BLONDIE!!!

Hey all,

Last night, me and Nikki went to the Blondie Concert! Adam wasn't punk rock enough to come (actually, he was sick), so me n nik travelled the 2 hour journey to the arena (right opposite where Kylie was performing) and rocked it out to Blondie!

I have to say they are one of the best live bands i have ever seen - she's an old bat (not bad for 63!) but still got the moves - speaking of which, i now know where mum gets her dancing moves from. Nikki said during the concert (in reference to Debbie) 'OMG, it's Louise!'.

I would so loved to have gone with my mum - i could just picture her bopping around like a nut to all the songs, many of which me and nikki didn't know the words (in fact, all of them!) but i could see mum blasting her lungs out with every song!

They sang basically all the songs from Parallel Lines as it was their 30 year anniversary of the album. The music was just fantastic - the best drummer on this planet! absolutely awesome! and it was so cool cos we were like 20 metres away from Debbie Harry - now that's cool!

But at the end of it all, me and nik were probably the youngest people there by about 20 years. The whole crowd was jumping and bopping to the music, and one guy to our left was singing his heart out! so funny.

Loved it!

'I said don't stop - do punk rock'

love u all,

AshnNikatBlondie.x

Find The Craic In The Wee Bit Of Ireland Me Hmm...No, It's Mine

Hey all,


Well, we are in Ireland. We spent the first two days in Belfast. We had been given some rather harsh reviews of Belfast, but we thought we'd give the place the benefit of the doubt and check it out for ourselves. And we love it! probably more so than Dublin! Belfast clearly has been through a lot - you can see where there have been attacks and the buildings are broken down and dishevelled. But it is in the process of redevelopment - i guess a chance to start over. There is very little IRA conflict here - you hear about IRA attacks however we have found it to be very subtle when walking the streets of Belfast. I must admit it was a little un-nerving walking down Falls and Shankill Roads - the Protestant and Catholic Quarters - in essence, the IRA and the Loyalists. Me and Adam were trying our best to be as quick as possible to take some photos of the wall murals and hide our camera. But the locals seem friendly enough.



Actually funnily enough on our initial arrival at the bus depot, we were looking at our map with complete confusion and a local taxi driver approached us and started talking - and i did not understand a word he said...i paused and then said 'huh?'. It was exactly like Family Guy when Peter goes to Ireland to find his father and asks a local a question...hysterical. And we also managed to get ourselves lost... (Sorry, the video is sideways...)




On the first day of our arrival in Ireland, we roamed the streets into the city centre which was actually quite nice. very nice and modern buildings - not completely redeveloped but well on its way. The town is very simple. everything you need to live a very nice and simple lifestyle. We went on the Belfast Ferris Wheel, saw the Town Hall (very impressive) and the slightly leaning Clock Tower. The streets are lined with colourful flowers, i suppose to brighten up the city from its hardship. It works well.






On our second day, we took a bus tour to North Antrim (Paddy Wagon Tours). It was just spectacular, and definitely worth the 50 Euros. First stop was Carrick-a-rede. It was this little island off the coast, the cliff faces were gorgeous, not to mention the crystal clear waters. just stunning. the water was so clear you could see the schools of fish, and the colour of the water changed to the varying depths. The rocks were black so in some areas the water was jet black, then graduated to a clear green and blue. We walked along the path to Carrick-a-rede and crossed the rope bridge. This rope bridge is somewhat famous - and you have to have guts to cross it - as we did. Its a long and narrow bridge made of ROPE! the winds were fierce and a good 20 metre drop to the water bank below. however we were reassured it was safe and replaced a few times a year. But the island itself was just awesome. The ground was like nothing we had ever felt - it was spongy - you could bounce on it!

Then we headed off to the Giant's Causeway - the eighth wonder of the world. This was impressive. The causeway is 40,000 hexagonal tiles and spires of cooled lava. Thousands of years ago (prehistoric) a volcano erupted and surfaced through the water, cooling and crystallising on its way up to form this magnificent formation. But there is a good Irish myth behind it about the Irish Giant 'McCool'...and so on. something about building a path to see his Scottish girlfriend more conveniently, shaving his hair off to look like a baby or something like that. good entertainment.

