Trevor and Lauren

Supper Time :D

2009-03-12T08:54:00.000-07:00

Here's a pic of a supper we made a little while ago....Bangers and Mash...doesn't get anymore English than that now does it?? These were Pheasant and Pear sausages, with caramelized onions and delicious mashed potatoes...don't be jealous ;)

Long time, no see....

2009-03-12T08:16:00.000-07:00

Hi All! Well those of you that read our blog :)

I'm sorry for not writing for so long but I've actually been hired and have been working LOTS. Since I last wrote I finally got hired! And somehow managed to get 2 jobs :). So I figured out that I could work the two around each other, one part time, one full time. I went and had 20 of my CV's printed up, and as Murphy's Law would have it, I probably still have 17 in my bag and only one of the 3 I handed out ended up with a job. I got my other job off the internet. Ah well...at least I'm working now which as much as it's a pain to work everyday, is better than having nothing to do at all. Plus I don't have to keep this up forever..,a few months won't kill me. The more I work, the less time I have to spend money and the more money I make...it's brilliant. But I need at least a day off or two a week to see more of London. Anyways, let me tell you more about my jobs. Now I know I promised myself that I would not get a bar job here in London, because it's so much work and for so little money...but here I find myself with not one, but two bar jobs. I could have gone in the direction of looking for managerial positions, but I also promised myself that although it would be more money, it'd be more stress, more hours, and it'd be harder to take off time to travel and to eventually quit when Trev and I move on. So here I am, bartending and serving my little heart out once again. But tips are so few and far between on this side of the pond that it's not really worth it.

I work 40-45 hours per week at The Bridge Lounge doing a combination of bartending and serving. It's a gastro pub where we provide table service (something you won't find at most pubs in London). We serve great pints, nice glasses of wine and excellent, hearty, home cooked pub food. We provide a high level of service that I'm used to providing, having learnt how to serve in Canada. The owner/manager expects a lot more from us than most pubs expect of their staff. But I'm okay with it as I like doing a good job and providing amazing service to customers. It's what I'm used to. I really like my coworkers and since we spend SO much time working together each week, I'm glad we all get along. It's not perfect, and no job is, but I like it enough that I'm willing to walk half an hour to get there and back and get paid £6/hr to work my butt off 40-45 hours per week.

At my other job, I work 12 hours per week (Sunday and Monday night, working 6 hours each night). I bartend at a traditional old school English pub. It's small and grubby and old and pubby. Stinks like stale beer and is basically on the complete opposite side of the spectrum from the higher end gastro pub I work at as well. So it's nice to get two completely different pub experiences while working here. They also pay me £6/hr, but they are much more conveniently located practically underneath my flat which is very nice indeed. It's not as busy, but I like the people I come across, I like my boss and I like that it's casual.

But working 7 days a week is starting to take it's toll. I really think it's time to get back a day or two off per week to enjoy our time in London. We've barely seen or done anything since we've been here so we'll see....

OMG, we're going to Dublin for St. Paddy's day in 4 days! On Monday, the 16th we're flying to Dublin for 2 nights. Trevor, Franco and myself. I'm really excited. It'll be a much needed and deserved break for all three of us so stay tuned....I can promise there will be some ridiculous and hilarious stories and photos from the trip :)

Love,
Lauren

The plan for the next 5 months

2009-03-07T03:06:00.000-08:00

WORK AND SAVE :( but we are taking smaller trips like Dublin for St Patrick s day. Hopefully in April we will take a trip to Prague for three nights. Lauren is working very hard, everyday until we go away to Dublin. With all the work until June, we will take a month of just travelling and seeing what we want. That is the plan for now, just have to go with the FLOW.

whats going on

2009-02-24T09:55:00.000-08:00

So I have just handed in my second resignation letter in a month. Why, well I want a job that pays decent and I'm happy with. I guess I'm asking a lot in this time of depression but I don't think so. I just want to enjoy my travels as much as possible even when I'm working. Especially when I have to go back home and get back to reality. I have gone for a trial for this new job that I have applied for, and I really would be happy to work there. Its a private membership club that I would be working for, if I get it. So cross your fingers for me because I have already gave my two weeks notice to my job at the Strand Palace.

It's starting to come together.

2009-01-28T10:23:00.000-08:00

Today we woke up to go and get a bank account at HSBC for myself because I had a water bill in my name I received recently, I could use as a proof of address. Well I could not find HSBC where I remembered it and I'm glad I didn't. When we went to HSBC a few days ago to set up account, they told us that the Passport account they had set up for travellers was the best. They also said that no other bank will give us accounts unless we had a bill from a water or gas company. It also cost six pounds per month and you had to sign up for a full year. The street we were on had every bank on it , so we decided to stop into Lloyd's even though we were told it was the hardest to set up a bank account with. We went in from the cold wet weather and into the warm bank. While I stood in line, Lauren looked at the brochures. Lauren found a brochure that had a free classic account for people that are new to the UK. The teller called us over and we asked if we could set up an account today. She asked if we had our passports with us and luckily we both did. Teller said take a seat and someone will be with you. Me and Lauren started talking about how HSBC was screwing us around and if we knew it was this easy, we could of got things done so much earlier. A gentleman asked us to come into an office and have a seat. He asked for our passports and went over some details. All we have to do is go back on Tuesday and pick up our debit cards. The gentleman said that they give bank accounts to South Africans, any one from Europe, Americans, Canadians, and all you needed was a passport. So we are one step closer to settling in. I do feel like HSBC definitely gave us the wrong impression and lied to us. During the banking process, I also got a call from Strand Palace hotel to set up a interview for Tuesday for a serving position. It will pay more then my current job that I just started. I would get a free meal and discounts as well. If you don't know already I'm currently working at The Maple Leaf, a Canadian bar. How funny is that, you go and travel trying to experience new things and you get sucked right back in. I guess hotel and restaurant work is not much different anyway.I have to say I never poured a Cask Ale so that is a new experience. You actually pump the beer through the line by pulling down the tap, until the pint is full. The pub is owned by Spirit Group, a massive company that owns 880 other pubs. The Maple Leaf is the only Canadian bar in the UK, very cool. At the moment its not very busy, I have gotten some tips. I get paid 5.73/hour, I get 50% off all food on the menu and they take 15 minutes off my pay for a break. The Strand Palace on the other hand would give me a free meal and 6.15/hour. The Maple Leaf bar is little more relaxed and better atmosphere but I don't know what it will be like at the hotel. So we will see how it goes on Tuesday when I have my interview. The location is great because I don't have to pay for the tube since it is walking distance for both jobs. Tomorrow Lauren will apply at The Maple Leaf and we might be working together again. So stay tuned and see what happens.

