When dreams and reality don't match up.

So about 4 months ago, I applied for a new job.

I was so unsure about what I wanted to do in my life, I think I thought it was a sign that my local travel agent was hiring.  I thought, hey why not and applied.

I didn't think that I would actually be giving the job but I was.

The whole interview process I was told numerous times about how hard it is.  How its like learning another language.  But I was eager to learn so when I was offered the job, I grabbed it with both hands.

I started my 5 weeks training and they were right.  It was a really steep learning curve, but one that I found myself actually enjoying to learn.

I learnt exactly how to find the cheapest flights for someone which made me feel confident that I would make a good travel agent.

I had met some amazing people in training.  Some of who I would say might just be friends for life.

Fast forward to my 6th week in store.  I have zero passion for what I am doing.  I have found myself staring at the computer screen with a blank look on my face because planning peoples holidays were the last thing that I wanted to do.

I feel like I am being bullied and forced to mark up prices to try and meet my targets and to only give customers the time of day if they are willing to give you money first.

I have to know the world and I feel like when I ask for help, I get nothing in return.

I have never been in the position where I thought I was going into a dream job and now I feel like I am walking into my nightmare every day.

So now I am faced with the decision to either stick it out (everyone seems to think that I hate it because of the amount that I have to learn), or to find a new job and leave it all behind and leave the customers that I have given my time to.

About a week ago I told one of the girls I was in training with my dilemma.  Turns out she had then told her team leader who than told my area manager.  The dread that I feel about having to go into work in the morning is more than I have ever felt before.

At the start of the year, I felt like 2016 was going to be my year.  Turns out I was wrong again.

All I know is that any job where I have to hide in the bathrooms and cry is not the job for me.

I guess I will just have to wait and see what happens.

Can I just win the lotto now please?

Aussie Out
xo

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It Was Only Just A Dream.

Recently I've had this feeling that London didn't happen.

That the past 2 years have been this dream like state and I didn't really live on the other side of the world.  Only when I get a snap chat or a facebook invite to a party in London or a message from a friend that I think "Oh yeah, I did live in London."

When I think about it now, it seems like another lifetime ago.  I have settled back so quickly into life back in Sydney that sometimes I feel like I never left.

I think a big part of it was the huge relief to be finally out of London as I was in a big slump, and coming home was the solution that I obviously needed.

The angry sassy Sam seems like a distant memory as I am now chatting to strangers again whether it be people working in the shops or people that seem lost.  So much in fact that I was out with my sister for an appointment and while I was in the waiting room for her, she seemed shocked that I was speaking to other people in the waiting room.

The fast walking impatient Sam is gone.  I had forgotten what it was like to stroll.  Now I can't believe I stopped doing it.  To go to the shops and not feel rushed or annoyed when somebody was walking slowly in front of you is fantastic.

This morning I woke up however and in my half asleep state thought that a box that is next to some draws was a naked man crouched down and the black label on the box was a camera and he was taking pictures of me while I was asleep.

I totally jumped until I realised that I am an idiot but then I thought will London hit me like that.  Will I be happy and content just in my sleepy state and then BAM,  London will be a naked man box filming me.

Will it scare me that the London part of my life is over?  Will it make me jump - to want to get back on a plane and do it again?  Will my heart race at the thought of it?

Only time will tell!

Aussie Out
xo

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What Do I Miss?

In the lead up to me moving back to Australia, a lot of people asked me what I would miss about London.  I found it hard to give them an answer that wasn't filled with silly responses like tunnocks tea cakes and Primark.

Now that I have been home for just over a month, I figured I would think about it again.

I spent 2 years living in a place and surely I would miss more than a delicious chocolate treat and a clothes store.

So what do I miss?

The Weather!

As a pale ginger, I felt incredibly comfortable in London.  I was told by a visiting friend that I looked like I belonged there.  Since I have been back home, I felt like I have just been sitting in front of the air-conditioner trying everything possible to cool down.

A sense of Freedom.