Then we went to Derry/Londonderry (being politically correct here)- where Bloody Sunday took place. We had a walking tour with a local who was clearly very passionate about the historics of this place, spoke perfect Gaelic, and was rather tactless when it came to our fellow American and British tourists.


The next day, we woke up at 6:30 (which is becoming quite normal for us, perhaps earlier on most days) and caught a bus down to Dublin. We were very limited with the photos as we forgot our charger, however we found there wasn't much to photograph. Lots of churches and cathedrals, mini streets lined with pubs (loads of pubs) and little boutiques lining cute pebbled streets. It was very much like Melbourne, perhaps strolling down Brunswick Street. However, it was ridiculously over-crowded after lunch - the streets were completely filled with people - mostly tourists. I think the highlights were St Patricks Cathedral (spectacular) and the Guinness Brewery (we didn't enter - 15 euro each) so we walked the walls of the brewery and then stopped at a pub to try the real thing. Yes, we had our very first Guinness at a true Irish pub - only half a pint tho. Dublin is a very beautiful place, but we think we prefer it here in Belfast - we haven't quite figured out why yet.





Today, we went for the very LONG walk down Shankill and Falls Roads. There was some very brilliant and self explanatory wall murals. Shankill Road being Catholic and Loyalist to Britain. The streets were lined with the Union Jack, and the murals were very aggressive and somewhat graphic. The street itself was, to be frank, an absolute dump, and it was a daring walk. Then when we tried to cross over to Falls Road (Protestant and Republic) the linking roads were blocked off. Falls Road was much more developed and had a lovely park and some nice shops. But both roads were very depressing and had a very oppressive feel to it. The whole experience has changed my views on the conflict and i think we now have a more balanced view of what has/is taking place here.




Today we are off to see where the Titanic was built. pretty darn cool! Our tour guide made a joke (i think we were the only ones who laughed) that while the Protestants were building the Titanic, the Catholics were building an iceberg.



Please check out our photos: link is here: http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewAlbums&friendID=149380279

I think we've found the craic...


much love,

ashandadaminIreland.x

Adam, Allow Me To Introduce You To London...

Hey all,

Well, after Adam's encounter with the Immigration Authorities at the glorious Heathrow Airport, we took the long journey to our 'home for now' on the tube - Adam's first tube ride!!! After the 4 hours in immigration, Adam fell asleep on the tube to our hostel. And already after 2 days, he despises the tube despite its efficiency!


Me and Adam headed off to Hyde Park for the afternoon and took a really nice stroll through Kensington Gardens with some squirrels, swans and ducklings. We managed to see most of the London sights within the first 2 days - Big Ben and houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, The London Eye, Tower and London Bridge, Trafalgar Square, National Portrait Museum (lots of Jesus paintings and beheadings....and outside was a massive Jesus concert at Trafalgar Square) and the Science Museum - we saw the 'Sea Monsters in 3D' Imax Experience! fun fun!


Me and Adam have been having such a great time! Adam isn't overly enthused about London - even though when i show him the amazing places such as Big Ben his eyes light up! and he's all like 'wow that's amazing!' but then goes on to say, you know what, i could actually write an entire blog on Adam's negative rants of London. But I guess it is a massive culture shock and a far cry from the comfort and security of good old Melbourne. I'm working on it. But the entire travelling experience is just brilliant.


I have introduced Adam to Tesco's! we shop there daily for breakfast, lunch and dinner - and can come up with some really delicious and filling meals for peanuts! Last night, we had a chicken curry with vegetables for 70p each! unbeatable. and all Tesco brand. We have officially become the masters at the 'Canned Cuisine'.

And Adam has made a friend...Joey! Me and Nikki have been spending a lot of time together which has been awesome, which has meant Joey and Adam have become well acquainted. We have had some great nights but unfortunately for me and Nik, we have had 5am starts at work so the late nights are destroying us!

