ANZAC Day, a new arrival and going crazy in the Koko

I haven't written a while - apologies to my fans :) Been very busy, and we have a new arrival! A lovely bubbly addition to our happy Aussie expat crew in London - Simone brought some Anzac spirit when her and her Cherry Ripe- and Vegemite-laden luggage landed at Heathrow on Tuesday. Although I never did end up making the ANZAC biscuits I intended to, we had a lovely little reunion since I haven't seen her in nine months, and she is now settling into London life (well, as much as you can in three days). Of course we wasted no time showing her the sights, and set out to the 'kingdom of cool' Camden on Thursday night for my first unforgettable visit to the Camden Koko - the BEST venue I have ever been to. I never thought anything could surpass my beloved Enmore Theatre in Newtown, Sydney, but this place (where a little gal called Madonna made her debut, and where the likes of the Sex Pistols, the Clash, Prince, Boy George and Wham have performed) was amazing. We saw Wolfmother - the latest big thing to come out of Sydney - and they were brilliant. The place was packed with Aussies so it was a nice taste of home.
I realised I haven't updated lately with news on the job searches of our two other favourite working travellers, Shell and Ray. I've told about Ray's great celebrity personal training job (going by three degrees of separation, I'm now best friends with Julia Roberts) but Shell will soon be starting her new job as Editor on a new kids magazine. Simone will soon be looking for a job in print or television so stay tuned for more job-hunting success stories.

In the meantime - today I booked £50 flights to Paris and £70 filghts to Germany for some weekend getaways - this is all before my much-anticipated trip to Croatia on Tuesday! love it, love it, love it...

Why is it that five days at work seems like an eternity but tempt us with a little time off and it will fly by in a second. Going back to work today was not fun, but I've only got a couple of days left in the office so I suppose I can survive. The UK also seems to have a billion public holidays coming up, so I think it works out that I don't have a full week at work for six months (ok, maybe not six months, but it's still a while).

OK, am conscious of the fact I am rambling...

What's been happening in London recently..well, there was Easter. I did notice that the UK went nowhere near as mad for Easter as Australia does. There were no Coles/Woolworths style Easter specials or bad TV ads with the Easter bunny, no shutdown of every single public service on Good Friday... Maybe I was just walking around in a haze, but I kind of forgot what the whole weekend was for (slap my little Catholic wrist).

I also experienced my first football match (i say it smoothly now, hardly even tempted to say soccer which freaks me out a bit). It was ok, but I have to say, I could take it or leave it. I think I'm just overdosed with football - this whole country is - and I especially suffer living with two English blokes who live, breathe and would die for the game (as we speak Paul is screaming at some yellow team playing on the TV). Anyways, I was at the football game and since I was still pretty ill and all rugged up in Paul's coat since it was cold and rainy (gotta love Spring) I was caught having a bit of a doze in the middle of the match by a horrified Michelle. Don't ask me how I managed it, but I guess I just wasn't that in to the game. In my defense, I was sick! I was sick ok!

Commemorations: The Anzac and Freedom Day spirit in London
Next week there are a couple of important days for Australians, Kiwis and South African travellers in the UK when we will be remembering where we come all come from. Wednesday 25 April is ANZAC Day and 27 April is South Africa Freedom Day. ANZAC day is the rememberance day for Australian and New Zealand servicemen, and Freedom Day is the commemoration of the first democratic elections held in South Africa on 27 April 1994.

Both days will be celebrated and respected whole heartedly by the UK's backpacking/working traveller population. Here's some info about events going on for ANZAC Day and for South Africa travellers in the UK, try this South African newspaper for events celebrating Freedom Day.

Going to the theatre, dahling

Of course 0ne of the best things about London is all the shows and musicals you can go to see - it really is amazing how many theatres there are all over town. On Thursday night we went to see The Producers for Ben's birthday and it was great! I didn't really know what to expect as I hadn't seen the film, didn't know the story, and the only thing I'd ever heard about it was when my Nan went to see the show in Sydney and was upset because she got an understudy instead of Bert Newton (ripped off!).

