Note to self  #1
Know which way is high and low on the heater in your room. If you turn it the wrong way your room will be like a sauna. Nice for 5 minutes Horrific for 30.

C-c-c-c FREEZING

So right this very second it is 6 degrees outside. I forgot that 6 degrees is cold. Am heading on out into that coldness for dinner with the lovely Jane and Donna to go to our favourite Indonessian place. Yes... we have a favourite Indonesian place. Here is us when we were last there.

New Personal Motto....

Winter Wonderland

There are many facets to the world of St Patrick's Soho. One of the more pleasant ones for myself is the presence of the St Patrick's School of Evangelisation (Look them up, think about doing it yourself! I highly recommend it.). The best bit about the school for me, is that I get to meet a group of fantastic young people from across the world who are here to learn what God wants of them in their lives and make a difference to the lives of others, including my own. It's purely selfish on my part really!

Today was community day and the students got to be taken out for the day by their kind benevolent Aunties and Uncles, also known as Tess, Anthony, Marcus and me! (Yes, we are particularly proud of this most fantastic picture of us in all our benevolence)

The day started, as most days start here at St Patrick's, in the front hall waiting for someone. Often when everyone has turned up one finds that someone else has left in the meantime and so the waiting begins again.                      Tis something of a process.

THEN we were finally on our way, winding our way through the streets of London.

Stopping every now and again to do things like:

Smell trees

Check out the best toy store in the world

Take pictures of ourselves in a statue of mirrored balls (just trust me... we are in there!)

Then we got to the markets and had a lovely time drinking mulled wine, eating our packed lunch (ahhhhh Arnold sandwiches) wondering around and going on a ride or two. My camera died just at the rides part of our day but as you can see we had a pretty good day.

So endith the day.

Week One Down
PHEW!
What a week.
Hit the desk Monday morning and just read and read and read. So much goes on when you are away for a month. So much paper is generated! It's taken me a week to feel like I have even remotely caught up.

I was trying to leverage my jet lag so that I got into a habit of getting up at 6am and I am happy to say that I managed this every single day. So proud. I did struggle at the other end of the day however when falling asleep sounded like a better option than my filing but I struggled through and I think I can safely say that jet lag has been defeated. Whether or not I am in the habit of working 9-5 I cannot say.

Day 1

I arrived at 4:30 in the morning after that hell that is the 13 hours long Singapore flight. All went smoothly at immigration as was to be expected and then my bag was one of the first out. That never happens to me. I think God decided to help my poor migraine inflicted self. Loaded up with a million bags which weighed a ton I made my way via train and taxi back home. There is nothing, I repeat, there is not one single thing better than a well placed shower and, my friends, that is what I had when I managed to climb the million stairs to my dwelling.

After a nap I decided to go for a wander to find that most essential ingredient to my life, coffee. A huge bowl of it.

                                            

Then I had a look around the place at what London had done this year for Christmas. The only thing that makes the London public on mass smile - apart from the sun - is Christmas and the lead up to it.

                    

This year the Oxford Street lights theme is "A Christmas Carol"

                                                    

A shot of Oxford street which shows why I avoid it like the plague - or, to be more contemporary, swine flu.

Carnaby Street is looking like its outrageous self!

After the wondering bug left me I went home and started the world of unpacking. This is a scary process which I just know is going to take me days. Suddenly it was time to go out for dinner with the ever charming Suzanne and Julia. This time on the Adventures of the International Trio, we were checking out an Ethiopian place called The Nile in Vauxhall and Suzanne's mother was with us. It was really great food and it only cost us £17 for the four of us. Yes. We were very happy with it and the fact that it was very colourful!

On my way home I took a shot of Oxford street a night for the whole lights effect since it's not so impressive during the day. 

So that was my first day back. Who knows what the following days - however many there end up being - hold for this Miss.

Moving to London... Part the second.

Right. So. Today I moved to London for the second time. Strange I know. It's a long story, not very exciting story and a story I can't be bothered to tell. However,to alleviate any curiosity that my reader may have I shall give you the basic facts:

1. New visa system in the UK.

2. Need to stay longer in UK.

3. Had to go home to Australia to get new visa.

4. Therefore, have moved to London again.

There you have it. My long boring story set out in four sentences of no more than ten words. Amazing that something which dragged on for so long can be summed up in such a short space, but apparently this can be done often, I am just not very good at it - just ask my long suffering father.

Because I feel like I have had a somewhat new beginning - new visa = new person kind of deal - I am going to see if I can keep this up a little better for my own good, as well as yours. So with a new profile picture of me on my 2nd first day in London and a sudden surge of after midnight enthusiasm I take up my laptop and enthrall you with London and the life of one in the midst of the chaos on which this city thrives.