Trevor

Job Hunt Update...

2009-01-27T02:58:00.000-08:00

Well since I last wrote, there has been a couple of developments with the job hunts. I interviewed with and did a trial run with Giraffe restaurant. I applied to be an Assistant Manager with them. The interview went so well they asked me to do a trial run with them at their largest and busiest location the following Sunday brunch (the busiest time of the week). So I went and somehow managed to get through it. It was hard though, because if you were doing a trial run as a server or a bartender, you know exactly what your job is and what you're supposed to be doing. But doing a trial run as an Assistant Manager is strange because I can't run around telling the staff what to do and I was asked to make my presence known as a Manager and I wasn't really sure how to do that either. Anyways, overall I think it went well. I smiled a lot which is very important in any job. I ran drinks and food and cleared tables, relayed orders to the servers and offered to help anyone and everyone. Two or three hours into the trial I was approached by one of the servers, "please don't clear any of the plates off my tables until everyone is done." I said "okay" and went over to the Operations Manager who was overseeing my trial run and told her that I'd been clearing tables as I go, meaning that once someone is done with their plate, I took it away from them (regardless of whether the rest of the table was done or not). Well...apparently, here in Britain that's rude and you're not supposed to clear any dirty plates away until everyone at the table is finished. Now I understand the reasoning behind this (that it makes the people that are not done yet, feel that they should hurry up or something), but it just looks like shit, especially with the larger tables, where 9 people would be done eating, but number 10 is still picking away at their plate so the whole table looks dirty and I have to keep walking past it and not doing anything about it. Weird. Thanks for the heads up, guys, would have been nice to have known that sooner. Anyways, after the trial run I sat down with the Operations Manager to go over everything. She said that I was too quiet, but it wasn't a big issue because during my interview I had informed her that that is how I come off in the beginning while I'm still getting to know everyone. She also said that she didn't think I was strong enough to come into that specific store (their biggest and busiest) to be an Assistant Manager there but that there were other roles I'd be more well suited for. She let me know that there were a few more trial runs taking place over the next few days and that she'd call me on Wednesday to let me know what's happening. So here I sit...on Tuesday, crossing my fingers that I'll have a job tomorrow.

Trevor, on the other hand, fed up with applying to lots of jobs online and not hearing anything back, went on Sunday and printed up some CV's to hand around. He walked into the Maple Leaf (London's Famous Canadian bar) and they basically hired him on the spot! They're in desperate need of people right now, what with people being sick and leaving and what not. Plus they only hire Canadians, so bonus for us! He's pretty much been there everyday since working lots. Yesterday he was only supposed to work 12pm-5pm but ended up working a double until Midnight, poor Trev :). But it's awesome that he's working and although it's not ideal, it's something for now and better to make some money than no money.

So hopefully I'll be in that position soon as well. Cross your fingers for me!! And thanks so much to all that faithfully read our blog. Your feedback is important to us so never hesitate to comment on our posts or write to us to let us know what you think!!

Will keep you posted on any new developments...oh and we've yet to get our National Insurance Numbers and Bank Accounts :P
Hopefully we'll be getting those soon as well because they're "kinda" important for jobs!

Lauren

Here's a few pics of us....just to put a smile on your lovely faces!

Awwww....cute :)

Not so cute...Um...Trev, are you feeling okay? 'Cause you don't look so hot...
CHEESE!

My head has to be shaped like this...to support my enormous brain!

Job Hunting is fun!....NOT

2009-01-19T14:22:00.000-08:00

So the job hunt has commenced. Starting up in London is much harder than I ever gave it credit for! It seems as though obtaining anything you need to live here is a Catch 22. Everytime you try to get ahead while you're starting up, it's like being in a maze, and everywhere you turn there's a brick wall infront of you. You need a few things to live and work in London. A flat (somewhere to live), a job (living in one of the most expensive cities in the world, you'll need to be making money while you're spending it), a National Insurance number (if you don't get one of these, you'll be taxed much more than if you do have one, visit Jobcentre Plus to find out how to get yours), and a Bank Account (you obviously need one of these to put money into when you get your job, for more info on opening up a Bank Account in the UK for Canadians visit CanuckAbroad.com). The problem is...when you start to try to get any of these things you need, you'll realize that you need one or more of another one of them in order to get the one you're trying for. It's SO frustrating!

So we have a flat, Thank God. This is one of the hardest to obtain since nobody would like to rent to a couple without jobs. So luckily we got a flat with my friend, Franco (from high school). He's been out here for the last 3 years studying Law. We've tried to obtain our National Insurance number and Bank Accounts but they've been both difficult to obtain without a proof of address. We moved into our flat on the 15th of January. Today we phoned the Gas/Electricity company and put our names on the account. They're going to send us a welcome package with our names on it, so please please please cross your fingers with us and hope that that's enough for us both to get Bank Accounts and National Insurance numbers. As for jobs, we've both been applying a lot on the internet. I've got two interviews with recruitment agencies who both want to place me in Assistant Manager positions. Oh how fun! I can be in Management again!! You know how much I love managing, don't you?! If not, scroll down, there's a nice post that explains exactly how I feel about it. But I need a job, and I need money so I really can't be picky about what comes my way. I'll keep you posted on what becomes of it. But for now, let me depart you with some wisdom. DON'T move to London...it is MUCH to hard to survive here, just don't do it!!!

That's all...will keep you updated on the magnificent lives we have found ourselves with :P

Lauren

ROOMIES!! Franco, Trevor, and Lauren

London's newest Bobby

Me in the London Underground

Good 'ol Big Ben....he sure is big...

A nasty little habit I've developed while travelling....

2009-01-08T02:47:00.001-08:00

Warning: this blog is LONG....there was a lot of travelling to cover so we've made it as succinct as possible for your reading pleasure...

A few days after we arrived in Lagos, Portugal, Trev and I both got nasty colds. Sneezing, coughing, runny noses, achy tired bones, you know the works. For 4 days we could barely move let alone leave our rented flat to enjoy our little holiday. The flat was freezing too which made it that much more unbearable. With only 4 Portuguese TV channels to entertain us, I have to say that I was expecting a much better time in Lagos. When we did actually make it out of the flat, we went out to by toilet paper and cough mixture. I couldn't go more than two minutes without blowing my nose, it was ridiculous. We knew we needed to have toilet paper for our 10 day tour in Morocco which was taking place about a week after Lagos, so we bought a few extra rolls for our trip.