Anyways, we picked up a cheap deal on Last Minute.com and got a lovely dinner and theatre package for under 20 quid! Perfect for travellers who want to see the big shows but don't have a lot of cash. Although the seats weren't brilliant (so high up in the balcony you'd be in big trouble if you had a stumble) - for some shows I think that's fine. The show is so entertaining, you barely notice that you're quite far away!

So we kicked off the Easter long weekend with a bang. For all you that have put two and two together and noticed that I took the day off work then went out at night, yes i did, but i was coughing and spluttering throughout the whole performances (having to wait until the grand finale of each song to let loose). I'm still a bit ill, but it's criminal to waste public holidays.

Today we're off to see our first premier league football match: Fulham Vs Charlton (or something like that). I'm currently upset as I just found out that (gasp!) you're not allowed to drink beer while you watch the game! Damn British hooligans! I had warm cheery thoughts about getting a pie and sauce, some chips and a beer, and watching the footy a la my AFL days in Sydney, but I just don't think it's going to happen. So I'll have to wait and see exactly what the British football experience involves (maybe I'll have to start a riot at my local pub.....)

Happy Easter everyone - hoping you all the enjoy the spirit and copious confectionery products the Easter weekend brings..

So here I am in sunny Plovdiv

I forgot to mention the other day that the funniest thing about Bulgaria is that when you nod your head it means no and when you shake your head it means yes. Since I only found this out on the last day you can imagine the confusion I caused while trying to communicate with all the Bulgarian students at the fair who couldn't speak English. Together with my size, shape, accent and pale skin and blonde hair, I think all the Bulgarians thought I was a little bit strange.

I also think I was the first Australian a lot of the students had ever spoken to. I was plugging Australian universities (as well as UK and US) so UTS might soon get an influx of Bulgarian students!

So anyways, this photo is me in the park in the centre of town. And here are the rest of my photos

I'm actually at home today cause I'm a little bit ill - am currently soaking up the intellectual capital spewed forth by UK daytime TV. It's quite dangerous really - I've just spent the last half hour mesmerised by 'Models' - a show solely showing clips of models on Fashion TV - how depressing. Now I'm being delighted by a 'Nancy Drew' series on the Disney Channel - hmmmm.

More Antipodeans:
Found this blog linking to mine - a Kiwi Adventurer planning his OE . It's got some stuff for people planning their upcoming overseas trips. He also links to some other traveller sites all you people back in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Canada etc might like to check out for inspiration.

Got a question about moving to the UK?
Visit the Workgateways forum, and one of the expert team (or me!) will do their best to help you out.

Back from Bulgaria

What could be better - coming to live in London as a lowly working traveller, and finding a job where they pay you to travel and put you up in a five star hotel. I'm living the working traveller dream! I just got back from Plovdiv, Bulgaria, which although wasn't my first choice travel destination, definitely has given me five days which I will never forget! (and completely charged to the company I work for.....I get a little twinge of glee every time I think about it :)

I arrived in Bulgaria on Thursday - a little disgruntled at the appearance of Sofia, the biggest town in Bulgaria. Although snow-capped mountains provide a stunning backdrop to the town, at first glance everything looks, well, shabby. We got on a bus where I promptly fell asleep and missed all the scenery on the way to Plovdiv, the second biggest city in Bulgaria (apparently a couple of million people) and my home for the next four days. We were put up at the Novotel in Plovdiv - five stars, and absolute bliss (so not really a backpackers experience I suppose!). We were sharing a floor with the Cypriot David Cup tennis team - and the cute guy with the hair who played in the Australian Open final this year against Federer. Check out some of the photos of the hotel - it was so nice! (I should be focusing on the town here, but I still can't get over how nice this hotel was...)
Anyways, we were there to work (unfortunately) at a student recruitment fair, but I still got to see a lot of the city. Although most of the city is quite desolate, crowded and poor, the middle of the city is really nice and there is an Old Town which is apparently about six and a half thousand years old with an old Roman ampitheatre and ancient ruins. The weather was beautiful and warm for most of the time, which was a nice change from London's grey skies. I'm no great travel writer - so i found this article about Sofia and Plovdiv from a writer who will say it all better than me!: "How I lost my heart to Sofia"

I wish i had longer to explore the hidden, secret passages around town but we really only had time to graze the surface. We had a few great nights out with some crazy Bulgarian dancers and at a tourist restaurant where they supply you with free packets of cigarettes all night (?), and I had a blast meeting people from all over the world who were also at the education fair. It was really my first Eastern European experience and I really would like to explore more of that part of the world (although, I don't think I'll be able to do it in five-star style again - damn!)I also realised when I was away, that for the first time I was referring to London as 'home'. Not to say I've forgotten my Aussie roots, but it's nice when you start to feel like you actually belong somewhere again rather than in some kind of weird traveller limbo.