Yesterday we headed back to Bermondsey so I could show Adam where I first lived when I arrived in London, and to help Nikki vacate the flat above the Hartley. I think because she has spent so long there and had grown to call that place home, it would be sad to say goodbye, but also great that she is seeing another side of London from an entirely new perspective. It was quite a mission for Nikki to get that flat clean and organised but we were well impressed how quickly Nik got it all done. It took Adam a little while to find his breath again as he was a little taken aback from the state of the area, but oddly at the same time said the area was nice and reminded him of Malvern Road in Melbourne.


When we got back to our hostel, Me, Adam, Nikki and Joey made dinner and ended up chatting for most of the night - then Precious, the thief turned up to collect her shit from her room - bout time. It was gold - she walked past me lugging her massive suitcase out the door and mistakenly said 'hey' to me before realising that she didn't like me too much - and as i offered no reply, she snarled at me...whore. she's the one walking out the door with her suitcase...not me. was a very victorious feeling.

after a very late night, me and Adam packed up our belongings and slept for a measly 2 hours before our 3am wake up for our flight to Ireland!!! We are currently in Belfast, and we are quite surprised at how nice the area is. I think there is a lot to offer here - people daring enough to come here can see it has been modernised, redeveloped and embraced from the troubled times of the war-zone of Northern Ireland. We have a lot to do and things to see - we will keep you informed. Seeing all of Belfast, including Falls Road and Shankill Road, down to Dublin, to North Antrim to The Giants Causeway and the famous Carrick-a-rede Rope Bridge! Gonna be awesome. Oh, and by the way, coming down on the flight, looking over the land of Ireland, it is SO GREEN!!!!!

We're running on fumes but loving every second of it! In Belfast, finding the craic...



adamandashinIreland.x

Adam's Interesting Arrival...

Hey all!
Well Adam has arrived with all limbs so that's a start. But I must say we didn't get off to the best start! All week I have been so excited about Adam's arrival. I was counting down the days and I think the whole hostel was aware of it too! I was just over-joyed and couldn't wait for that day when I would wait at the airport for him to walk through those gates at Heathrow. What actually happened I didn't expect.

It is Thursday night and I am working away with Nikki (just scored herself the job here!!) and finished at 10pm. We had to go to bed soon cos i had an early start the next morning. I did my final confirmations of Adam's flight itinerary and checked the tube planned closures on the net.
We went to bed, and two guys in our room made sleeping impossible - 1. They removed their shoes so we couldn't breathe! I was laughing in hysterics tho cos I got out my perfume and deodorant and sprayed copious amounts around the room which made the room just smell like perfume and bad feet. nice. and 2. they snored like arseholes. Nik dropped her head over the bunk and suggested we go sleep down stairs in the common room - which was full of people. so i move us into a different room, and by the time we finally got settled and off to sleep it was about 2am. Next thing i know, my alarm goes off at 4am for my wake up to go pick up Adam from the airport. but even though i had 2 hours sleep, i was very much awake because i was so excited!

I wonder down to Bayswater station and jump on the first train of the morning - 5:11am. Things are going OK for about 5 minutes until the train detours from my previously thought-out plan. I somehow get to Gloucester Road (not the station i wanted) and plod around for about 15 minutes trying to work out how to get to the Piccadilly Line - found it. And the first train to Heathrow is at 5:55 (the same time of Adam's arrival!).

I am worrying so much that I'll be late - and i was. I arrived, after many many train delays (and a lot of cursing), at 6:45. I rush over to the gates hoping i would just make it....I wait...and wait....and wait. It comes to about 7:30. Nothing. 8am. Nothing. What the hell is going on? Where is he? I thought cos i was late he may have jumped on the tube to get to London himself, then I thought he had been kidnapped, then maybe he missed his flight, or I got the details wrong (even though I knew that was highly unlikely for such a pedantic planner like myself!). I go to airport information and make a few announcements for him to come to information. nothing. after 5 announcements at all 5 terminals...nothing. And the airport staff were absolute useless cows! 'That's all we can do for you' as they sit there with their huge arses stuffing their face with pure lard and yawning - fuck off! my boyfriend is missing! I am having a panic attack - I'm on the phone to Nikki to get her to look up everything on the net from flight details to immigration. I'm calling international to my mum and dad - having a meltdown. On the phone to Adam's parents... running back and forth through terminal four - tears in my eyes, so stressed and worried. I look inside the terminal, the coffee shops, the book stores, toilets (yes, even the male toilets) outside, the bus stands - EVERYWHERE - and Adam was no-where to be seen.