It's not like I can do what I want now - but now I have a lot more responsibility.  I have family commitments and friends wanting to catch up seeing as they haven't seen me in forever.  Back in London, I only had friends so I didn't feel too much pressure to have to go to events.  Now it's like I don't have a choice.  And don't get me wrong, I have missed my family and friends, but sometimes I am too much of an introvert to even want to bother.

Public Transport.

Sydney transport is in a word - shocking.-  Before I left for my adventure, I gave my car to my sister and brother-in-law to look after.  Upon my return, I was informed that my brother-in-laws car was in the shop getting fixed and he needed my car to get to work.  So I have only been able to get back behind the wheel part time.  Because the transport around my house is so sparse, I've just not bothered to do anything.  I thankfully have my car back now but that won't stop me missing how amazing the public transport was in London (even the tube... believe it or not.)  Plus I needed to catch the bus into the city the other day and I had to wait 30 minutes for the bus - JUST GREAT!

Primark.

Ok it has to be on here.  It's just so cheap.  It doesn't matter that the quality isn't amazing or the shoes make your feet hurt like they have never hurt before.  There is something about picking up a pair of jeans for £10 that just makes you smile.

The West End.

Whenever you want to go and see a show, it's so easy.  The last couple of weeks I was in London I was going to a lot of shows (maybe I will write about all the shows I have seen.)

I think its kind of sad that this list isn't longer.  Obviously friends are on the list, but the joys of snapchat and whats app have helped greatly.

It also helps that I have found Irn Bru and tunnocks tea cakes at my local shop.

It's a shame that after 2 years living in a place, I can't think of more things that I would miss.  I am not saying that London isn't amazing - cos it really can be.  Maybe further down the track I will remember a lot more things that I will miss, but right now, I couldn't be happier to be home (accept for the sunburn.)

Aussie Out
xo

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The Job Hunt

So I have been back home for a month now.

The first couple of weeks I spent napping during the day as my fight with Jet Lag was one that my body didn't want a bar of.

The last couple of weeks I have spent getting my cuddles on with my brand new niece.  A few weeks ago I had never even held a baby but now I can say that I know how to change a nappy, I can dress her and top her up with her bottle (she likes food thats for sure) and most importantly - I can get her to fall asleep.  Aunty of the year right here guys!

But as amazing as all that has been, I've been getting a little bored at home and wanted to not only get out of the house and do something other than sing songs to a crying baby, but also get some money so I can save for my next adventure,

So turns out my track record with interviews stays intact as the first interview I went for, I got the job.

It was one of those interviews where you have to perform a little.

Where they told you to bring in an item that represents you (I brought my knitting cos I'm cool like that)

It was a group interview with about 30 or so people and halfway through the morning they spilt us up and after waiting a couple of minutes, I found out that my group was through to the next round of interviews in a very x factor Australian Idol kind of way.

We really had to sell ourselves (and an object that we had to choose from the gift shop.)

But after it all, I got a call back for a second interview and then yesterday got the confirmation that I have a new job!

I am really looking forward to getting back to work (less so that I have to catch the bus into work as there is no parking for me :( but I did the public transport thing in London so I can do it here.)

So I am officially a working girl again.  I start next week and thought I would share what my office view will look like.  It's not half bad.

Aussie Out
xo

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What We Do In The Shadows

So I have recently watched a movie that I have heard a lot of things about for a while, but never got around to watching it.

It is a mockumentary type movie that follows around a flat share of vampires living in New Zealand.

It's extremely rare that a movie will make me laugh out loud in earnest so when I find a movie that does, I can't help but recommend it.

So do yourself a favour and find and watch this movie.

You wont be disappointed.




Aussie Out
xo

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Burning Bridges

As I sit here on a Saturday evening, having a cold beer waiting for the men to come back from the shops to BBQ, I can't help think about the people that I have left behind in London.

People that were my support system for 2 years.

People that turned from complete strangers into friends and substitute family.

Unfortunately that support system crashed.

