Working and weekends away

London, UK - So it was back to London to start my job. I got a job working for an international freight company as a white van man picking up boxes kiwis and aussies want sent home. So pretty much for the last 8 months my travels and have been put on hold as I work 6 days a week driving around the obscene traffic in London trying to save for the next big adventure. Next time I'll get a 5 day a week job cos I get no time to do anything.

One Saturday night work put on a Thames river cruise for the staff with free drinks which was fun and nice to see London by night from the water.



Liverpool & Manchester, England, UK - I managed to get a couple of weekends off and checked out the northern cities to catch up with friends. Compared to London it is bloody freezing up there and that is saying something. It was good to get out of London and actually see English cities and English people as opposed to London which is completely full of immigrants including me. In Manchester we went to the Xmas markets, watched ice skaters fall over on the outdoor ring and went on the big ferris wheel similar to the London eye that overlooks Manschester as well as spending a Saturday night pub crawling.

Malta - Just before Xmas I was getting burnout from work especially with the Xmas traffic and rubbish weather here. Who has Xmas in winter anyway? Ridiculous! So I took a week off and headed to Malta in the Mediterranean and then Morocco. I went to Malta for a couple of days and biked around the northern island of Gozo and explored the rest of the mainland by bus. It was quite nice with its extensive history and sunny weather but once you've seen all that there isn't much to do in Malta cos it's so small.

Marrakech, Morocco - Then another cheap flight and my first trip to Africa. Anna and I flew into Marrakech where we stayed in a traditional riad near the centre of the old town and over the next 3 days we wandered though the attractions of the medina and through the souks (markets) which sell all manner of stuff. We ate a lot of tagines and couscous and drank huge amounts of 25c freshly squeezed orange juice from the main square. Marrakech is a cool city and I finally had a use for my high school French classes. It was the first time I had been to a Muslim country too which was an eye opener. Hearing the call to prayer was cool.

London, UK - It was then back to London for more work and my first winter Xmas and New Years. There was no snow and even if there was I still prefer it to be summer at that time of year.



So to while away winter I've been working solidly for 6 days a week and to break the monotony had the odd night out at restaurants with Anna, meeting up with my cousins Rowan and Julia, going to the Linkin Park concert at the o2 millenium dome and getting blind drunk on the Waitangi Day circle line pub crawl with thousands of other Kiwis.

Bath, England - One day at work I had a job in Bristol so Anna and I made a day trip out of it and went to Bath to see England's prettiest town. We walked around and had a look at the sights then had an expensive (£22 each!!) soak at the thermal baths, then a quick game of mini-golf before I had to go to work and do what I was actually being paid to do.