Wednesday, 23 December 2015

Pubs, Flowers & Guns

Kirsten and I got a Groupon deal for a makeup course in the Hackney/Shoreditch area one weekend and decided to try out some "hidden bars." The first one is a normal cocktail bar, but then you are given a secret code and go through a passage and up the stairs to punch in the certain code. The code changes each night. The current theme for that secret bar was "Choose your own adventure" where the drink menu was like a story and you had to made a decision and go to a certain page which in the end would give you a certain drink for you to order. They were all very unique concoctions with some ingredients I had never heard of but tasted good!


Next we went to another pub where you go through the wardrobe to get to the secret room. It was fun exploring new places. We ended with a big club in Shoreditch. I find some of the best nights are ones where you don't have much planned and are spontaneous.

Sometimes it looks funny when we stand together with how short I am and how tall Kirsten is



I went to the Columbia Road Flower Market which runs every Sunday morning in East London. I had briefly been once before when my mom visited but it was so overwhelming and too busy.




My purchases from the market

Katy and I went clay pigeon shooting just outside of London from another Groupon deal. We did not exactly fit in with everyone else who was shooting there which was all rugged men. We got 25 rounds and did three different courses. Once you got the hang of shooting it was really fun... (shooting the clay pigeons I mean.) We both were so surprised at how heavy the shotgun was and halfway through our session our arms started getting tired. Later that day we both had quite a few bruises from the kickback and weren't able to lift our arms.


One Year

September 23rd was my one year anniversary of living in London, England! I spent the day reflecting on all that I have learned and experienced during this past year. I have moved three times, been to 8 different countries and travelled all around England, accepted a full time job teaching, gained new friends from around the world and met a special someone. It has been one of the hardest experiences moving so far away from home and having to do everything myself, but I couldn't have done it without the support from my family and friends back home. Sometimes I do get bummed out as I have missed out on some special events such as friends moving, my sister's engagement, birthdays and holidays but I have no regrets about living in England. I can't wait to see what the next year of my life will bring me!

I started school early September but the kids weren't coming in for another week. I helped set up display boards around the school.

Katy and I celebrated our one year of living in London by going to our favourite place for tea and some treats

Cocomaya in Chelsea


Goodbye Summer

There was an art installation titled "Heartbeat" in Covent Garden for the summer where 10,000 white balloons filled the interior of the market. At night the balloons lit up and created a heartbeat like pulse. I wasn't able to see the installation at night but it will still incredible during the day.



Also in Covent Garden for the summer was the Magnum Pleasure Store where you can choose your ice cream bar flavour and choose your own toppings.





Marcel and I went to Bristol for the night and found this awesome restaurant called Za Za Bazaar. It's a buffet which has foods from all over the world.


My (hopefully last) move in was the day where Ireland played Canada in the Rugby World Cup. Marcel and I spent the morning trying to move in and then took a break to watch the game. While it was obvious Canada was not going to win, I still had to cheer them on. We went to the Maple Leaf Pub which was packed with Canadians and Irish fans.



During the summer the Queen stays in Scotland which allows visitors to tour Buckingham Palace. There were a certain number of rooms you were allowed to visit and they were strict on enforcing no pictures being taken.