Stay tuned for Plovdiv photos....

Oh, and if you ever come across it, stay away from Bulgarian wine at ALL costs!

Pru xxxx

you,re probably all wondering where i am! Just a short note because Im in the worlds dodgiest Internet cafe in Plovdiv and dont have much time! Where? you ask! Plovdiv is in Bulgaria and I came here for work for a few days...lots of stories to tell but it will have to be later! Have had such a bizarre weekend!

Updates to come soon, promise!

Boat race bonanza in Putney

Boat race, what boat race? We were too busy enjoying our prime position on our balcony, indulging in sangria and homemade pizzas to notice there was a boat race going on outside!OK, so maybe the THOUSANDS of people outside our flat hinted that something was going on... I'm sure at some stage of the afternoon we stopped to watch some posh boys from Cambridge and Oxford battle it out on the river.

This is the view from my balcony and as she you can see, it was a lovely sunny day! OK, so maybe after this shot was taken it started to pour down, but in true London style (sunny, then runny, back to sunny) it poured down with rain and we had a good laugh at all the people below (maybe a little bit guiltily).

We were going for Cambridge because they had an Aussie rowing with them, but sadly, they didn't make it (although there were no Sally Bowman-style give ups). Oxford won by a mile- no-one ever wins when I go for them! Putney was heaving, and I was so glad we could recline on our couch while everyone else battled to get back home. Unfortunately I was also sufferring the after-effects of Shelley's Special Sangria (apparently made with the cheapest nastiest sherry ever) and had to retire to the couch with an awful splitting headache.

So obviously the Boat race was a success and is a massive London (in fact, English, British even) tradition - and coming to London has meant that i could watch it all happening from the comfort of my own home; pretty cool hey?

It is so unbelievably wonderful to come home from work and for it to still be light outside until about 8 at night! It just makes you want to go out and do stuff - so of course we had to go to the pub for some dinner (I've been mostly pretty good this week so it's ok!)

I meant to put the link to the boat race up the other day, but forgot, so here it is. So go have a squiz at what we'll all be doing on the weekend! I'm still deciding whether to lie my loyalties with Oxford or Cambridge. Apparently Cambridge has an Aussie rowing with them, so that's good enough for me!

Just watched The Apprentice which I have slowly become addicted to. You just can't help but get addicted to trash TV here, especially when you have Sky TV and almost every channel under the sun (especially for a little uninitiatied girl like me who is just used to five channels). At least is a social plus - everyone comes over under the guise of visiting us, when really all they want to do is catch the latest episode of Americas Next Top Model..scammers.

Anyways, it's late and I need to sleep! Although I do have to say it is much easier getting up in the morning when the sun is shining in (it's really getting warmer, I'm so excited!)

Well Cardiff was....wet. Very wet. I would have liked to say that I loved Wales, but I was only there for five hours and most of that was spent trying to make sure I didn't poke any unsuspecting passerbys in the eye with my umbrella. There is a gorgeous castle in Cardiff which I would have loved to have seen the inside of, but our crap tourist skills set in and we couldn't be bothered going on the tour (which lasted 45 minutes) or paying the £6.50 (so we just had a free squiz around the grounds, trying to see something through the torrential rain!). I have consoled myself with the fact that I will go back sometime – hopefully when it's not raining – and stay fo a bit longer. it looks like there's some good pubs there and the bay would be lovely in Summer. The Millenium Stadium was also great to catch a glimpse of - next time we'll try and see a game there. The Welsh accent is just entertaining in itself as well - how cool to have an accent which sounds like you're singing a little song (I'm not being rude here, I think it's lovely - although I kept thinking I heard the Welsh designer Julian McDonald from Project Catwalk whispering in my ear).

