Feb 24, 2005

Time for a new post...

Hello all.

Haven't updated in a while...so here's a bit of a recap. Last Friday night I went out with the housemates to Popstarz, gay night at Scala, a club at King's Cross. And no, Mom and Dad, I'm not trying to tell you anything...it's just that Joe does most of the social planning - and the crowd's a lot better than that at most clubs. More Madonna and Whitney, as well. :P

So anyway, yeah, Popstarz was fun. Spent a fortune buying a round of drinks (missed the 2 for 1 special by 5 minutes), but at least got in for free (after a desperate dash through the Euston Tube Station to get in before 11). Danced with housemates and generally had a great time. Weird...I didn't really like clubbing in the States, but it's a lot more fun here. I think it might be the music...we spent most of the night in a room that played Franz Ferdinand, Jet, and the like.

Um...stayed up FOREVER that night and managed to get up by 10am to see the National Portrait Gallery in the morning. It was ok...basically a lot of British people I don't know, but the photography exhibits were good. Then a walk through the snow (snow!) and home to spend a quiet evening watching a movie. Sunday wasn't much more exciting...mass, the OC, and then reading/TV/hanging out with everyone. What I DO like is how social everyone is on the weekeneds and weeknights...since the new people moved in, I noticed how much time we all started spending together.

Ummm...what else? Oh, saw "Sideways" on Monday - that was pretty good. Also, went to free Argentine tango workshop last night - that was also pretty cool. Oh, and it's been snowing all the time here, but nothing ever really sticks - at least in the city. So it's pretty great...all the beauty of snow (usually big wet flakes like in a movie) without all the grossness and inconvenience of piles of slush. OH, and I had the BEST BURGER IN THE WORLD. Imagine a White Castle Burger with cheese and onions. Now make it huge, toast the bun, and get rid of those faintly nauseating overtones. MMMMMMMM...and only for £1.30. It's only up the street from my house (Imagine, the BEST BURGER IN THE WORLD, and only a few blocks away), and we've already made friends with the extremely happy owners. Oh, and huge servings of (good) chips (fries) for £1. LOVE IT.

Ok, there was my requisite food reference. Staying a bit late at work to make up for yesterday (I left early to get a National Insurance number...something along the lines of a US Social Security number...I think) Whatever...it means I can come back and I'll have a real number - yaay!

Ok, off to finish up. Will try and post again soon.

= :)

Feb 19, 2005

New Pics!

http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?c=u54fr1b.5d3k0ob7&x=0&y=-4x5bxm

Feb 18, 2005

Post a comment!

For Dad and all others, it's now possible to post a comment without registering. So post away, people.

= :)

Feb 17, 2005

Mid-week update

So I haven't updated in a while...let's see...
This weekend I took a little daytrip out to Oxford. It was actually really great - I mean, Oxford is nice with the ancient and ornate stone colleges and all, but the weather was really the main attraction of the day. When I woke up, it was sunny and clear - like really sunny, with the brightest sun I've seen since I've been here - and pretty warm (around 45-50 degrees maybe). It was nice to get out of the city - I loved the train ride there, through parts of the countryside (amazingly, everything is still green, even in the middle of winter), and then walked around a huge meadow while in Oxford. Pictures soon to come.

Oxford was pretty nice - there were all these narrow little streets and old stone colleges (which actually reminded me of Yale, to tell the truth). It had some great little shops, including the (not-so-little) Blackwell's, which apparently is the largest bookstore in the UK, and has this amazing subterranean room where the shelves of books seemed to go on forever. The place is packed with tourists, though. I mean, I thought Harvard Square was bad in the summer. This place was overrun in February. I also think that Japanese tourists must sign up for some kind of international university package tour, because they REALLY seem to like the colleges. I got my picture of the college they filmed Harry Potter at, so I was happy. :)

Sunday was the Chinese New Year's festival in London, so I ended up going to that after going to mass at Westminster Cathedral, which is ridiculously gorgeous. They have all these clear glass windows high up behind the altar, and the sun was shining right through them (it was amazing - TWO sunny days in a row) and casting these giant sunbeams everywhere. Chinese New Year was also a lot of fun - I got my fill of yummy pastries, threw some firecrackers, saw about 10 million lion dances, and saw a longer fireworks display than on New Year's. Good times.

Monday, the dreaded Valentine's day, actually turned out much better than expected. My housemates and I had planned on drinks to celebrate the fact we're all single (well, all but one). So a bunch of us went out at 10pm, expecting to stay for a drink or two and get back at a reasonable hour to sleep. But Joe had bigger plans, and we all ended up going to G.A.Y. (no subtlety there), a huge club at Tottenham Court Road. They played the BEST music - tons of Madonna, Footloose, and eighties favorites (Tiffany, anyone?). I had such a fun time, and we got a lot of housemate bonding in, as well. Also, I have to say I was impressed with my straight guy roommates, who had absolutely no problem with the club and were dancing like maniacs. Of course, it could always be the alcohol. But whatever.