My last 2 months in London were made awkward and almost miserable for the fact that I had a fall out with one of my housemates.  A girl I would say I was the closest to.

I found myself agreeing to go to every event from other friends just to get out of the house because I didn't want to be there anymore.

All of my work friends were aware of the fall out and started having random night outs just to help me get out of my house.

I wish I could say that this was the first time I have had a fall out with a close friend over the same reason (it was a guy btw - not a girl code break but choosing a guy you have known for 2 weeks over a friendship of almost 2 years doesn't fly with me.)

Before I left for London, a good friend had done almost the exact same thing and I had cut her out of my life.  After having friends ditch me at a concert because their boyfriend had showed up or cancel plans we had had for months because she wanted to hang with her new boyfriend - I decided to take a stand.

Turns out that although you will loose some good friends, at the end of the day you will feel much better about yourself.

Since I stopped being friends with this girl before I had left for my adventure, I put a new rule in place.

1 strike your out!

If you wrong me - that's it.  Sure I might play nice but I feel like you should know that it's fake,

I like to hold a grudge and burn my bridges.

Sure it's upsetting that a great friendship had to be sacrificed but that's just a price I am willing to pay.

After moving away from these failed friendships, I have always felt so much better about myself, and this is no different.

I am so much happier being home, and I am starting to get my life back on track.  I have a job interview in a couple of days and hopefully that brings a new bunch of friendships and adventures.  Hopefully friendships that survive the burning of the bridges!

Aussie Out

xo

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Advice for any Aussie moving to London

So you have made up your mind.

You are going to do an Australian rite of passage.

A trip that many before you have done.

You are going to move to London.

The first thing you need to do is sort out your visa.

I tried to be crazy organised and tried to do as much as possible before I left the country.  I found a company called First Contact which really was a god send.  All I needed to do once I got to London was go to their office in Tottenham Court Road and collect everything I ordered.  My sim card, the details to set up my bank account (you need to have an address to open up an account so they supply that), all the details to get an NI number (just like a tax file number)

Book flights.

Don't bother going to a travel agent.  It will just cost you more money on flights.  Jump onto Skyscanner and find the best flight for you.  

Tip: Find a flight that has a 30kg baggage allowance - Jumpers and jackets are heavy and you will need them (but don't forget things that will make London feel like home.)

Tip: Set incognito or privacy settings on your browser - these websites use your browser history and if it knows you are looking for certain flights then they will put up the prices.

SAVE SAVE SAVE!

It is always a hard moment when you exchange the thousand of dollars for what seems like only a couple of hundred pounds.  Try not to stress.  Yes living in London is expensive but you can save if you are smart about it.  Rent is always going to be cheaper the further out you go.  I thought that you weren't living in London if you weren't living next to a tube station, but simply living a 15 minute walk away from a station made rent so much cheaper.  And you will save on food.  If you are broke just before pay and you need some cheap options for dinner - find an Iceland and thank me later.

Re-establish a routine.

This is not a holiday.  Sure you will be excited to be somewhere new and exciting and sure spend the first couple of days exploring London but you won't be spending a lot of time in those tourist areas.  The quicker you get back into a routine, the easier you will settle in.

So finding a place to live is the number 1 priority.  Spareroom and Gumtree is what I used and I found a place to live within a couple of weeks.  Think of looking at houses like a job interview.  You need to sell yourself because if it is a nice place - there will be a lot of interest and if the housemates don't like you, that's it.  If you are travelling by yourself and you really want to emerse yourself in the British experience, then I would suggest going for a medium sized house ( we had 5 bedrooms) that way you are going to meet more people and end up doing lots of social things with your housemates.

Finding a job.

When I first moved to London, I had a job within the first week.  A lot of Australians move over with a promise of having a job as soon as you move over.  A great paying job catering to VIP events.  From what I have heard you are basically a waiter and are forced to work long hours with little training and you have to buy your own uniform - sometimes more than one uniform if you are working at different locations.