Flying into Faro, Portugal before taking the 1 and a half hour train ride to Lagos

The essentials for being sick in Lagos, toilet paper ;), wine, cough mixture, more random Portuguese cold medicine, cards, water, etc.

Trevor looking how he felt

Good old Portuguese cough mixture

The beautiful, Christmas decorated streets of Lagos

After we barely survived our time in Lagos, due to our illnesses, the constant cold and the excessive drinking (when we actually did manage to go out), we took a 5 and a half hour bus to Seville, Spain to stay there for 3 nights. Seville is really beautiful but we found it very hard to navigate. We really liked the hostel we stayed in. It was called Samay hostel and it was very centrally located, clean and comfortable. And I was obviously a fan of the fact that the ensuite bathroom to our 6 bed dorm room had an endless supply of toilet paper rolls perfect for taking with you wherever you went if you were still sick and had to blow your nose every five seconds. We tried to make the most of our time there but found it difficult to communicate (since neither of us speak Spanish) and difficult to get anywhere (but getting lost was EASY). We got our laundry done, cooked a little and got a good amount of sleep trying to get better before going to Morocco for our 10 day tour over Christmas and New Years.

Chocolat con Churros - Hot Chocolate with the yummiest greasiest sugary donuts - Breakfast of Champions ;)

Spanish Garden Gnome

Seville is apparently where Tapas come from....they're everywhere!

Our hostel beds at Samay hostel in Seville

So after grabbing another roll of TP (toilet paper) we hopped on another bus...this time to Algeciras (the port city on the coast of Spain where we'd catch our ferry over to Tangier). After a few hours on the ferry, and half a roll of toilet paper later, we arrived in another world. Saying I experienced culture shock would be like calling a tsunami a small wave. I felt more dumbstruck than anything. As we stepped off the ferry we were approached by a older gentleman named Ahmed. He didn't really offer to help us around, just attached himself to our sides and because we didn't know what the hell was going on we just followed him around like lost puppy dogs (which is essentially what we were at the time). He took us to catch a cab to the travel agency where we were supposed to pick up couchette (or sleeper) train tickets for the overnight train leaving from Tangier that night and arriving in Marrakech 11 hours later early in the morning. After hailing us a cab he hopped into it after we did, which we found somewhat strange. After arriving at the agency, Ahmed took us inside and told the woman working there what we needed. She told us that the man that had the tickets wasn't going to be there for another couple of hours and to come back at 6:30pm. So Ahmed told us he'd take us somewhere to get something to eat because we were obviously hungry at this point. So we followed Ahmed through the busy streets of Tangier looking around with wide-eyed wonderment because this world was still so new. At the restaurant the only menu available to us was some sort of tourist menu. For 100 Dirham each (about 10 Euros) we could both get a 4 course meal. The first was vegetable soup and bread. The second was a chicken samosa type thing with cinnamon sprinkled on top. The third was chicken and vegetable tagine with couscous and the fourth was little sugar cookies. Ahmed stayed and talked to us while we ate. He sat and told us stories of what Morocco was like in the 70's, told us about his family and gave us survival tips for our stay in Morocco. By this time we were slowly starting to relax and enjoy our surroundings. Ahmed then told us that when we go to Marrakesh which is in Southern Morocco, that it would be seen as disrespectful to the locals if we did not wear the traditional robe called a djellaba. He told us that we'd be ripped off if we tried to buy one there (because we're tourists) so he would buy two for us for 250 Dirham each (this amounts to about 50 Euro). So against my chagrin Trev handed Ahmed a 200 Dirham note and was going to pay the remaining 300 Dirham after he came back from buying them. When Ahmed returned we were now the proud owners of a couple of djellaba's. After a couple of cups of Moroccan mint tea (a few of many we'd consume during our time in Morocco) and a couple of cups of Turkish coffee we asked for our bill and somehow it ended up costing 420 Dirham (that's 42 Euros - WTF?!). So against our better judgement to ask to actually see a bill, we reluctantly paid and got ripped off (are you starting to see a trend yet?).

The restaurant we got ripped off at....our first meal in Morocco

Ahmed, our personal professional conman took us back to the agency to pick up our train tickets. He then hailed us a cab and asked us for money. When Trevor tried to hand him change he told him that he doesn't take change....isn't that convenient?!

When we got to the train station, outside having a smoke I decided to take a look at the tickets we'd purchased. There, right in the middle of each ticket it read "2nd Class." I probably did a double take at this point in absolute shock. We went inside to the ticket booth and they told us that there was no more couchettes (sleepers) available. There was apparently nothing in 1st class either. Oh My God, my worst nightmare was coming true. I probably started crying at this point because I'm a girl and I do that when I'm sad or mad or frustrated or scared as I was at that moment. In hindsight I really was overreacting and I was being overly paranoid and afraid. But at the time I really was afraid. In a sleeper we would've had a door that locked and beds to sleep in...we would've felt safe and would've been able to have a nice sleep. But I did not feel safe in 2nd class. My fear was transferring to Trevor and he told me to turn my necklace and put my ring in my pocket. Him telling me that made me even more scared and to make a long story short it was definitely one of the longest nights of my life. At one point Trevor went to the toilet and came back to tell me there was no light in it and there was piss everywhere. Good news considering I needed to go. So Trev located another one on the other side of the cart that did have a light but the door didn't close and there was a big hole in the door so he agreed to guard me while I used it. The toilet bowl was full and didn't flush. The motion of the train was making the contents of the toilet splash onto the floor. I managed to hover above the toilet and vowed to not take even one more sip of water for the rest of the train ride to avoid having to use that toilet again. This was another time that my stolen toilet paper came in handy.

The place where 11 hours felt like 111, apparently Trevor didn't feel the same way

The Marrakech Train Station

When we eventually arrived at the Marrakesh train station, feeling less than refreshed after the fitful and scary night on the train, we took a cab to our hotel near the main square, Djemaa el Fna. We were at the hotel by about 8 in the morning and luckily they checked us into our room early so we could get some much needed sleep.

A very welcome sight after a night of no sleep

At 6 pm that night we met with the rest of our tour in the lobby of the hotel. All 50 of us. The tour commenced the following morning (the 24th of December) where we did a walking tour of Marrakech, led by one of our tour guides Mohammed.

The wonderful Mohammed

Marrakech is truly amazing. By this point the previous days events were out of our minds and we felt good. We saw the impressive Koutoubia Mosque, Saadian Tombs, city gate Bab Agnaou, and Bahia Palace.