Daylight saving kicked in over the weekend so even though it's still pretty cold, at least it's not dark anymore! It will now stay light at least until 8 or so, with the days getting longer as summer gets closer. The famous boat race between Oxford and Cambridge is on in Putney next weekend which is going to be huge - there is a massive festival and apparently about a quarter of a million people line the Thames – and my flat is smack bang in the middle of it all (from our balcony we have a prime view of the starting line).

I've added a link to the side of this page to my sister's 'European Extravaganza' blog. She's studying in Germany for a year and should have some funny tales to tell so have a look.

Friday at last! I have been so busy this week at work and am so glad it's almost the weekend. And it's pay day - which I am in desperate need of! Stupid me has been wondering for the past couple of weeks why my bank balance appeared to be going up.... turns out that yes, it's going up, but going up in the MINUSES and it was actually my overdraft that that was increasing...oh dear (this bout of stupidity will come as no surprise to those who know me best!) I blame the evil policy of UK banks, which allows you to withdraw money which you don't actually have from your normal bank account (what's wrong with the good old 'Sorry, you have insufficient funds!). Anyways, all has now been rectified by my precious pay day and I am back in the pluses.

Tomorrow I'm going to Cardiff! Yes, we're driving three hours to visit another country (I love being able to do that!). I know absolutely nothing about Cardiff except that there is the Millenium Stadium (pictured) and my brother lived there for a while (in Cardiff, not in the Stadium). We're just going on a little road trip there for a day or two, which should be good! So stay tuned for my opinions of the Welsh (maybe we'll run into Charlotte Church....?)

In other news, London is beside itself with predictions that this weekend temperatures will reach an all-time high of 15 DEGREES (well, highest for the past five months anyway). I can't believe I'm also getting a little excited about such a measly temperature - but it's a lot better than we've had for a while. Get out the bikini - summer's coming!

The new me

So this is what happens when you get bored - you stumble across a Yahoo site where you can make a little picture of yourself - and this is what I came up with! (see right). As you can see, this is typical of me in London - going out wearing not much clothes when it is freezing (ok, so maybe I wouldn't be caught dead in shorts that small, but you get the picture). I'm definitely never seen outdoors without a scarf (all you peoples who get my blog delivered straight to your inbox, you're just going to have to visit my site for the exciting new picture!)

Not much happens on Tuesdays in London for me, as it is OC night. Yes, I am happy to admit that I will forgo social activites to settle in for a good hour of Ryan, Summer, Marissa and Seth viewing. Last night we went out for Trivia (I sacrificed Monday night TV viewing which is America's Next Top Model), but we got embarrassingly beaten at our local and couldn't even manage a measly place! i don't think we will ever be able to show our faces again. Ray let the team down naming the most expensive music video in history as Backstreet Boys as opposed to Michael Jackson's Scream. We always knew he had a penchant for the Backstreet Boys.... :) (just kidding Ray, we love you!)

News in London is that it's Spring, although you can't really tell yet! But we're hanging out for the heat, we know it's coming (we hope it's coming!). We've even registered for an outdoor netball competition in the summer to battle that Heathrow Injection we've all got coming on. Antipodean sporting opportunities are alive and well in London - everywhere you look there is an AFL or football team trying to sigh you up - usually accompanied by free vouchers to the nearest Walkabout. What have we got ourselves in for.......

T' be sure, T'be sure

St Paddy's day in London was 'grand!' Lots of guiness, irish jigs and big stupid leprechaun hats - and of course lots of drunk people (and, if you were hanging around the southwest of London, most of them were Aussies).

Any pub beginning with an 'O' was filled-up and U2 songs were getting way too much airplay - but it was all in good fun (except the all-out street brawl I witnessed on the way home from the pub, full of people wearing the afore-mentioned leprechaun hats, who had indulged in too much brew!). For one second there, I felt like I was back home at the Castle Hill Tavern...

