So it begins

Starting over

Published Date : November 9, 2000

Wow! November already.  Our last few days at Glenthorne were anything but dull.

Tamie had never managed to fit in with the rest of the staff and the night before Chris and I left, she put the nail in that coffin.  She ran to the boss and “tattled” on every little thing that the staff had ever done wrong since she had been there.  Phil responded by gathering us all together and yelling at us right before dinner, in front of guests.  Unprofessional to say the least!

There was not a lot of nice things said to Tamie the rest of the night.  I’m so glad to be getting away from that drama.  It’s too bad that my time there had to end on such a sour note.  Chris and I left the next morning and spent 8 hours on trains and buses to Edinburgh.  It should have only taken us 4 hours but there were a lot of delays and problems with the tracks.  We didn’t mind because we were getting away from Grasmere.

Edinburgh at sunset

We pulled into Edinburgh after dark last night and checked in at High Street Hostel, an independent backpacker’s just off the Royal Mile.  Dumping our bags we immediately went out to explore, walking up the cobblestoned Royal Mile towards the castle.  The orange glow of the street lamps shining through the heavy mist set the mood.  With the dark and narrow closes branching off on either side and the shadowy spires of St Giles Cathedral looming over us, it felt like we had been transported back in time 200 years.  I can tell I’m going to love this town!

Not wanting to hunt for a supermarket, we took the easy option and went to McDonald’s for dinner.  There we ran into Stephen, a South African who had worked briefly at Glenthorne over the summer.  Small world!  We went out for drinks and caught up.

I called the student house at Glenthorne before turning in for the night and spoke with Marie.  It seems that Tamie had gone back to Phil, and came out with a few more things that the student staff at done wrong while she was there.  Then she quit.  What a mess!  It appears that Chris and I left just in time!

Today Chris and I started the job hunt.  I’ve been hired by a temp agency and I start a position in 11 days.  I’ll be doing data entry for the Royal Mail for 5 weeks.  I’ll be earning £5.50 per hour, working 12 hours a day, 6 days a week from 08:00 – 20:00.  Brutal.  But the overtime pay will be nice.

Chris is trying to get a job at a catering company and he’s feeling fairly confident about it.  Between my earnings and whatever Chris and Carmen can bring in, we’ll be doing just fine.

Organizing

Published Date : November 11, 2000

We started flat hunting today and discovered that Saturday is not the best day to be doing it.  But all was not lost, I’ve got a half dozen possibilities to check out on Monday.

Last night we ran into Stephen again on the street and went pub-hopping with him and a few others.  I still can’t get used to running into people that I know in a new city in a foreign country.  It’s a neat experience.

Chris and Carmen went home early while the rest of us made a night of it.  We ended up locked in a pub at one stage when a girl’s purse was stolen.  All of us were having too much fun to care though!

Falling into place

Published Date : November 13, 2000

I have some more work lined up to tide me over until the Royal Mail job starts.  I’ll be working at Napier University until Friday doing general office and admin work.  So that will bring in a bit of extra cash.

Chris is struggling being over here.  He’s stressing over everything and proving difficult to be around.  Luckily for me, Carmen is taking the brunt of it.  I may end up letting him use my plane ticket home if things don’t improve soon.

Kevin, one of my friends back home, mentioned in a recent email that he’s planning on going to Australia in the near future too.  We’ve been firing a lot of emails back and forth discussing plans.  It would be so much fun to do a trip like this with friends.  Chris let it slip to our parents that I’m thinking of going to Australia instead of coming home in May, so that’s one thing I don’t have to worry about telling them now!  My dad wasn’t too surprised, but I haven’t talked to my mom about it yet.

We’ve got a couple more flats to look at over the next two days, so hopefully we’ll have one lined up by the end of the week.  I would be happy staying the hostel, but Chris and Carmen really want to get a flat.  Since they’re so set on it, I figure I’ll go with them to save a little money.

Settling in

Published Date : November 22, 2000

Well, we have a flat.  77 Rose St, just across from a chippy and the Easy Everything internet café.  Perfect location.  It’s a small one-bedroom with a futon in the lounge, but it’s really nice.  We move in on Saturday.

I’ve started at Royal Mail which is a no-brainer job.  It’s really exhausting right now though because they don’t have enough work for us.  The expected Christmas rush is slow in starting this year.  There’s nothing worse than sitting around waiting for something to do.

Sidewalk art. Rose Street, Edinburgh

The job has been great for my social life though.  There are 50 temp staff on this job and most are backpackers.  Instant social circle!

I’m whittling down my travel list to the “must-sees” for my remaining time here.  I find being around other travelers a major problem sometimes.  They keep giving me ideas on more places to go!!  Really I just want to go everywhere and see everything.  For now though, I’m keeping it simple.  I definitely want to visit Ireland and see the Highlands.

My 20^th birthday came and went in a typically uneventful fashion.  I had to start work the next day so I didn’t want a big night out.  My mom, grandma and one of my aunts sent birthday cards and cheques.  Both a nice surprise.  Now they’re all asking for Christmas wish lists, but I have no idea what to tell them.

Note to self: buy Christmas cards!