On the way to the main square

In the souks

Us at the Bahia Palace

The main gate

We then went for lunch in the square (couscous, chicken tagine, mint tea etc.). Then we spent some time getting lost in the winding little streets of the souks (traditional markets where you can find and buy anything after bargaining with the little shop owners). The following day, Christmas morning, we left Marrakech in our 4 minivans for a full day of driving to spend the night in La Kasbah de la Vallee in the Gorge du Dades. Along the way we made a few toilet stops and I had to accept the fact that "squat" toilets were going to be a reality of my time in Morocco. This is where the toilet paper always came in handy. Christmas really didn't feel like Christmas until dinner when we blew up balloons, pulled Christmas crackers, drank wine and ate like kings.

The making of Berber rugs

My first "squat" toilet, so exciting it was worthy of a photo

Christmas Crackers!

Delicious Christmas Desserts

Eeyore

The next day we hiked for two and a half hours after breakfast then hopped back in the minivans and drove to the Todra gorge where we spent the night at the Hotel Yasmina. The next morning lots more driving because this time we were headed to our Camel trek and night in the Sahara dessert. When we got to the edge of the dessert we hopped on our camels and rode them 45 minutes into the Sahara dessert. It was definitely one of the coolest things I have ever done! Trevor really enjoyed it as well. When we got to our Berber camp, we grabbed a couple of snowboards and everybody took turns sandboarding in the dunes. We then had dinner which was delicious and then sat around a fire all night with the Berbers who sang and played drums. We managed to get a decent nights sleep considering it gets to 4-5 degrees in the dessert at night. And the next morning, before we could even have a cup of coffee, we were back on the camels making our way out of the dessert.

STOP! Camel Time!

Trevor of Arabia

50 camels all in a row

Sandboarding

Berber Camp fun

After breakfast we drove back to Ouarzazate to spend the night there. The next day we had the option to either go quadbiking, or visit the movie sets where films such as Gladiator and Lawrence of Arabia were filmed. Trev and I chose to do neither because we needed a relaxing day to catch up on a little sleep and emailing. That afternoon after lunch we headed back to Marrakech but on the way we went to see the ancient city of Aït Benhaddou, it's an UNESCO World Heritage listing that has also had parts of the films Gladiator and Lawrence of Arabia shot there. It was actually really cool to see and the pics we took are amazing. That night after getting back to Marrakech rather late, we ate in the Djemâa-el-Fna square. The following day was the 3oth of December and us and a few of the other people on the tour went to Essaouira for the day. It took about 3 hours to get there and we were only there for a few hours but we still had a good time while we were there. It's on the coast so it was really beautiful and although the sun wasn't shining you could still see why so many people flock there, especially during the summer. We ate fresh fish at the fish markets there and walked around the markets before drinking 3 cappuccinos with Caroline (a lovely Zimbabwean who was on our tour with us).

The super cool ancient city of Aït Benhaddou

Trev and I at the top of Aït Benhaddou

The fresh fish markets in Essaouira - we're pretty sure this is where Trevor got his food poisoning from...

Essaouira, still beautiful on a cloudy day

Caroline and I in Essaouira

The next day was New Years Eve so after spending some of the day in the souks we got ready for New Years Eve dinner. I also must make note that at this point Trevor was signs of food poisoning so a Happy New Years it was indeed. And I have no idea what happened because on the whole tour the food had always been good up to that point but the dinner we had that night was SO bad that it was definitely inedible. We had bought our own alcohol the previous day to save money so a bunch of us would go back and forth to the hotel rooms to drink it during dinner. Everytime I would come back from a visit to the rooms for a drink there'd be a new course infront of me and I was SO hungry at this point and as the forkful of whatever it was would almost make it into my mouth, someone nearby would shout "NO, don't eat that, it's terrible!!" So, disappointed, I'd put the fork down and cross my fingers for the next course. At one point I got excited when I came back to the table and there were kebabs - yum! But again somebody from somewhere shouted "NO! Don't eat it!" and proceeded to point out that the chicken was severly undercooked and that after having sent it back it was still raw. So this happened for every single course and needless to say I had a liquid dinner that night. But although the food was absolutely awful, the entertainment was great! Bellydancers, Snakecharmers, and Live Music made it a really special and fun way to celebrate New Years with our newfound friends. Which led to me having to be put to bed just after the countdown - again Happy New Years indeed.

Trev and I while we were still relatively sober

Snakecharmer kissing the cobra...weird

Trev debating whether to eat the snake 'cause our crappy New Years meal left us hungry

A pic of the fabulous raw chicken

HAPPY NEW YEARS!!

This was taken about 3 minutes before I had to go to bed...

The next morning (my birthday), myself - still drunk from the following evening, and Trevor, experiencing the worst day of the food poisoning thus far, had to make our way to the Marrakech airport to fly back to London. The flight was definitely a memorable one, more for Trevor than myself as I don't think he's ever been so aquainted with an airplane's toilet in his life. He's insisted that I mention the fact that at one point he was on the toilet and he started throwing up in the sink at the same time. After he was done relieving himself, because the puke wouldn't go down the drain, he had to scoop it up and into the toilet with his hands. I'm not entirely sure why he's insisted that I tell you that....I think in some strange way he's proud of that moment in his life....who wouldn't be?!

The Marrakech airport is worth taking photos of

Coolest airport ever

Flight back to reality (London - time to get jobs)

We then spent the next 3 nights in a hotel paying £95/night just so Trev had a nearby toilet. The 2nd night I woke up at 2am to puke my guts out. The same thing happened at 4am and 6am as well. The following day I was pretty sick the whole day and Trev and I shared the toilet because, as you know, sharing is caring...especially when it comes to toilets. The following day, after leaving the hotel we moved our stuff to my friend, Franco's flat. We went to the hospital to have Trevor seen too because at this point he'd been sick for 5-6 days. They prescribed antibiotics to him and said that it was most likely Gastroenteritis. The next day we went with Franco to look at some flats as we all intend on moving in together. We went to eat at The Slug and Lettuce at one point because the food was 50% off that day. On our way out I stopped by the toilet to discover that one of the really large rolls of toilet paper had been used to where it was the size of a normal roll of toilet paper, and lo and behold it fell into my purse before I left. So this is the nasty habit I speak of....I've become a toilet paper kleptomaniac. But before you clutch your purses and hide your valuables, trust me when I say that it is only toilet paper that I feel compelled to steal these days. And it is only because especially with having a cold for the last month and travelling constantly with it and using so many toilet-paper-lacking public toilets, I have developed a dependence on having it readily available in my purse at all times. I'm not proud of my new problem...as you can imagine I'm a little embarrassed at the rush I experience everytime I steal another roll. But traveling will make you do some very interesting things. And I'm sure...before this long trip is through, I will be writing about many interesting things we will have to do to survive this strange journey.....

