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Thursday 17 April 2014

The Last Four Days


                This week we are going to start buckling down and stop our touring, for the most part. On Monday we stayed in the flat literally all day applying for jobs. We also did laundry which meant we had to buy laundry detergent and not break the machine. We didn’t and our clothes are okay. Hurray for adult life! We accomplished quite a bit amidst watching around six movies over the course of the day.

                The one other important thing I got done Monday was transfer my money to my UK bank account from my Canadian one. I was putting this off as long as possible because I thought it would be difficult, but it actually turned out to be quite easy. I used a company called CanadianForex (www.canadianforex.com). You tell them how much money you have to transfer and they give you a rate. Once you hit Okay, they prepare to transfer the money to you. In the meantime, you go on your Canadian bank account and pay them the money, essentially giving them money to give you money. Because I’m with RBC they actually show up as a Payee so it was relatively painless. It takes them about three days to get the money and about one day after that for me to receive the funds in my UK bank account, which is why I really wanted to do it at the beginning of the week. I did leave some money in my Canadian account, just in case. The only issue I ran into was minor. They have to call you to confirm the deal. Of course, they have my Canadian number. So they sent me this panicked email saying they had to get ahold of me before processing the transaction. So I gave them a call on my landline. The girl I spoke to, Hilary, dealt with everything swiftly and it was completely painless (I hate making phone calls). 

                Tuesday was another day at the flat spent watching movies and applying for jobs. The thing that nobody tells you is how hard it actually is to find a job. Your university degree is basically useless. Everybody wants experience – even entry level jobs. It’s a bit disheartening. And everyone is a telemarketer masquerading as an actual job. Sorry, but I know how my parents treat telemarketers and they are probably nicer than some people. Not happening. On the bright side, I received a phone call from Google to discuss future job opportunities. Not immediate, but maybe future ones. It at least broke the ice in terms of actually talking to a professional so no matter what it was a good thing.

                We decided to put pants on and go to dinner at a restaurant down the road called Le Querce (http://lequerce.co.uk/). It’s an Italian restaurant and not too expensive but what it ever delicious! I got the ravioli and some fries and Sarah got lasagna and we both were very satisfied with our meal. I also got some wine in a gracious amount, which is better than I’ve seen at most pubs. We got dessert. Sarah had ice cream and I had cheesecake. My cheesecake could have been better, to be honest. We definitely want to revisit this restaurant, and hopefully soon.  

                On Wednesday we took the train to Surrey Quays to see The Amazing Spider-Man 2, which we get a couple weeks before the USA. That doesn’t happen very often so we made the most of it. I loved it. Definitely better than the first and Dane DeHaan (who I love) was so good as Harry Osborn. A million times better than James Franco.

                Thursday we decided to actually go do something before our self-imposed isolation on Easter weekend. After we got up in the morning we went to Nando’s for lunch. I got the actual chicken this time instead of chicken wings and was not disappointed. I also had a caramel cheesecake for dessert which was just to die for! We then tried to visit the National Gallery (www.nationalgallery.org.uk). We wandered around for a little while looking at the art but it was quite crowded with tourists and school groups so we didn’t stay for very long. I’d really like to go back on a quiet day and spend the whole day there with an audio guide just completely nerding out.

                Side Note: I started watching American Horror Story because they have it on Netflix and I’m completely obsessed. I watched the entire first season in less than 24 hours. Evan Peters is amazing. That is all.  

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