My goodness time goes quickly! This week will mark one month since my whirlwind European adventures came to a halt and just how much has happened in the month is crazy! To begin- I LOVE London and everything about it. I guess because I have family and partly grew up here I can say it really is a second home for me.
My frist week back was filled with catching up with family, sight seeing with friends, going to a job interview and many goodbyes from those fellow travellers whom made their ways back to London in order to fly home. Danielle and Nat were here for a week and saying goodbye to them was rather hard. When you travel with people for so long you really do become a family and even though I was looking forward to being grounded, having routine and some long-awaited alone time you still do miss having them around all the time and suddenly you start to feel lost for a few days whilst you adjust.
So now the 'holiday' is over it is time to start turning that decrease in my bank account around to an increase! In order to do that I need a job. Toma and I were on the ball and sadly got straight into resume writing in our final weeks. Within days we had job interviews set up. Being a teacher I had no problem as they are always in demand for Aussies over here and there is plenty of work. Toma, on her life-altering adventure went with a recruitment agency called Reed and they helped her set up plenty of job interviews within the travel industury. Wanting a change from the typical travel consultant role it took a few interviews to find something suitable (and with the right pay-some job prices are ridiculous) for her. So whilst I pretty much went straight into work, Toma managed to still sneak in some relaxation time and plenty of lazy sleep ins.
I went with Vibe Teaching Agency, a predominately Australian-based agency and was guaranteed supply work (Mon-Fri) until Christmas when we will then review what is on offer for me. Many people have asked me what this is like and are intrigued about the schools in London. Firstly- they aren't as bad as everyone thinks (although I have seen some rather odd things) and secondly it is quite different in many ways yet still seems to be easy to manage as a supply/casual. Yes i do go to a variety of schools (5 so far) however there are two schools that I go to regularly. I choose to do supply as this means I don't have to take work home and can enjoy weekends yet there are some days when I crave the consistency of my own classroom. This agency is great and aims to be consistent in where they send you, allowing you to build professional relationships with the staff and students. The curriculum is relatively the same- much more structured than NSW and it is just the history and geography which is different- mind you I've hardly taught any of that yet.
The kids are a little more 'wild' but nothing too draining and each classroom has a teaching assistant which have all been absolutely wonderful and extremely helpful when you have no clue about the school's procedures or daily structures. As a beginning teacher this seems to be rather good for me. The structure means that everybody knows what we are doing, it is clearly set out and once you've got the idea it is easy to follow. However the only downfall is that from what I have seen, Australia has a bit more flexibility and creativity in their lessons/planning and school structures. Yet as always there are going to be pro's and con's in a job/environment change.
It seems that a lot of people struggle when trying to 'live' in London and its a wonder how many two-year visas get wasted when it comes to the crunch. As we travelled through Europe we saw plenty of people who gave London the brush in the hopes that they will return back to Australia, save up and come back for the 2013 European Summer, believing that they can earn just as much, if not more back home. That is true-I believe that if i went home and saved I would return with more money next Summer but I also know that if I return home now I might not come back next Summer and instead choose a different destination. Plus for me, its not so much about saving and living but more so about enjoying the time I have with my family over here. Toma and I were lucky enough to return to London with more money than expected so this has been put away for a 'rainy day holiday decision'. For now we love London, are excited for Christmas and NYE (as cold as it will be) because having a 'proper Christmas' means a stronger Christmas spirit and mostly...a change of scenery for us.
We are both adjusting to 'life out of home' as we each receive our weekly paychecks (finally off Aus dollar and onto the pound-no more conversions) and manage our money between bills, a new wardrobe to acclimatise to the weather and going out for 'catch-up' or 'farewell' drinks. One thing for sure is that it is safe to say that London NEVER stops drinking- we couldn't wait to have a break from this and it is always in our faces! I've joined the gym (hoping to lose what Europe latched on to me) and am finally back in the kitchen making healthy dinners full of all the foods we missed-mainly veggies!!
Each week we get asked when we are coming home about four times from various people and each answer is always different (almost like a therapy session). We definitely have our days where we miss home and begin to contemplate possible return dates but for now it is safe to say that there is no return date as of yet and we 100% are here until at least January, battling through the brute of Winter but enjoying a different Christmas experience. My cousins 18th birthday on Christmas Eve, a big family occasion on Christmas (and I'm sure lots of skyping/vibering) and a relaxing Boxing Day. New Years Eve is still in the decision-making process.
We have the hopes of booking a holiday soon and jet-setting somewhere for a quick 'break' from the London life so stay tuned!
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