Lauren

Best Friends Birthday

2009-01-06T02:09:00.000-08:00

Just like to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to NATHAN GAULD.

Wish I could of been there cheers.

Quick hi

2008-12-29T02:41:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, me and Lauren will be updating our blog after the NEW YEAR. We are in Morocco at the moment busy riding camels in the desert and taking lots of photos. We wish everyone a happy holiday and a New Year. Trust me lots of interesting stories tell.

Here's a copy of an email I just sent to my mother....should sum things up nicely for you....

2008-12-17T08:13:00.000-08:00

Hi Mama,

Not in the mood to write much, but wanted to keep you posted so you know I'm okay. This keyboard I'm typing on is retarded....I have to practically punch the bloody space bar to make spaces between my words (extra annoying). Trev and I have been holed up in our little freezing cold apartment in Lagos trying to get better (we're sick as dogs) and getting nowhere. Due to cabin fever we've ventured out today (and with only 4 tv channels, all in Portuguese, we've gotten extremely bored). You wouldn't believe what it took for us to get here....I think we were doomed from the start. The night before we had our 6:40am plane ride to Faro, we stayed with Franco. Mistake #1. Mistake #2 was listening to Franco when he suggested that because our flight was so early, that we go out drinking instead of going to bed early. It turns out we (drunk and all) missed our bus to take us to Victoria Station where the train would take us to Gatwick. Then, with backpacks on our back (and remember...drunk and now sleep deprived too), we hopped in a cab to take us to Victoria Station to take the train to the airport. Just as we pulled up outside the station, I realized that I'd forgotten to bring the Number 1 thing on every travellers list....you guessed it! My passport! By this time, Trev and I were at eachother's throats and this really didn't help matters much. So Trev told the driver to go back to where he picked us up (by this point the meter was at 17 pounds - $34). We phoned Franco on the way and told him to grab my passport, and our travel insurance forms (which we forgot in our drunken stupor as well) and to meet us outside with it. At this point Trev asked the cabbie how much it would cost to just take us to the airport and the cabbie said...in his British accent "well with all your mucking about...140 pounds!" So that was not an option....Finally we somehow made it to the airport and then came within 5-10 minutes of missing the plane. We were running to the gate while I was noticing that my pants fall down while I run, so I've got one hand holding my purse and the other holding my pants up, 'cause as funny as it would've been for everyone but me, I wasn't willing to give Trevor the satisfaction of telling everyone the story of the time I was running to the gate and by the time I got there my pants were around my ankles. So we eventually made it here. And it's friggin' cold and raining and that's how we have gotten sick. We're taking the bus to Seville, Spain on Friday and then we're there over the weekend. I'll write to you from Seville to let you know how things are....

I miss you much! And love you LOTS! And have to sarcastically "Thank You" for spoiling me with the Skylofts.....everywhere I stay now is that much more of a shithole because of it ;)
ah well...at least I have the smell of the lotion,shampoo and conditioner to get me through the dirty showers I'll be experiencing for the next while....

Please write soon,
Love,
Lauren

FINALLY! In London!!

2008-12-08T10:11:00.000-08:00

I am SO long overdue for an update. Well we're finally here....at last.....seemed like a dream before but it's definitely real now. The reality of backpacking is that it's hard....and I possibly forgot how hard it is. But I remember it being worth it, so that's good. It took every ounce of energy in Trev and I this morning to find our way to our hostel. After a flight where we both got little sleep and ate crappy food, we were both in a bit of a state when we finally got to the airport baggage, only to realize that our backpacks are really heavy...especially in combination with our heavy carry-ons. Oh well, I remember feeling the same way when my best friend, Kara, and I arrived in Amsterdam to start our backpacking trip. After awhile you get used to carrying around the pack....I just don't remember how long it takes, but I hope it happens soon :).

So the flight was crap (but I guess you get what you pay for). Air Transat is just fine for short flights to the Caribbean, and for those of you that have flown them there, imagine flying the exact same way, double the time, to here...London. It was bad...very cramped and it takes really bad food for me to say it's crap. The flight attendants weren't especially nice either. If I could do it over, I'd probably spend a bit extra to feel a lot better than I did this morning when we got here. Then trying to find your way around the London transport system with all the luggage on no sleep was a mission in itself....but we friggin' did it! Thank God! The worst is over :)

The hostel is located by Swiss Cottage Station in London. It's a pretty big hostel with a cool bunk bed setup I haven't seen before (I'll take pics), but they nickel & dime you for everything in hostels this big (usually). But other than that, it's clean, which is numero uno on my watch. And we should be getting everything we need sorted out in the next couple of days before we go to PORTUGAL - YAY!!!

I'll keep you posted :)

Lolly

Falls no more

2008-11-25T21:58:00.000-08:00

My last day at the Falls and Firkin was not as boring as I had anticipated. I got picked up by the new GM, Vanessa, in the morning nice and early. We arrived at the restaraunt and I brought my breaky to start my day off. It was Tuesday, a nice day to finish my last day but I found out that both cooks that was supposed to be in that morning had called in sick and guess who was more than willing to open the kitchen, me. I was in tears as well today from cutting so many bloody onions. Then Shannon and Matt came to take over the kitchen while I went back to serving in the front. I was offered a job by Shannon to be a cook and I declined 'cause I have bigger fish to fry, like packing to get out of Niagara Falls. After an hour of no customers I was done my shift and had my last meal. A pint of Creemore and a plate of hot wings, it was so satisfying. Vanessa came to pick Lauren and I up to go to her house for dinner, it was amazing food and company.

Trevor

2008-11-19T17:25:00.000-08:00

The lovely RED HAT SOCIETY came to the Falls and Firkin and it was a pleasure to serve them.
Thanks for the picture Ladies.

Trev

Just had to get some things off my chest...