At about 8:30am (3 and a half hours after Adams flight came in) I hear my name over the P.A - I thought finally! he must have come to information. I go over, and see he's still not there. perhaps he is in another terminal? I then get told to go up to Immigration. and I'm thinking 'oh shit...'.

I go up to immigration and sit in this small, white room with a glass barrier between me and the immigration officer. I was shaking with worry. He begins to tell me Adam has been detained by immigration for unconvincing reasons for entry. The officer begins to ask me for all my documents (which of course i don't have) and asks all these questions from what I study, where i study, what I'm doing in London, where I work, to how I met Adam. He then explains that Adam had no knowledge of our travel plans or even where he was staying in London as I had organised everything. I told the officer that I was the planner in the relationship and as Adam said as well, he's going along with the plans, it's like a wedding - all he has to do is show up! (that's a joke of course). And they wouldn't let me see Adam! Grrrr....

After about an hour of interrogation, he says they have two options - 1. let him into the country or 2. send him back home. OMFG! It was an agonising 1 hour wait for the verdict. Four coffees later and about a packet of cigarettes (I had quit, too!) I got the call saying Adam was coming through the gates!

As soon as he walked through, my heart fell out of my arse I was so excited and sad and worried and just a massive jumble of emotions. I ran over to him and held him like there was no tomorrow, bawling my eyes out! but Adam - he's a fucking stone i tell you - no tears! bah.
He did so well. after flying solo all the way to London, with an over night stop over in Singapore, and then the ordeal with immigration. I was so proud of him. And he kept very calm and was just amazing through it all. He has already taken to travel so brilliantly. He went on the tour in Singapore which he has some amazing stories of! I'll get him to put up a blog of Singapore. and now he's in London here with me. I am over the moon and so excited about everything we have planned on this once-in-a-lifetime trip! We're booking our itinerary today!

After the very hectic day, we finally got back to the hostel and had a shower and a nap, then headed off to Hyde Park and Kensington Palace. It was shit weather but it was really nice and relaxing. We got some good photos, and i think the simple pleasure of the day was the squirrels that were hopping about the gardens, and came up to us, sitting up on his hind legs, waiting for some food. We'll head back again soon (it's a 5 min walk from where we live) to feed the squirrels some bread or something - apparently they take it right out of your hands - very friendly and confident!

Today we're off to Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and The London Eye which should be fantastic - I haven't done this yet so I am very excited to be experiencing it with Adam!

We will keep you all up to date with our travel and experiences! many more stories on its way!

Love you all,
ashnadaminlondon.x (haha!)

Precious Vengeance....

Hey all,
Well. What an eventful week I have had. This is the story of Karma at its best. Precious, precious karma! I'll start from the beginning.
About 4 weeks ago, I started this fantastic job at The Central Hostel in Bayswater, London. Everything was great about it - I really couldn't complain - all but one problem. and that problem was named 'Precious'. Precious was basically the 'office manager' here - as in she had been here the longest of all 3 staff. And yes, her name is Precious. On my second shift, I was taking over for my afternoon shift, and counted the money and found she was £10 out. She began rambling on about 'I just checked it and it was perfect' and 'i have been here for 1 year and have never made a mistake'. I simply just checked the money - that's it. She covered it with her own money. About a week later, before my shift, she basically accused me of stealing the missing £10. she continued saying she 'doesn't trust anyone' and she 'never makes mistakes' - so therefore i must have stolen it (even though I was only in there for .25 of a second) and from that day on, she made working there hell - well, whenever i changed over from her shift.

About 3 weeks into working with her, some customers came down and asked me what room they were moving to. I looked on the chart and noticed they hadn't paid - they disputed this. At this point I was very confused. they backed up their payment with a receipt - made out by Precious. I searched through the entire chart and cash books and this receipt was no-where to be found. On a second occasion about an hour later, the same thing happened. I was seriously confused. I informed my workmate Marius about this and he began to laugh. He had discovered the same thing about another incident the night before. He went on to say he believed she had her own receipt book, and was taking in money from customers, putting them in the chart in pencil - then rubbing it out after checkout, and giving them a receipt and pocketing the money for herself.

