A Walk In Chelsea

On Saturday, October 20th I went on a walk around the posh, upscale borough of South West London with Jenn, Jason, and Georgie.

The highlights of the walk? Some of the hotspots featured on the reality television show 'Made In Chelsea' (sort of a British version of The Hills, based in LA).

It's a very pretty and pristine neighbourhood. I was amazed by the crisp, clean, white buildings and homes in the area. Take a look!

Isn't it just beautiful? How do the houses and flats stay so white?

One of the hotspots is Eighty-Six. Maybe one night we will get all dressed up and go in for a cocktail, while pretending to be very classy and posh.

The Chelsea Harbour is a lovely spot along the Thames River as well.

If you look closely, you can tell that the bridge is coloured light pink and light blue, how cute is that?!

I also found the perfect place to live for myself and Chandra. She can live behind the pink door and I'll live behind the dark purple door right next door!

We ended the day with a walk along King's Road and a delicious treat at a cafe. I had carrot cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. Very yummy! :)

It was a lovely Chelsea walk! 

Cath Kidston Purchase #1

My very first Cath Kidston bag! I feel like a posh Londoner now! :)

<3 Love Love Love!

Love At First Sight!

It's been over a week since I have had an on-call supply day. When you have to wake up early, get ready, and wait for that phone call to tell you what your day's adventure will be, it's nerve wracking. At 7:02 am, my phone call came. My assignment today: Reception at St. Mary's & St. Pancras Church of England Primary School. "It's a good school" Daniel from Vision Teaching said. The real plus for me though came from the directions. The school was just a short tube ride away near Euston Square Station.
I was walking down the street looking for the school, and honestly it was an experience where you are looking around, then you physically turn around, and Boom! there it is.
This is what I saw.

It's the fanciest looking and most beautiful school I've ever seen! The inside is just as nice, lots of glass windows letting in sunlight, a big open staircase in the front foyer, a large welcoming staff room, and beautiful staff bathrooms. The school is clean and organised, with wonderful displays of children's work and school events.
So, not only was the school lovely but my Reception class was the best I've had so far. They were well-behaved and so cute! Plus, it was the first class where I actually mastered more than 2 or 3 names by the end of the day!
As well, it was a Reception class and and program where there actually was meaningful teaching and learning happening. All of the TAs were nice and helpful, and the entire school staff actually acknowledged my presence in the school! (A wonderful feeling!).
The best part? The Head Teacher has asked me back to teach the Reception class again tomorrow. Yay!

London Discovery #3

n Canada, the common phrase upon greeting someone after Helllo, Hi, or Hey is 'How are you?'. It's a logical phrase and shows interest in the well being of the other person. In London, and quite possibly the rest of Great Britain, the phrase is 'You alright?'.
Now, it's taken me a month to catch on to this question commonly being asked to me by friendly staff I have encountered at schools. At first, I thought it was because I had a scared, concerned look of uncertainty plastered on my face. But, now that I'm becoming more familiar with some schools and I know that I look confident, and the question is still being asked, I think I finally get it! At last, the time that officially made this discovery was this morning when I witnessed a number of times 'You alright?' being asked between teachers upon arriving in their classrooms. As I think about, I don't know if I've actually heard a British person ask 'How are you?'. Quite interesting.

Room 101

Now, here's an unexpected London experience!

Free tickets to a taping of the BBC comedy show Room 101, starring host Frank Skinner.

My flatmate Marzena invited me along and I must say I am glad that she did! It was such a neat experience to be in the audience of a show for television.
Room 101 is a BBC comedy television series in which celebrities are invited to discuss their pet hates and persuade the host to consign them to a fate worse than death.
The three celebrity guests on this episode were Paloma Faith, Debora Meaden, and Jason Manford. I suggest Googling them!

I really enjoyed the show. It was very funny, and it was neat to see how a comedy show of that nature is filmed. It will be even more interesting once I see what was edited out when it airs!

The best pet hates that the guests nominated to Room 101 were Fifty Shades of Grey, small cars hiding in big parking spots, and while I definitely don't agree with this one.. Paloma Faith's discussion of Ugg Boots.

The show will be broadcasted in early 2013. If I can find a link online after it airs I will pass it along!

Here's to fun, unexpected but forever memorable experiences abroad!

It's a Canadian Thanksgiving at 106 Finchley Road

In attendance:
4 Canadians
4 Australians
1 British/Portugese
1 Polish

Now, who else except those who were there could say they have had that mix of culture at a Thanksgiving meal before?