2008-11-13T19:56:00.000-08:00

I haven't written in awhile and wish I could write with good news or a fun attitude, but if I don't get some things off my chest, I don't know what I'll do. I'm at my breaking point. Living in Niagara for the last year (almost) has taken a toll on who I am and I really can't do it anymore. And yes, I know I'm leaving soon, but it really isn't soon enough. I'm to the point now where the hours on my days off seem to go too fast, and the hours I know I have to work barely move at all. It's safe to say that I severely dislike (I hate saying the word hate :) ) my job and life here. Managing a restaurant is so much harder than I ever gave it credit for. What I've learnt over the last year is that you really cannot rely on people.....EVER. You can't rely on them to ever be mature or professional. You can't rely on them to do their jobs and you can't rely on them to even show up to work half the time. What you actually can rely on...is the drama, gossip and typical "High School" mentality.

I've had to try and fill so many rolls in being a manager, and know I've done my best in filling them all, but I'm sure have fallen short in some of them. I have always treated people with respect, but I'm definitely not hard enough to deal with the inevitable confrontation that comes with managing people. To be a good manager, you need to be a friend, a parent, a technical genius, a nurse, a computer whiz, a mathematician, a teacher, a leader, a kitchen equipment repairman, a plumber, a janitor, a public speaker, a mediator, a cook, a bartender, a busser, and a server. To be a good manager you have to tell people when they're doing something wrong, without offending them. You need to maintain all equipment in the restaurant, regardless of whether or not you know what it is or even what it's used for. You need to be able to problem solve, because all you'll face are problems. If you're not already a smoker and drinker....being a restaurant manager will certainly turn you into one.

If you like being woken up in the middle of the night with a stupid question, then being a restaurant manager is the greatest job ever. If you enjoy being criticized constantly by your employees, after giving them everything they've asked for, well then I highly recommend running a restaurant. If you'd like to have the hardest and least paying job in the restaurant industry with the largest amount of responsibility, well then managing a restaurant is right up your alley.

So it's safe to say I won't be getting back into restaurant management anytime soon. I can only hope and pray, at this point, that the next couple of years of travelling are hopefully going to erase all the bad memories the last year has embedded in my brain. 8 more days of work, that will feel more like 57. It's daunting, to say the least.....

Lauren

Another normal day.....or was it ?

2008-11-13T11:44:00.000-08:00

It was Tuesday November 11 and it was Lauren and I's Friday. We had plans to go out, with Vanessa to eat, drink, and relax. We thought it would be a normal day, I would serve and open the restaurant and Lauren would do the management work. We got to the shop a bit early so there was no cook yet to work in the kitchen. It was twenty after nine and no kitchen staff. That was a bit of a worry so Lauren called to find out what was happening. The cook that was supposed to come in that day had thrown out his back and couldn't come in. The next staff member was in at eleven am. The kitchen manager was a temp because the other kitchen manager was fired a few weeks before. On a side note, the restaurant has gone through six kitchen managers in a year so there has been some issues. The temporary kitchen manager was in at eleven to work but that was not the case. He came in to quit and drop off the store key. The situation from there was the bartender was coming in at ten, I was going to prep, cook and get the kitchen started with Lauren. Lauren called in Vanessa to do the manager work while we cooked, while the pussy ass temp kitchen manager was walking out and leaving us fucked. I asked a few questions to start the prep for the morning like how to work the steam table what is the temperature, what temperature do you cook the bacon at. Lauren went upstairs after prepping veggies for her soup, to see what we needed to order for food from GFS (Gordon Food Services). While Lauren was up stairs I opened the restaurant an hour and half late to serve up some grub. When I opened up I didn't think I would have to cook right away because it was Tuesday not a very busy day. I was wrong, we opened up and the printer went off with a order. I was ready to sink or swim as a cook. I had some amazing Guinness pies on the go as well while I cooked the order. Then I just finished that order and another one was up. As a cook I found the biggest thing is timing, knowing how long everything takes and when to start the next item. Vanessa showed up and got hold of a cook to come in, what a life saver! Cam came in a hour later after finding a baby sitter and life got a bit easier. There was still a lot of cooking to be done and bloody dishes. Vanessa, Lauren and myself all helped out in the dish pit. What a day! But it was over before we knew it and it was time to go out and eat something. There was no time to eat or drink during the day, it was way too busy.

Working here make Trevor want to drink...excessively

Working here makes Lauren want to hang herself with her scarf

So we worked hard all day and that means we are going to play hard too. Lauren was all for not showering and going straight out so we don't get comfortable at home. So we headed out to Clancy's to eat and drink. I had a salad with a chicken burger, Lauren had fish and chips, and Vanessa had a steak and cheese sub with lettuce and tomato. There is an Ecoli outbreak with salad going around in Niagara region. When I ordered the salad I didn't think much of it.

Drunk cross-eyed Lauren

Good times at Clancy's

After we were done at Clancy's and feeling really good we went to my old job, the Best Western Cairn Croft Bar. Its nickname is wrinkle ranch or cougar bar, mostly on Friday nights. There was a live band there so that's why we went and I knew Lauren wanted to sing. The band lets you sing or play there instruments if you know how to play so its pretty cool. Right away we got a pitcher of Blue and three jagerbombs.

Vanessa and Lauren after the Jagerbombs

It was only ten and I got hungry again, we were so drunk at this point. The kitchen was closed at the bar so I went to Ginos pizza across the street. I order a pizza from this stoner at the counter and brought it back to the bar to share. Vanessa went home before me and Lauren did. Lauren wanted to do one more song on stage. The only time Lauren sings is when she is drunk and I mean wasted. After the song we walked home together. Not a very far walk from the bar, maybe ten minutes. In the morning Lauren asked how we got home, I said we walked. That sounded very familiar especially the first time when we met, or the the time we went to the Blue Lagoon Bar, but that's a different story entirely. For not having a very high tolerance we did really well, no hang over or barfing in a drawer. The only thing was half way through the day I had some silent but deadly farts. Then my stomach started to cramp up an hour before bed. We went to bed after that and every hour or so I was in pain and in the washroom dying. I was really quiet so I didn't wake my sweety when I came in and out of bed. Thanks Clancy's for the Ecoli salad. It was good service and great food but don't eat the salad. Very normal day.....NOT.

Trev

Tourists in our own town

2008-11-12T16:53:00.000-08:00

Me and Lauren woke up on our day off to go to the Fallsview buffet. We went to the buffet to celebrate the 21 one days of our detox, and we had a coupon for a free buffet as well. We ate all of the food we couldn't have on the detox, like waffles covered in syrup, peppers in my omelet, bacon, and everything else we craved.