The rest of my weekend has been very quiet, since I don't get paid until next week and my little soiree to Venice this month left me slightly short of cash! (ok, and maybe I bought a few pairs of shoes, maybe a handbag here or there...all necessities). So we had a cheap poker night last night which is always a laugh, and as usual my brother cleaned up the table, taking home grand winnings of £14 (we only put in a fiver each - that's how poor we all are at the moment!).

I've mostly been sitting at home today not doing much, desperately hoping in vain when I look outside to see some kind of springish weather. Ah well. I'm not in the mood for much as I've been reading this book called 'Lucky' by Alice Sebold (who wrote Lovely Bones), and it's a little bit harrowing to say the least, but worth the read (it's a true life story about her rape and assault when she was in college - it's not a sob story though, but a poignant analysis of human nature and how the assault affected her life and the people around her). Anyways, so I'm not exactly bouncing off the walls with energy after reading that one! I've actually been even more nerdy lately and checking out this Bookswapping site where you can send and receive books to people all over the world who want to read them. I think it's a great idea (for all those closet book geeks out there like me!)

So anyways, back to the UK. I've been craving fish and chips all day so I think tonight we're going to make our first visit to a traditional London chippie for some cod. It's no barramundi, but it will do me fine :) We're all still waiting for a nice occassion to open our wallets and visit the Sea Cow in Fulham, so we're going to do that when Shell lands her first UK job. Ray (Shell's boyfriend, who is a personal trainer) has found a job working with the guy who trains Madonna and Guy Ritchie which we are all quite impressed by! He worked out of a gym in Sydney and he came over to London and basically just approached football clubs and people that he wanted to work for, and now it's all turned out really well. So good news for all those personal trainers out there wanting to move to the UK....You could be training the Material Girl herself..

ok, i think it's fish and chips time now...

Only in the UK could you be sitting on a Tuesday night watching a clip of Bananarama singing 'Robert DeNiro's waiting'.....brilliant! or maybe that's just me being a pov Aussie who grew up with the maximum five channels of the regular Aussie household (everyone laughs at me when I tell them we only have five channels at home). I'm trying to convince Paul to switch over to the grand finale of Beauty and the Geeks but he's having none of it (god I love crap UK TV).

Today I faced the challenge of organising my holiday to Croatia with my partner-in-crime who is soon to arrive in the UK and increase my Aussie-London contingent - Simone. Who would have thought it was so difficult to find out how to get from Trieste in Italy to Rovinj in Croatia, when I speak neither Italian or Croatian? Do tiny bus companies in regional Italy not cater for annoying British/American/Australian tourists like myself - how inconvenient! :) I found myself today translating bus timetables from German, but I think I have finally figured it out and I'm getting somewhere. I'm going in May and really can't wait - as I also can't wait for my beautiful blonde buddy Sim to join me in all the London craziness.

It's getting late and Beauty and the Geeks is really not doing it for me! (yep i convinced him). Everything in the UK is played about a million times a week so I'm sure I can catch it soon (the OC is played six times a week here - love it! Channel 10 in Sydney could take a few tips)

Cheers guys - will write more soon - including updates on St Pat's celebrations...

Lazy London weekends are the best - you always intend to get so much stuff done and it never ever happens cause you end up just sitting around drinking tea. I went to a house party near Clapham last night then Thai Square, a thai restaurant in Putney which is the only place that stays open until 2, so attracts everyone after 12 and turns the little restaurant into a packed bar. It's pretty good, and practically next door to my house so very handy. The house party was cool too - although we felt a bit like 16-year-olds getting our booze from Tesco then hopping on the train with clinking bottles.

Today I wanted to get out of the house so got all geekified and went to the Natural History Museum with my brother, which was actually quite good (could you go wrong with a giant animatronic T-Rex, complete with smoke, lights and sound effects?? hmmmmm). It was the first touristy thing I've done in a while, so it got me back to my backpacker roots (and it's a free museum which is always a plus).

Here are my long-awaited photos from Venice It's such a beautiful city - shame the sky wasn't a bit bluer in some of the photos though! You can also tell how cold it was!

For all my loyal subscribers - sorry you haven't been receiving any of my posts. There was something wrong with the feed, but I think I've fixed it so it should be working now!