Anyway, so after getting home at 4am and not getting to sleep until 5am, the next day at work was less than fun. And then last night I made the decision to go to bed early, only to be dissuaded with a viewing of Y Tu Mama Tambien and a long conversation with housemates, finally realizing it was 1am. Arg....not in college anymore. Have a job I wake up for in the mornings. Must remember this at all times.

So, that's about it. Am booking all sorts of flights and making travel plans, which is really exciting. Virginia's going to come here, where I'm apparently going to take her on the grand fountain tour of London (vpatrone.blogspot.com), and then I go off to Florence for nearly a week(!) I can't wait.

= :)

P.S. Coming soon...a title change. I hate mine, but have no ideas. Any and all suggestions welcome.
P.P.S. Oh, and Dad, you should be able to post comments now, no problem.

Feb 10, 2005

Give me back my phone!!

So, I needed to get my phone unlocked, because T-Mobile sucks. (For the uninitiated, mobile phones in the UK run off a GPS system. You can switch your phone between service providers by changing the SIM card in the back of the phone, this little dime-sized chip. When a cell phone is "locked," it means that the mobile service provider (in my case, T-Mobile) has done something to the phone to prevent you from changing companies.)

Anyway, you can get the phones unlocked at nearly any really cheap and sketchy electronics store. It's not actually illegal, but I can't make out whether it's completely legal, either. That should have been the first sign of trouble.

I head out after work one night to get the phone unlocked, and the sketchy people at the store tell me to come back at 7. I do, but then they tell me since my phone is ancient (thanks a lot, Eric), it'll take longer. Definitely by noon tomorrow, they tell me. So I come after work again, and they haven't gotten the phone back yet from wherever they do their dodgy unlocking activities. They tell me to come back at 7, and I do, but the phone STILL isn't there. And not only is it missing, apparently it's broken as well. The shifty guy's explanation: "um, we tried to unlock it and something exploded inside. whoops." Now, this is like my fourth time at this place, AND now my phone has been destroyed as well, so I completely lash into them. The guy tries to pacify me by telling me they'll give me a brand-new phone for the same price as unlocking the first, and maybe he'll even take off a discount, and I bitched back, "you'd BETTER give me a discount," and walked off with their number, ready to kill someone. I think I might have scared them...Denis later told me that I acted very "American," whatever that means. Demanded some decent customer service? (which, by the way, is nearly non-existent in this country)

Anyway, it must have done the trick, because the next day I came back to find a shiny new color phone with polyphonic tones and a camera, much nicer than anything I have back home. Yes I'm awesome. And Eric, now you've got a brand new phone out of the deal, so no bitching about your crappy old one that died on me in my time of need.

Ok, no more updates...have to actually do some work today...

= :)

P.S. Also, while my title might appear completely lame, I think my dad will get the reference. :)

New update

Wow, I can't even remember where I left off. (Sorry, Grandma and Grandpa). Also, sorry, Virginia, this is going to be another one of my marathon posts, since I have about a week to recap.

Um, let's see...I went to the BUNAC pub meet, but it was just as lame as the other one, and full of annoying people on the visa program. Oh, and I remembered how annoying Americans can be, after getting repeatedly elbowed in the head by a giant drunken amazon woman wearing a tube top and about 10 pounds of makeup. Maybe tall people shouldn't be allowed to wear heels. Anyway.

So, then on Thursday, I completely forget what I did, but it may have involved hanging out at home with my housemates, who are all pretty fabulous. On Friday, I went out with people after work, and then went to a Harvard meetup thing, which was an incredible failure. Everyone already seemed to know each other (and also to be from Cambridge or Oxford), so they all chatted while I sat around and thought how bored I was. And then when I actually started talking to them, I remembered how stuffy and boring some Harvard people are. So, yeah. Grand failure. But there were free Doritos. (random information - Doritos are pretty big here. Are they distributed by Pepsi or something? Also, they have flavors that are called "Latino" flavors...try getting away with that in the states)

Ah, let's see - Saturday. Went shopping at my local fruit and vegetable market, and got a whole bag (my Dreyer's Farm bag!) full of veggies. That's what I'm really going to miss about London - there are so many places to get cheap (and good!) fresh fruits and vegetables. Then I went to the National Gallery with my flatmate. I can't say I was too impressed - I think I may just not like paintings all that much. Or at least anything that isn't more modern. I saw Hero for £4 (I LOVE the Prince Charles Cinema), and it was really gorgeous. Not the greatest story, but pretty nonetheless. I wonder why I never went to movies alone before...I actually don't mind it at all. I had no plans, but came back home to find a huge surprise birthday party going on - an 18th birthday. Eek. Most of the guests were my flatmate Nick's friends. Some of the people there were only 16 - I felt ridiculously old. There was a lot of drama and debauchery, but I didn't get involved...which was probably a good thing. Don't want to hook up with a housemate or anything - what with all the drama sure to ensue...

Sunday I woke up late with a bit of a headache, but set off determinedly in search of bagels - real bagels, not the pre-packaged junk they have in Sainsbury's. And I found them, and they were fabulous. I actually had to travel all the way to East London to Brick Lane, which is this old Jewish neighborhood that's now Bengali. However, the Beigel Bake has stood in the same spot for years, and still serves fresh, warm bagels and challah. Except they call it chola. weird. (And Gin, all I can think about is Chessie saying "she has...a cholera!"....hehehehe) But it was good, and reminded me of Sundays at school...especially when I ordered a bagel with lox. mmmm.