I however jumped on indeed  and found 2 different jobs via that website.  Yes I also went to certain companies websites but a lot of places will advertise here.

While we are on the subject, you will need to change your resume - firstly by referring to it as your CV.  Make sure you have your references ready ( written are best as I don't think they really want to be making international calls to make sure you are a good worker.)

Learn the lingo.

They speak English, I speak English.  How hard could it be.

Sure most things are the same, but there are some slight differences.  You don't want to be caught in the rain yelling that your pants are wet (like I did) and turn around to see a bunch of shocked English people.  I was quickly told that pants are underwear and from now on I should refer to my pants as trousers.

I told myself when I first arrived to the UK that I would never say some things.  I would never call chips crisps and I would have a hard time saying pounds instead of dollars.  That didn't last very long.  Living and working with English people, I was mocked if I said anything in the Australian way.  Within a couple of months I grew tired of being teased so I just accepted my fate.  I called lollies sweets, I called chips crisps, I said half 8 instead of 8:30 or half past 8.  I was turning into a monster, but life got a lot easier.  

Beware the dreaded "you alright."  I asked numerous people what was the correct response to this when somebody said it to me and I still don't understand it.  So people just looked at me like I was strange when I responded with "I'm good how are you."  Wrong!  Apparently you are meant to say "yeah you alright."  I was also told that they don't care about your response.  They say it out of habit now.

Must have apps.

London is a huge place and can be crazy over whelming at times.  I would spend most of my time looking at the maps that they have on almost every street corner of Central London  - looking like a tourist.  Then I went to lunch with my friend and she told be all about citymapper.

It's a free app that helps with all the transport and getting around that seems hopeless in London (they do other places as well but not anywhere in Australia yet... slackers.)

All it will do it find your location, you put in where you want to go and it will give you the options to do so.  Walking, bike, taxi, light rail, tube, overground or bus.  It tells you how far away it is, what time you will need to leave your location in order to get to your destination on time, even how many calories you will burn if you walk.  This is the app of the Gods and even though I knew my way around after a certain amount of time, I still found myself using it on a regular basis. 

TodayTix is the app you need if you want to go and see a show on the west end.  They sell tickets super cheap and take the hassle out of having to line up somewhere.  Yes sometimes you will need to go to the box office to collect your tickets but that wont take nearly as long.  You can get some fantastic deals.  I wanted to see a bunch of shows before coming home so I went on the app and never paid more than £30 for a show.  Sure some of them weren't the best seats but I could still see everything and I loved every second of it.  Highly recommended.

Uber.  Trust me on this one.  Uber is a life saver.  When you have had a big night the last thing you want to do is jump on a night bus (some buses run 24/7 - crazy right) and the London black taxis will charge you an arm and a leg to leg home.  Then there is Uber.  I found Uber to be so much cheaper and you don't have to worry about getting home and finding your money as it's all done through your card.  I always felt safe travelling with them and never had any major issues.

Viber and WhatsApp.  Almost everyone in London uses WhatsApp.  So much to the point that one day I got a normal message and it took me a few minutes to find out where to find the normal messages where on my phone.  Viber is fantastic for staying in contact with everyone at home.  Sure I used Facebook messenger and skype but viber was the app that I used most often for messaging family back home.

ENJOY YOURSELF!

Whether you are making the move for good or for 2 years, the most important thing to do is to go out and create memories.  YOU ARE IN LONDON!  Not many people get to do what you are doing and it is an amazing opportunity.

Try not to let peoples moods get you down (easier said then done), and try to explore and find new things instead of going to the same places over and over again,

It is so cheap to travel from London so if you want to go somewhere - DO IT!

Don't have any regrets.

London is a hard city to live in.  People can be rude, you almost never get a seat on the tube and sometimes you have trouble trying to figure out what people are saying.  But I wouldn't change my 2 years at all.

So grab your jacket, oyster card and your pounds (and pennies!), meet new people and have an adventure!

Trust me... you won't regret it!

Aussie Out

xo

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