Supper Time :D

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....

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

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

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.

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...

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

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...