Venetian adventures

How appropriate that when we woke up at an obscene hour for our trip to Venice on Friday morning, we looked out the window and found that the Thames had flooded and our road had literally turned into a canal. Our building was completely surrounded by water, and we had to wade through the water and jump over a couple of fences to get to our taxi which was waiting a block away. Although it was 4am, bloody freezing, and we were all barely awake (but jogging through Putney to make the cab that was parked a block away), it was really one of those times you couldn't help but laugh at the stupidity of it all :)
And of course, we were all excited because we were going to VENICE! On the whole I loved it, and although we had some questionable encounters with not-so-hospitable Italian hospitality staff and yes, the city is a little bit squiffy (and those pigeons??!) , I definitely recommend it to anyone. It is a beautiful, fantasy city, and getting lost in the winding Venetian passageways, crossing blue canals manned by hunky gondola drivers, and gorging on massive portions of Italian pizzas, pastas and risottos, and fine Tuscan wine, is just divine. We were there for three days, which I think was enough to see most of the sights (although I could have definitely stayed to eat Italian food forever). Piazza San Marco, the Basilica and visits to the islands Burano and Murano are a must if you only have a short time - and if you're anything like me, you'll need quite a while to sample the delights of the shopping (I was quite restrained and only bought one bag and some beads, as my budget didn't quite stretch to Louis Vuitton and Dolce and Gabbana - ah, i can always dream though). I think the most important Italian lesson I learnt was 'Quanto costano delle scarpe?' (how much do these shoes cost?)
The city is expensive if you're not careful. I don't even want to think about how much money I spent. On Saturday I almost hit a grinning little Italian waiter when he gleefully brought us our bill with my SIX EURO cokes on it. Who checks the price of coke on a menu? I had two, so in total spent 12 euro on coke, that's about 8 pounds and almost 20 Aussie dollars. I still feel a bit sick :) you can tell i'm still a little bit bitter.
On the plus side, we had the best hot chocolates and wine I've ever had and our hotel was the cutest little gem (see the photo). The thousands of pigeons in Piazza San Marco grossed us out a bit, but the view from the top of the tower is amazing. So I guess there were a few negatives, but dozens of postives to outweigh them. And it's Venice! No trip to Europe would be complete without seeing it and now I can tick it off my (very long) list!
My photos will be coming here soon....

Snow in the newly sprung spring

I was elated when I woke up this morning. The sun was shining through the window, it was light when I woke up (which has not happened for about five months), and it's the first day of spring. I had made it through winter, and surely it can only get better from here? Then I got to work and it STARTED TO SNOW. No joke, an arctic shift has hit the UK and London is absolutely bloody freezing. I'm not just talking snowflakes here and there, I'm talking heavy, falling snow. Here am I thinking that Spring is immediately going to be green paddocks, new flowers and gambolling lambs, and it's snowing outside! I think i'm going to have to wait a little longer than I thought for that suntan! But it will come eventually, I'm sure of it!

Tonight I just couldn't be bothered cooking (that happens a lot when you move out of home for the first time), so Paul and I went out for Wagamamas, which has become a favourite. I think we are slowly but surely eating our way through Putney and Fulham :) There's a new place called The Sea Cow in Fulham, which apparently has 'the taste of the Pyrmont Fish Markets in Sydney' which is very exciting for me as a Sydney girl who has spent many a lazy Sunday eating fish and chips from Pyrmont in the park by the water watching everyone play soccer. There's just so many places to eat, and not enough time to eat at all of them!
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Hi all,

You may remember a few months back on this very blog a photo of a grinning Aussie decked out in green and gold and proudly holding up a Socceroos poster. Well, that was me! I’m Michelle, Pru’s friend from Sydney, and I’ve come to London for the wonderful experiences this city has to offer… and to hang out with Pru of course!

Today is actually my two-month anniversary in London. I can’t believe how quickly the time has passed, it seems like only yesterday my boyfriend and I were dossing at Pru’s - which brings me to my first point, finding a place to live! I didn’t think finding a flat would be the difficult task it was. After seeing studios the size of my bedroom at home, share houses in various states of disrepair and a flat where we weren’t allowed to watch the television, we finally found our pad. Those of you who have run the flat hunting gauntlet will understand the feeling you get when you know the place is right for you. Not having to step over scaffolding as we did at one place was a good sign, but as soon as I saw the bright open living room (which is also the kitchen, I never said it was big!) and courtyard outside our room I knew this was a place I wanted to live. The only mistake we made was not meeting our flatmates before we moved in. It’s not a major problem, but let’s just say they’re not ‘our kind of people’, i.e. tidy and friendly. But, if you’re going to flat share I guess you have to prepare yourself for fights over the remote and complaining about other people’s mess.