On the menu:
Turkey Panceta stuffed with Goat Cheese & Dried Cranberries
Roast Potatoes
Stuffing
Carrots
Roast Vegetables
Pear & Prosciutto Salad
Bread
Apple Pie
Toffee Cheesecake
Strawberry Cheesecake

It was a truly amazing feast! A big thanks to Head Chefs Kelly & Jennifer, Head Table Setter Jason, Guests & Salad Makers Matt & Dayna, Bread Provider Sam, Kitchen Supporters & Errand Runners Georgie & Marzena, and the Man at the Head of the Table, Matt.

Here is a picture of the lovely table setting.

And Bragging Rights Go To...

My Uncle James and Aunt Susan for being my first official visitors in London! On Saturday, October 6th I spent the day enjoying a nice walk along the South Bank, eating a tasty lunch at Giraffe, and taking a boat ride down the Thames River. It was a beautiful day, no rain clouds in sight! The boat ride was a great way to see all of the developments along the Thames River, as well as the classic tourist sights. I must say I really enjoyed going under Tower Bridge!
I also spotted Shakespeare's Globe, a reconstruction of his original Globe Theatre built in 1997.
Further along the Thames towards Greenwich is high end real estate, similar to the Lakeshore developments in Toronto. The are flats that sell for millions of Great British Pounds, that Londoners buy to live in Monday thru Friday, and escape from on the weekends.
Maybe one day I'll own one of those flats!

New month, new me!

I'm 6 days into October and already I feel a change! I'm happier, more positive, and more excited about this adventure. Do you want to know what really changed my mood? An iPhone 4S. Yes, the power of an iPhone is amazing. While it may not be the iPhone 5, it is 100% mine and it has allowed me to feel connected to my family and friends back home again. I've started my list of all I want to do while I'm on this adventure and I even collected more brochures today! So, to everyone who was concerned after my last post, don't worry. In the span of almost a week, I feel so much better. It am in London! I am teaching! I'm young, and the world is at my fingertips. I can do this! Thanks Apple, you make good products. :)

20 Days In...

Part of me wants to keep my blog upbeat and happy, to reflect and record all of the great adventures and fun times I have, and those only. But if I really want to have a blog that is honest and encompasses completely my adventures abroad, then I need to include the adventure that I'm dealing with every day since I got here.

I'm homesick. Homesick like I never thought I would be. Some days I get through it better then others, but I can only ignore it or push the feelings aside for so long before it hits me again. I miss my parents. I miss my friends. I miss how much I could get accomplished in one day because I knew where to go to do this or find that. I miss driving my car BLEE. I miss Dairy Queen ice cream and Fuzzy Peaches.

It hasn't been easy to get settled here. While I know I'm lucky because I didn't have to worry about finding a place to live when I got here, and I arrived with a good career job, I still have had my own challenges. Getting a debit visa card from HSBC bank here has been a nightmare. Tomorrow will be day 21 and I may finally have it in my hand. Internet access is manageable, as you can buy dongles (mobile sticks) with limited data which is good for daily use. But I miss downloading music and watching my North American tv shows online. I miss being connected constantly on an iPhone to Facebook and Twitter, not only to keep up with my friends, but also things in the world of Hollywood and local news. I was counting on Skype to keep me in touch, but with limited internet I haven't been able to do that.

Don't get me wrong, I am enjoyed seeing the sights of London. I'm also enjoying living at 106 Finchley Road. I think the greatest group of young individuals lives here. Every one is super nice and friendly and I've never felt so comfortable in a house I've shared. Teaching is fun too, and I have one week of experience under my belt so far.

But, those great things don't take away from being vulnerable and easily brought to tears from an email from my mom or friends.

I know that this adventure is a great lifetime experience, and hopefully I'll start to feel settled in time. Plus Christmas isn't too far away and I'll be home for a visit then. I just never thought I was going to feel homesick like I do. It's yet another thing about living in London that I wasn't prepared for I guess.

M&M World!

On Saturday, September 29th, I visited M&M World in Leicester Square. It was just what it sounds like, a world (or store I guess if you want to be completely correct) of M&M chocolates! Thank you Jenn & Jason for taking me on this adventure! :) Of course, I didn't leave empty handed. My bag of M&M's featured purple coloured peanut ones, as well as the UK mix peanut ones. Then I tried dark pink regular milk chocolate, and topped it off with some M&M's with crispy centres. Jenn swears they have these back home, but I don't remember them in Canada at all.

 

 

Jenn (one of my lovely roommates) and I

 

 

Choosing my M&M's. So many to choose from!

 

I made my selections!

 

The required picture with the M&M palace guard.