I mentioned this briefly to my boss, and as it follows, he has a word to Precious. After this, Precious did her best to write out 'valid' carbon copies of the receipts (which we had obtained) to cover her tracks. But this also meant that she was furious with me for speaking to my boss.
I had been out with Nikki and Jessica the night before and got back to my place at around 1pm - due to start work at 2pm and was dying for a shower and some clean clothes. As soon as I walked in, I copped and earful from Precious. I told her i was busy and i would talk to her about whatever her issue was when i started work (I'm not on bloody call 24/7 on her demand!). I helped Nikki and Jess put their luggage into storage as it was Jess's final day her so i thought I'd help them out and put their luggage into our hostel storage while they went out for the day. After they had left I walked in and again, Precious began her rants. I told her i was busy and had a lot to do - and that's when it turned sour. "I don't give a fuck if your busy, you're the bitch that told Hamid that money was missing"...and it goes on... "Go fuck yourself you cow"... "don't be a bitch to me and piss me off cos I don't take shit from no one"...all the while surrounded by our customers in the common room. I held my own. I think i did quite well considering. I knew if i had dished it back, she would use it against me - i saw the situation in my favour. I have to admit i was a quite shaken up - I think more so cos my veins were pumping through pure anger - but still, i kept my cool.

After all the screaming, and yes, she was SCREAMING at me, I said fuck it and went up to my room to cool off. after calming down and all the while not having enough time to have my shower, I head back down stairs to start work. She continues on rambling to me about how she's 'not a child' and 'didn't come here to make friends...I'm not your friend' (ya think?...) and i ignored it to as best i could. I sat down to begin my shift and noticed the computer had been locked. And she told me the previous day she knew the password. Just in case you can't join the dots - she locked the computer in spite. Now this was not good as i did not know the password and desperately needed to get online to talk to Adam about his flight details as he was departing the next day.

Precious walked past and I very calmly asked her for the password. Her response? 'I don't know what it is'. BULLSHIT!!! I said 'I know you do, you told me you did yesterday' - no response. I continued 'Don't make me call the boss'...and she said 'Go for it'....so I did. In fact, I called the OWNER of the business!... (of course i did...)

I asked Thierry (my boss) to come down as i urgently needed to speak to him. He rushed over and I informed him that Precious had verbally attacked me in front of all the customers - and in addition to that, i thoroughly explained the missing money. It was like watching domino's fall. We found error after error, and the missing money kept getting higher and higher!

I had a big grin on my face cos I knew i caught this bitch out! Thierry said he needs to fire her, however we were very short on staff - and what do you know, Nikki pops in for a visit. Thierry talks to Nik, and essentially gives her the job on the spot!

So today, Me and Nikki went out for a morning coffee until we had to go to work. During this time, Precious was getting the axe! I turned up to work and spoke to Thierry and it turns out he and the two other owners interrogated her - and she could not come up with anything to explain herself - not even a bullshit story! Apparently she was being quite dramatic and was screaming and trying to call their bluff by suggesting they call the police if they really thought she was stealing. At the end of it all, they asked her to leave.

Me and Nik have been at work all day, and have had a good time - it's odd - I'm training Nik and we're now working and living together! Awesome. However we have been here all day, and Precious still hasn't left her room (she lives in the hostel - but soon to be relocating) and has been in there all day. We have come to the conclusion that she is aware I am working and the only way out is through the reception so she's waiting till I finish work - I might just pull and all-nighter! Haha! The walk of shame! Gold.

You see, this has been the best week for me. Adam is arriving in 9 hours from now and I'm about to pee myself with excitement. Nikki just got a job with me and is now living with me, and on top of that we have been spending every day together which is great to spend time with the most awesome person! It's great to spend just nik and ash time - reminds me of old times (we have a good 20 years of memories!!) and what really puts the cherry on top (i don't like cherry's tho....) is that after all that shit that the bitch put me through, Precious got the sack - and I can't think of a more brilliant example of Karma.