Then I saw all these people walking with flowers, and followed the line of them to this little street market that only sold plants and fresh-cut flowers. It was great, and I got a bouquet of tulips for £1. Yaay fresh flowers. Then off to Spitalfields Market, which is sooo full of accessories and clothes, mostly made by local designers. I wanted to buy everything, but restrained myself. (Erin and Shelley, I'm going CRAZY. I want to buy the entire city.) Then back to the flat to make Rice Krispie Treats, which were a giant hit both at home and at the office, where no one had ever tried them before. I just had fun playing with the giant pot of melted marshmallows. Yummy.

Monday...didn't really do anything. Tuesday is Mardi Gras in the US but Pancake Day in England, so that was fun. At about 11pm, my flatmates decided they wanted to make pancakes, and we ended up eating them until about 1:30am. whooops. They're quite different from US pancakes...they're thinner and less sweet, and you top them with sugar and lemon juice, or golden syrup, this thick, gelatinous, sugar syrup that's better than it sounds.

I love how all my entries have to do with food. i think I might be a little obsessed, and it scares me. :) But there are so many new things to try...haggis, beans and toast, golden syrup, Marmite...and not ALL of it is awful. :) Next thing to try...curry sauces from the supermarket (as well as pre-packaged naan)! Can you even GET those at a normal store in the US? Chicken tikka masala, here I come.

Up this weekend: possibly a trip to the countryside on Saturday, if the weather holds, Victoria and Albert Museum's architecture wing, and the huge Chinese New Year celebration in Trafalgar Square. yaay dragon dance. Will try and update more often - bye!

= :)

Feb 3, 2005

Same old, same old

So, I've managed to steal a few minutes away from work, and can update. Cause I know you're all dying to hear from me. :)

This past weekend was fun - I met up with some friends from college (Denis and Fred) and went out for Fred's 25th birthday. Unfortunately, London's pubs close at 11pm on the weekends, as well (or at least the one we went to), so the party was cut a bit short, as Fred had to head back home after forgetting his keys. Silly, silly boy.

Luckily, some places were still open, so four of us went out and got some wine and pizza...mmmm. Then headed home and talked till 4am....ah, just like college. But not really. What sucks about graduating is that you actually have to leave college. :( Sadness.

But I have to say I like not having to worry about homework all the time, so graduating's not all that bad. :) So yeah, Monday was fairly uneventful. I have two new roommates - Liam and Sally, from London and Melbourne and 24 and 25, respectively. They're really great - we all cooked dinner together, hung out in front of the TV, and generally got to know each other. And now I have a football team to cheer for! The Tottenham Hotspurs, favorite team of Liam, are now my favorite team as well, because I really couldn't think of any other good way to pick a team except to latch on to someone else's. Apparently they're not that good, but they have lots of heart. :)

A little bit about the house, if I haven't already posted it. I live with 6 other people in a big 4-story rowhouse in Camden Town, which is fabulously cheap without being less-than-fabulously dodgy. We all have our own bedrooms and there are two bathrooms, so it never really feels too crowded. I'm on the top floor with Sally and Alana, another Aussie (21 years old). Downstairs is a big lounge and a pretty big kichen, and on the ground floor are Joe (English, 21) and Jenny (English, 29). In the basement are Liam and Nick (English, 18). It's a really fun and social place to live, and I've made my room quite cozy, what with the IKEA decor and all. :) I'll try to get more pictures of the house for my next album.

Last night, I met a couple of friends from BUNAC (the organization that gave me my visa) at a pub for drinks and had a Pimm's and lemonade, which is absolutely delicious. Pimm's is a citrusy British liquor, and it's mixed with 7-up or sprite, referred to as lemonade here. Again, England is weird.

Tonight BUNAC is holding another big pub meet right near my house, so I'll most likely go and try and meet a few more people. That, and I have to get my phone unlocked, which is an extremely sketchy process. Basically, I walk into any dosgy-looking electronics store and ask them to unlock the phone, which technically is a little bit illegal. But if I have to keep my shoddy T-Mobile service anymore, I'm going to go broke. 300 free texts a month, here I come!

= :)

Feb 1, 2005

Second try...

Ok...this link might work better. And some of you could have possibly received the pictures already. I'm not really sure.

But anyway, here it is:
http://www.ofoto.com/I.jsp?c=u54fr1b.9zct6nnv&x=0&y=-j0o0ov

Give it a try and let me know if it works!
So, I suspect the link doesn't work. Look out for an email soon, and if you don't get one and want one, just email me.

= :)

By urgent request of mom and dad...

...here are the photos I've taken so far. None of them actually feature me, but they give a pretty good picture of London itself. :)
Enjoy!

http://www.ofoto.com/BrowsePhotos.jsp?&collid=782239472203&page=1&sort_order=0

Hope the link works. If not, I'll send out an email tomorrow.

= :)