we can search for positions that suit our interests. However, the UK is suffering from the major credit crunch, so it makes obtaining a job, while certainly not impossible, more challenging. Hopefully, I'll find something soon despite the situation.

On a much more fun note, I've done a fair amount of sightseeing since arriving here. A few friends and I spent New Year's Eve watching the fireworks above the London Eye from Trafalgar Square. The Tower Bridge and the Tower of London are two other attractions I've seen. A few of the other girls on the program and I went on a Royal Tour of the city and saw the likes of Buckingham Palace, Wellington Arch, St. James Park, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, etc. I have pictures on my camera, but I have yet to upload them to my computer. My computer has been operating rather slowly lately.. too many pictures and songs? Hopefully, I'll upload them soon though and post them. I also did a day trip to Stonehenge and Avebury. It was amazing seeing Stongehenge in person. Avebury is another mystical stone monument and is said to be more spiritual than Stonehenge. I have to say it was pretty impressive as well even though I had never heard of it before coming here. I'm hoping to take another guided tour in the near future to see the Roman Baths and Oxford.

I believe that just about covers my first two weeks here. Check back for updates!

Cheers!