What goes around, comes around...

love you all,
ashinlondon.x

You Have To Check This Out

Ok,

This has got to be the cheapest, worst, most try-hard rapper video ever made.

absolutely hysterical.

like, what the? seriously. are they taking the piss? apparently the home video camcorder is in for the gangSTARS.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GibLntdLiJA

so funny.

i can see they really tried.

but the song title really tops it off - 'Dance Wiv Me'...yes, 'wiv'.

love u all,
ashinlondon.x

P.S. I have a lot of spare time on my hands right now - its about 3am - working the night shift, watching TMF (the music channel on Sky TV)...

Wow, What A Day...

Hey all,

Today was a very eventful day. I'll begin from the morning.

I woke up at about 12:30pm, which was great cos i really needed to sleep in for my night shift tonight. I'll be working 6pm to 6am tonight so I'm glad i didn't get up too early.

I went to 'Boots' which is a chemist or 'drug store', and bought myself some well needed hair dye. they have a very small range, and are quite expensive. some of the hair dyes are £15. but i got some hair dye and it was all going fine.

I went back to my room, and grabbed my massive laundry bag and headed to the laundromat. i was so relieved to get my washing done. but the worst thing was there was very little ventilation there, so when the clothes dryers were on, the condensation filled the room. and of course, i broke out in a very aggressive rash! woohoo! it was so bad, i had the rash all over my face. i was so embarrassed cos it was very noticeable on my face. but moving on - got my washing done so i was happy i had some nice clean clothes to wear.

i got back to my room and laid out my clothes cos they didn't dry properly in the dryers (and i had to get out of there). things were going well cos i had written a list (of course) for all the things i needed to do today. it was my one day where i had a chance to get everything done cos i didn't start work till 6.


(me with my care package Vegemite! Gotta love it - but everyone here seems to hate it when I get them to try it - their facial expressions are priceless!)
i began dying my hair and noticed my room mate was sick. she had been sick since early this morning. the poor girl was in the shower throwing up, and had been for about 3 hours at this stage. her friend was so worried. at this point my hair is covered with hair dye. we managed to get her out of the shower cos she had quite a fever, and put her in bed. she continued to throw up. she was seriously unwell. we came to the conclusion she had her drink spiked the night before. she couldn't hold anything down, and could not stop throwing up, so i called an ambulance. we were told they would be here in 10 minutes. now this girl was seriously ill - she was struggling to breathe because she was continuously dry-reaching. half an hour had past and they hadn't turned up. the girl's condition was quickly deteriorating. we called again and they continued to ask questions - the same questions over and over cos we kept getting different people. after 1 hour, they called us again and told us we had to wait cos we were low priority. fair enough if people are dying - but we didn't know how serious this was. an hour and a half past, and nothing. so we called a taxi and they headed off to the hospital. that was quite a while ago, and its now 9pm and they haven't come back yet. i don't know what happened, but they're in my room so when i find out I'll be sure to tell you all. the poor girl.

after the girls got in the taxi, i realised my hair dye had been in my hair for about 2 and a half hours or so.

i had a shower to rinse my hair dye, and it turned out brilliant!!! i dried myself off and i put on the fake tan that dad put in my care package. but there is no window or fan in the bathroom so the room was filled with condensation and i couldn't bloody dry myself off. and I'm trying to put this fake tan on but my skin was still wet, and of course i got a severe rash again! i tell you this all sounds very bad and stressful, but at the end of the day i couldn't help but laugh (not about the poor girl tho) it was just cos of all the days i have been here, this has gotta be the most eventful, and I've been here for 2 months now!


(me at work on my over-night shift last week! at about 4am or so!)
so, now I'm at work and working till 6am tomorrow morning. got 2 folders of DVD's to watch, and a whole bag full of chocolate thanks to dad.



Adam is coming next week! next week!!!! OMG!!! WOOOO!!!!!

Oh, and to top the day off...I got my Uni results today....

...and I am awesome. I studied whilst trying to organise my trip here, i completed all my assignments (all 5 of them) in 2 weeks, and studied and sat my exams here in London and got a fucking awesome Distinction average!!!!!!!! See, I told you, I am awesome!

Love you all,

ashinlondon.x



P.S. I'm here and you're not!!! :P