Pity the Panda

Leo broke his toe today. Sad sad panda :(

One month recap

4 weeks into my adventure I have two jobs, a UK bank account and blisters on my hands and feet. The ones on my hands are from climbing, the ones on my feet are from working long hours at the restaurant. This past week has been tough because I have been working late shifts exclusively, and because of gas works on our street haven't been able to catch up on lost sleep. I've been feeling like a zombie, and my immune system is not feeling this lifestyle. I'm pretty sure I was running a fever at work last night, so today I am taking it easy and just staying in bed. Fingers crossed next week will be better!

London has been getting a lot of sunshine and warmer temperatures, and I hope this trend continues. The Museum of London is just 5 minutes from St. Paul's Cathedral, so before or after work I usually hang out in the churchyard for a bit, sitting on a bench and soaking up the rays. Living here really, really makes me appreciate all the sunshine I got when I was living in Hong Kong and makes me want to move to a warm, sunny country again soon. But until then, I'm pretty sure that London and I will get along well. Yes, spending an hour on the bus every day is a bitch, and yes, everything (except for museums) is really expensive, but with dim sum in Chinatown, epic climbing sessions, new friends and new challenges, life ain't all that bad after all.

Business Time II

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London is an expensive city and I have bills to pay, so whenever I'm not working at the Museum, you'll now find me waiting tables at London Wall Bar & Kitchen. I had my first shift today and everything went well - obviously I was worried I'd stumble over my own two feet the entire time, but nothing was spilled or knocked over, phew!

Tea Time

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This past saturday Bryony took Karli, Leo and me out for Afternoon Tea at Grosvenor House on Park Lane and I can honestly say that I have never been so high on sugar and caffeine. We lounged in the Park Room & Library for over three hours, helping ourselves to scones with copious amounts of clotted cream, finger sandwiches and chocolate cake. Undoubtedly the best moment was when the pianist started playing 'Happy Birthday to You' - seeing that my birthday was over two weeks ago, it caught me completely off guard when all of a sudden, a little cake with a birthday candle was placed in front of me! It was definitely a 'quintessentially british' experience, spent in the company of wonderful people. Happy happy times!

Business Time

Right, after two weeks of doing nothing but going climbing, meeting new people and drinking copious amounts of black tea with milk, I've finally had my first day at the museum and everything sounds fantastic. I still need to wait for some paperwork to go through but once that's done, I'll be assisting the event staff with in-house as well as off-site events - these can include anything from storytelling sessions for kids to the so-called 'lates' - after-hours events such as gallery nights or concerts that inspire a 'passion for London'. Seriously can't wait for it all to start. Should you happen to find yourself in London over the next four months make sure to check the Museum of London's event calendar and stop by!

Read more about the Museum of London here.

The London Adventure

After much neglect and little travelling on my side, this blog shall be revived and now tell the tale of my adventures in London. For the next couple of months, this city will be my home. I have gotten myself a membership for The Arch and climbed my first V3 on wednesday. Things are good.