The buffet was great but I didn't want to go home right away, instead I wanted to see the magnificent falls. Plus it was a really warm day for the end of October and why the heck not. So I convinced Lauren it would be fun and would be better than going back home right away. It didn't take very long to walk there and get covered in mist by the roaring falls. The Canadian waterfall is so much more impressive then the American side. We saw the huge lights that get shined on the falls with all the different colours during the night. After watching the amazing amount of water going over the falls it was time to go on and we were getting wet.

We decided to take shelter in the gift shop building where we bought Jelly Bellys at Pop and Lollys and Lauren got her favourite jelly bean, juicy pear.

Then we took some pictures with some mascot beaver. There is this tram that takes people up and down to the falls for two dollars its allot faster than walking.

It was a neat little ride and a great view of the falls. From there we started to walk home and on the way I dove in this huge pile of leaves like a kid. In the fall the leaves are really amazing they turn red, orange and yellow. The leaves look like a puffy pillow but that pillow isn't soft when you land on it and hit the ground. That was our day of being tourists.

Trev

Travelers NonSense

2008-11-07T17:25:00.000-08:00

When you’re traveling as a back packer, there are no rules, just your common sense. If you don’t have an open mind, you will miss out on opportunities. Leave yourself at home and become someone new when you travel, then come home and become someone better. Someone that’s more knowledgeable, open minded, free spirited and someone that has a sense of pride that nothing will stop them. Traveling is about you and finding yourself. Backpacking is a freedom of no judgment, a community with their home on their back and two straps to carry it around. To embrace and integrate one’s own culture is one step closer to understanding your surroundings. If you plan your entire traveling experience, you might as well stay at home and plan to pack the same old sandwich/ left over pizza for work tomorrow. Let yourself go and let opportunity break the shell that you’ve always been comfortable in. Grab the opportunity to see where it takes you and you will learn to just go with the flow. A balanced life is key, work hard but play just as hard. Don’t miss home and don’t forget it, that’s where you come from, be proud. When you are traveling, don’t miss the comforts of home. Home is a stationary life that goes on without you but has not forgotten you. To fail at something is human, to understand one’s failure is an experience to be learnt from, not something to be shunned or punished. An achievement is to be celebrated with lots of beer and new friends when traveling. There are lots of failures and achievements to be experienced before you get back home. A smile and laugh will brighten anyone’s day, but a bad day is just a bad day, so let it roll off your back and move on. Let go of the unfortunate things that have happened in your life and free your soul. Tomorrow is a new start, take one day at a time with an old friend or a new friend that you met two days ago. If you say yes to opportunities that come along, more times than you’d say no to them, you are living life. If you say no more often than yes, life is living you.

by Trev

Day 21 - Last Day of the Detox

2008-11-05T20:17:00.000-08:00

So since we've written about our detox, I've had nothing but good things to say. But by day 21 of depriving myself of alcohol, sugar, gluten, yeast, dairy and all the other great things in life, I'm over it. I like to think that I'd like to not consume any of these things most of the time, but once or twice a week I'd like to indulge a bit, just to make life worth living. I'm at the point now where I really am sick of carrots, bananas, soup and gluten free pasta. A couple of days of eating "normal" food may help that. Trev and I are planning on walking to the casino to participate in the Grand Buffet Breakfast. We have a coupon that will make one of our breakfasts free. It's about a 40 minute walk to the casino (yes, we're carless and have been for the last few months which has made this unbearable place even more unbearable), but I'm thinking of running there to stuff my face and then I'll probably feel like crap afterwards for doing so. Ah well....that's the price I'm willing to pay. Maybe I'll bring my camera so you can see how much fun we have eating "normal" food after 21 days?

Laur

Visa for the UK

2008-11-04T16:34:00.000-08:00

Getting a Working Holiday visa for the UK is a little more difficult then an Australian visa and more expensive as well. The Australian visa was a few questions and a couple of clicks online. As long as you're part of the Common Wealth, have good health and have money in the bank, your set to go. The Australian visa costs roughly $180.00 for a year and you can only work at one employer for a maximum of three months. The UK Visa costs $415.00 for two years. The best website that I like to use for information is http://www.anyworkanywhere.com.
When I started to apply for the UK Visa I thought it was going to be easy, but it wasn't. At the moment I live in Niagara falls with no car and can only get around by walking or taking a Speedy, an illegal taxi company that has a flat rate to get around the Niagara Falls area. So I applied online, filled out my application form, and paid the amount due for the visa. By the way, if you don't get accepted for your visa, you do not get a refund.
I set up an appointment, to get a biometric enrollment that is part of the visa process, on one of my days off. The biometric enrollment is fingerprinting, having photographs taken, having your passport taken and showing them bank statements to show you have money to support yourself for the first two months in the UK. Of course I'm all ready to go to downtown Toronto early in the morning for the interview, but my Speedy cab never came. I missed the bus to take me to Toronto. I was pissed off and had to make a new appointment for the next day. So everything went fine at the interview and it was over in fifteen minutes. On my application form I had a second address to send it to, Lauren's parents house. The reason is, I didn't know how long it would take to get my passport back from Ottawa and I wanted it to go somewhere safe. It is somewhere safe now, it's at the post office by Lauren's parents house and I can't even get it. Fraud has gotten so bad that if all your information doesn't match the address the item is posted to, you don't get your parcel. My driver's license doesn't match Lauren's parents address that I delivered it to. I called Canada Post customer service and they told me they didn't know what to do. The only loop hole was to change my address, Thank God it didn't cost me any money to change it. I went down to the Motor Vehicle branch in Niagara Falls, to get my drivers license changed. It was really simple to change but there is a new rule that you can't be smiling in your driver's license photo. I might get a letter in the mail saying to come back and get a new photo taken. Of course I got a big stupid smile on my face. When I return to Richmond Hill to get my passport I hope I will have no problems, I'm crossing my fingers...

Trev

All for a contest

2008-11-04T15:58:00.001-08:00

I forgot all about this until I found it on his facebook pictures. My brother loves country music so he was listening to the radio like usual in his truck on the way to work. He heard about a contest to win these tickets for a concert. So he took a little detour from work to rush to the contest. Unfortunately he lost, but he came so close to winning. If you comment on the post i will let you know how many clothes pegs he has on his face.

Go Bro!!

Trev

Brothers Birthday

2008-11-04T15:23:00.000-08:00

I'd like to give a shout out to my brother Cory for his birthday today (November 4, 1983). Wish I could be there to celebrate with him and buy a couple of drinks. Instead I sent him some money in a card and told him the drinks are on me. Its hard not being there for birthdays and especially Christmas. I was away from my family once before by myself for Christmas, New Years and birthdays that wasn't too bad. This time i will be with someone special for Christmas in London, England so that should be a new experience altogether. I believe Lauren feels the same.