The next major task has been finding a job, which unfortunately is still a work in progress! I’ve been applying for just about every job that looks vaguely like what I want to do and am still waiting for a phone call or an interview. I can’t wait to start work, mainly so I can start earning pounds! At the moment I’m technically still spending Aussie dollars and checking my bank statements is possibly the most unpleasant thing in the world.

But I’m here for the full experience, and if that means unemployment, fights with flat mates and living on a budget, then so be it. Besides, Pru and a whole bunch of us are off to Venice on Friday for a weekend of friends, food and wine. What do I possibly have to complain about??

Sunday and I'm hungover....always the same!

My brain has the consistency of mashed peas today, and I'm feeling somewhat intellectually challenged, but I haven't written in awhile and thought i should update. This weekend has been nothing special, but we've had a good couple of nights out in Putney and I'm slightly hungover today (but not too hungover to go up to the French Market and get a chocolate crepe, nice). Saw a movie Friday night, Goodnight and Good Luck, which was really good, but to everyone's disgust I kind of fell asleep. I maintain though that this was because I have been a little bit sick and needed to catch up on some napping (the movie s really good, honest!)

We've been interviewing potential new housemates all week too, as our lovely Jemma is leaving us to move to New York with the family she nannies for (very sad for us, but what a great opportunity for her!). So we're losing the lively South African element of our house, and have been looking for something good enough to replace! The fact that Glen (I think somewhat creatively) described our flat in the ad as a luxury riverside mansion flat, has meant we've had a steady stream of people coming to look, and I'm currently torn between a few girls I really like. Flat hunting is so like a job interview with people sizing eachother up - and I always feel under pressure to act really cool so the people will like me and want to move in! Pretty sad hey :) But it's also funny when you can tell within a couple of seconds that the person really won't fit in, but you still have to go through the whole spiel and tour of the flat! There's a couple of girls who have been really nice, but I feel bad that we're going to have to reject a few... (yes I remember the rejection when I was flat hunting in London, it's not nice!)

Most exciting aspect of the beginning of the next working week is that we're going to Venice on Friday! I'll be cruising a canal on a gondola and gorging on Italian food before I know it.

On the trail of JACK THE RIPPER

"Twilight creeps through the narrow alleyways and hidden courtyards of the old, old city. It's gnarled fingers unlock secrets of dark deeds that lie entombed behind crumbling walls. It whispers into the shadowy recesses of a forgotten part of London, disturbing the sleep of the long-departed, and the City of Dead stirs once more into ghostly, ethereal life....."

Yikes! I'm scared already! I'm gong on a Jack the Ripper tour tonight with a few people from work. I work in Aldgate East which is just near Whitechapel where Jack the Ripper murdered (and disembowelled!) five prostitues in the 1800s. It's one of the best ghost tours in London (apparently) and should be pretty cool. It's freezing in London at the moment, so it will be interesting to see how we all cope walking through the ghostly lanes of Whitechapel in the wind and chill! Have a look at the spooky website. Probably not the best thing for a budding cold but I can't resist.

hello everyone.

tonight is Kate's birthday and we're going out on the town! We're currently warming up in Putters, but the night will soon be kicking on. Kate would like to say a few words as a celebration of her birthday.......

Hello everyone, cocktails at my house in Putney are going off thanks to Bec. We're going to Crazy Larry's, a club in Fulham, and I'm very glad my dear friend Pru can be with us!! Hi to everyone at home - i miss you all and wish you were here for my birthday..... rock on, love Kate xxxx

Well she's having a lovely time and now i have to go and meet my drunk brother Benno at Putney station.

To all in Oz and all over the world: bless you all and have a great Saturday night.
Cheers big ears,
Prudence Louise xxxx