the past few weeks i’ve been in a bootcamp-like training for my new job slinging japanese style food at wagamama, a uk chain of noodle bars. making money in ££ is definitely nice, but now i barely have any time to spend it. that’s the way it goes though i guess. it’s been so strange not working for the past four months that it took me a bit to get back into it, but now that i’m getting used to it i’m starting to enjoy myself again. the new restaurant is so different to anywhere i’ve worked before because you have huge sections and run around with a little handheld computer taking orders by typing in numbers that you have to memorise for every dish and drink. starting tomorrow i’ll be officially done with training and finally start making tips meaning my paychecks will be much bigger. that’s what’s so addiciting about working in the restaurant industry. making tips. even in this country where 10% is looked at as really good and it’s not rare to have people leave nothing, or just a few pence, the sheer volume that the place does makes it all add up to quite a bit.

besides working i’ve been trying to spend as much time with my friends as i can since uni starts up again tomorrow and i’m sure that i’ll be very busy from now on. i’m really looking forward to classes starting and this term my classes seem like they’ll be really interesting. one is a second year module on globalisation and the economy, two are about sustainable development (yay!) and the last is a GIS module, so i’ll basically learn more about the map-making software that urban planners use.

i learned recently that there is an option to extend the study abroad for a second year and i was so tempted at first to look into it as i am falling in love with england. ultimately, i realise that i should just graduate already and the classes i need for that are in san francisco, so it’s back to the states in fall. being here is becoming such an odd experience because now that it’s a reality i’ve settled in and made this temporary life for myself, but in the back of my mind i have that it’s just that, temporary. it’s so hard, i’ve make incredible friends here and the thought of leaving them is so depressing i keep it far from me as much as i can. leaving my friends at home knowing when i’d see them again was hard enough but these kids are going to go on with the next two years here at kingston and who knows when i’ll get to see them again.

21 at last.

welcome to 2008! i'm back in halls recovering from a long night out in central london celebrating new years and my 21st birthday. it's funny having waited my whole life for this day and now that it's here, i'm in england where it's much less monumental. in fact, here in halls i actually feel really old, as most of the people i live around are 18 or 19. there really aren't any birthdays to look forward to anywmore, except 25 i guess..that's when you can rent a car. awesome.

christmas was lovely, i went down to petersfield to stay with alice's family. everyone was so nice, and it felt pretty amazing to be in a real house with home-cooked food for a few days. her town is really as small as i had imagined and very picturesque. our first night we went to a local bar and it felt like some sort of high school reunion since everyone knew each other. on the 27th we flew up to scotland to visit cara and catherine in edinburgh. the city is completely different to anywhere else that i've been so far. urban and rural, ancient and modern all woven together to make the city. we went around some of the little windy streets that ewan runs down in trainspotting. unfortunately the weather wasn't that great so most of our sightseeing was done from a car, but we did go on a tourbus one day that gave a little overview of a lot of the history. bodysnatchers, castles, a haunted underground city..so cool. i saw the real edinburgh castle, which is also the name of an uber-hipster bar in sf. on the 30th we took a 9 hour coach ride back to london where we all passed out to energise up for new year.

good times, but i'm glad to be back. despite not getting woken up each morning by fabulous mum's bringing us bacon sandwiches and tea. the next few days i get to buckle down and work on a paper that's due on the 9th then i'll get to play a little more til school starts again on the 28th. maybe i can squeeze a bit more travelling in! happy new year.