Trev

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

2008-10-31T19:30:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken last Halloween at the Filly and Firkin. Yes yes the attractive looking blonde is me and the beautiful pimp with the black top hat is my girl. Unfortunately this Halloween we are in our apartment watching TV and making beet chips. Last Halloween i had a stuffed bra and this year I'm chilling out to save for the trip of a life time. I did do something festive for Halloween, I put up some decorations for the Firkin. We live in a bungalo apartment and we were at the grocery store today, but we didn't know if we should buy any candy for kids if they stopped by trick or treating. So we decided not to and if someone came by for a treat we would hide. So far no knock and its 11pm, its safe to say no one is coming. Plus those treats would be one hell of a temptation since we're detoxing.

Trev

Brrrr.....it's cold in here!

2008-10-30T14:15:00.000-07:00

So we're still detoxing. One more week to go! I don't know about Trevor, but I've lost some weight since I started. My skin looks great. I've been happier and had more energy. So there is a point to being on this detox. I just don't want to go back to eating the same way I did before after the 21 days is up. I do, however, want to drink! I also do need to eat a good chocolatey dessert, so those two things are first and foremost on the agenda and once I've had both my chocolate and alcohol fix, I'll go back to carrots and chicken and gluten free pasta :)

Other than that we are more than excited to move! We booked our one way flights to London a few months ago. We've booked the moving van to get our stuff to my parents house. We've put a couple of our things up for sale on the web. We've canceled our Hydro, Gas and Cable, obviously also notified our landlord that we're leaving too....and she's already rented out our place to a stripper :) She shows our apartment without asking us. She came by to tell us they were turning off the water for a few hours this morning, so after she told us she'd rented it out to a "dancer," she left and the first thing I said to Trevor was "Oh so she brought a stripper into our apartment!" Sometimes you gotta love Niagara Falls....'cause that's hilarious.

We've also got St. Paddy's Day (March 17th) booked. I know it's a little far ahead, but apparently it's a pretty busy time of year so better to be safe than sorry. We've booked our flight and hotel, YAY! We're going with my good friend from high school. He lives in London now. We're actually staying with him when we get there. This is obviously before we find a place of our own (and jobs!).

Anyways, just thought I'd give you an update on our EXCITING lives! We just had the last
couple of days off of work and we've been hibernating in our warm, little apartment. Here's what we look like when we're hibernating:

Laur

L's Haiku

2008-10-23T07:35:00.000-07:00

get me outta here
small-minded town and people
life will be good soon

Detoxing is hard!

2008-10-22T20:27:00.000-07:00

So for a week now Trev and I have been detoxing. Dr. Joshi's holistic detox to be exact. The top ten rules of the detox are as follows:

-No Red Meat
-No Dairy Produce
-No Fruit (except Bananas)
-No Wheat, Gluten, Yeast
-No Alcohol
-No Biscuits, Cakes, Doughnuts
-No Jams, Spreads (except Honey)
-No Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee or Tea (except Herbal teas)
-No Sugar, Chocolate or Sweets
-No Artificially Produced Flavourings: Ketchup, Vinegar, Mustard etc.

The entire point of eating this way for 21 days, is to feel and look better. We're almost done Week 1 (which is generally the hardest) and we do feel a lot better. This is the 3rd time we've done this detox and the first time (which probably took place around early April-ish 2007) I was ecstatic with the changes I experienced over just 3 short weeks (although it felt a lot longer at the time). Joshi quotes on the back of the book "If no-one comments within two weeks on how great you're looking - you must be cheating." And it's true....you'd be surprised.

My family's in town tomorrow night and taking us to our favourite steak house for dinner. So there will be a bit of detox cheating taking place. I can't speak for Trevor, but I'm somehow going to pass on the alcohol (even though I love a good glass of red at dinner and the martini's at this place are really amazing). And then instead of having a nice fat steak for dinner, I'll opt for fish instead. So although I'll be cheating on the detox, at least I won't feel like absolute crap for doing so.

There's not a lot of information on this detox on the web (although the book is great and you can buy it off Amazon.ca), but there's a forum link that I've managed to find a lot of information and ideas from, click here to take a look.

Here's a pic of some of our usual food we love to eat (and can't eat on this detox!)

Laur

Beer Bonging is dangerous

2008-10-22T20:12:00.001-07:00

This was taken on our 2nd day in Puerto Penasco (aka Rocky Point) in Mexico. After receiving text messages regarding work issues from back home. In order to deal with the stress this caused, I manned up and demanded to do some beer bongs. Well, one to be exact. After spilling some of my beer in the sand (and subsequently adding quite a bit of sand to it), it only made sense to take it down in a few big gulps instead of sipping it slowly - mmmmmmmsand.

While administering the beer bong, Martini (pictured here) decided to add her entire beer as well, half way through. This led to the coughing fit pictured here:

Wow....that's hot.

Remember kids, you can choke while doing a beer bong. Don't ever do them unsupervised and make sure not to swallow the beer down your windpipe....I had a pretty close call that day, but I'm still here and you know the next time I do a beer bong, I'll be a lot more careful :)

Laur

The king of breakfast pizzas

2008-10-22T19:40:00.000-07:00

The breakfast pizza from Basha's Super Market in Phoenix, Arizona.
This pizza had bacon, cheese, baked hash browns, and scrambled egg. I wasn't even hungry I was bored shopping for food for Mexico with Lauren and her best friend Kara. So I wonder off and stumbled upon this strange looking pizza covered in cheese trying to figure out the rest of the ingredients. I asked the Lady behind the counter what kind of pizza is this? Her reply was a breakfast pizza. So i had to try it, let me tell you i wish i bought one for the next morning in Mexico. I would have been cured of my hang over. Instead I had another beer to start my day off. I call this pizza Greasy spoon to go.

P.S. - I was chewing in this photo...

Here's a close up of the monstrosity:

Don't be jealous.

Trev

Off to London Town

2008-10-15T20:12:00.000-07:00

So we're booked and ready to fly to London on the 7th of December 2008. We couldn't be happier because we're finally getting out of Hell...oops, I meant Niagara Falls. We haven't even been here for a year but it feels like forever. Now all we have to do is sell our stuff and move what we want to keep to my parents house in Richmond Hill. We'll keep you posted once our lives become more exciting, but until then we'll trudge along, working and dying in a restaurant, scrimping and saving where we can so that we can reap the benefits later.....

Laur