Location: London, United Kingdom
So this list finally made it to Item 100.
The Working Holiday.
The Working Holiday.
Yes as the last 99 items have clearly documented there were numerous weekend trips to lands of faraway (from Oz), amazing food, in search of sunshine, Legoland, new friendships, Christmas markets, affordable fashion, cheap alcohol but there was also the experience of living in Britain through a recession.
During the struggle to get back into the workforce, there was the £7.75 an hour summer temp job to enable cash flow. The evening shifts during sales time at Harrods were followed by gruelling morning shifts the next day. Life lessons were taught by colleagues who grew up in London, ever so street-wise and with more bite than I ever had at the age of 18 growing up in Melbourne.
Exhausted after a day in heels life was on replay in the evenings - being greeted at home by the disappointment of company job freezes via rejection emails and then the assumption that I really just wasn't trying hard enough to land a professional role by my peers. There was fierce competition for every position advertised and my days off were filled scouring Internet job sites and calling recruiters hoping they could get me out of retail hell.
From job hunting to flat hunting, sometimes it's got to do with luck in the transient London society. Finding a room in a flat-share that has the right mix of people, location, a bed that doesn't touch all three walls and a toilet that doesn't require a bucket to refill after flushing is a challenge in itself. Following on from that is stage two of the accomodation search process, waiting to get the OK from the new flatmates. Hopes are high that they 'pick me, pick me' all so I could have a home to lay my hat.
Living in London is tough. You need to suck it up, but how long can you last without being consumed by the push and shove of the city? The economy is shot, the exchange rates are dismal and the concept of taking cold showers through winter when the boiler breaks down weren't really in the picture back when I planned the overseas adventure. Daily news reports of more company employment cuts and a double-dip recession have me working longer with little extra reward except for my much-loved weekends away to the continent.
During the struggle to get back into the workforce, there was the £7.75 an hour summer temp job to enable cash flow. The evening shifts during sales time at Harrods were followed by gruelling morning shifts the next day. Life lessons were taught by colleagues who grew up in London, ever so street-wise and with more bite than I ever had at the age of 18 growing up in Melbourne.
Exhausted after a day in heels life was on replay in the evenings - being greeted at home by the disappointment of company job freezes via rejection emails and then the assumption that I really just wasn't trying hard enough to land a professional role by my peers. There was fierce competition for every position advertised and my days off were filled scouring Internet job sites and calling recruiters hoping they could get me out of retail hell.
From job hunting to flat hunting, sometimes it's got to do with luck in the transient London society. Finding a room in a flat-share that has the right mix of people, location, a bed that doesn't touch all three walls and a toilet that doesn't require a bucket to refill after flushing is a challenge in itself. Following on from that is stage two of the accomodation search process, waiting to get the OK from the new flatmates. Hopes are high that they 'pick me, pick me' all so I could have a home to lay my hat.
Living in London is tough. You need to suck it up, but how long can you last without being consumed by the push and shove of the city? The economy is shot, the exchange rates are dismal and the concept of taking cold showers through winter when the boiler breaks down weren't really in the picture back when I planned the overseas adventure. Daily news reports of more company employment cuts and a double-dip recession have me working longer with little extra reward except for my much-loved weekends away to the continent.
So I ask myself as I complete my work visa extension form - is this still a holiday?
Item 100: Working Holiday? CHECK!
