Ruthie On The Road

Well, loads has happened since the last post.  I meant to write of my travels around the UK but none of them seem to be as exciting or interesting as the places I visited earlier in the year.  I can’t believe that a year has nearly passed since I first started the trip and I have been very thoughtful and introspective about how I was feeling this time last year.

Since returning I quickly settled back into a routine at work and it became very apparent that not much has changed back here but so much had shifted in my mind.  I moved in with Wil in Jesmond and continue to rent my flat out to tenants that thankfully, I haven’t had too many problems with (so far!).  I love living here and honestly think that I would have found it extremely difficult going back into a flat on my own after 6 months of dorm rooms and loads of other people around.  The one major thing about  living with Wil is that my alcohol intake has significantly increased to the the point where Helen thinks I should be going to AA meetings.  I am enjoying it and do try to have the  odd day without a glass of wine now and then!

I have had a few trips down to Helens since my return with highlights from these trips being The National gig at Brixton Academy, audience participation at  the filming of The Hairy Bikers cook off, free tickets to see Phantom of the Opera and various nights out including the TVC bar, Wahaca and The Bull.  I have been down to Oxford to house sit for Gregg and Andrea whilst they were away in New Zealand.  The highlight of that trip being the free tickets to the England vs. Samoa rugby match at Twickenham, courtesy of Catherine and Brita. All those bears in one place was quite something.  I have to say that the low point of that particular expedition with having to leave the car behind and get the overnight bus back to Newcastle, which, in itself was not a major task.  It was the hours wait outside in the freezing cold at Milton Keynes at midnight that was the problem.  But I survived and I am here to travel on National Express buses once more!

I got a new car.  A black Peugoet 207 that I have decided to call Patrick. In his short life has been through quite a bit.  At only 7 miles old he got a piece of metal stuck in one of his tyres which deflated in a matter of minutes.  The AA man came out and prompted started to jack the car up in the wrong place. I was positively wincing hearing the crunching coming from the body, and again when he realised those weren’t healthy noises so started kicking the jack further under the car. Just about over that ordeal then the snow came and he was subjected to -8 degrees and copious amount of snow.  I am happy to report he is managing well and seems to be taking it all in his stride.

I keep getting waves of things that I must do and the ESTA for America was one of those things that has been coming into my head and then going again.  Although the ESTA itself in valid for 2 years from the first application (and I managed to get that in well before they started to charge for it) you have to update the details everytime you enter the country.  I updated this today for the trip to Canada in five weeks time and that prompted me to start thinking about blogging again.

I think I may have forgotten to mention that my parents finally managed to emigrate in early October after over a years battling with Canadian immigration they gave them the go ahead and they left 2 days after my brothers 30th birthday.  They seem to be adapting to their new life well, although there was a lot of moaning about the price of cheese in the early days, that seems to have settled now.

Thats all for now, let the countdown begin.  Canada 8th January 2011.

It is with a small amount of sadness and a lot of excitement that I bid farwell to the ‘getting ready’ category of posts.  Only 3 days till the off and as I am setting off to Oxford tomorrow the bag is packed. All non essentials gone and I am actually really suprised at how little stuff I am taking.  I honestly think the only thing I will miss is my hair straighteners.  Now, I know that if Helen (my best friend who has travelled a lot with me) reads this two very big things will spring out at her the first being that I always have the lighter bag going any returning. This is all the more suprising when you consider that I am usually bringing back half of her stuff too because she has exceeded the weight limit by a huge margin!  The second thing she would then do is scream into the computer at me something about hair straighteners and that my hair is already straight. Somehow she doesn’t manage to see the difference before and after and believe me, they are miles apart.

Actually I would like some advise from people as to how you can give something away as an act of kindness in an airport without people thinking that you are a terrorist or suggesting they smuggle something out of the country for you.  Let me explain. I am reading a really good book at the moment but it is hardback.  I am only about 200 pages in but totally hooked.  I don’t think that the next few days will allow for much antisocial behaviour in the way of reading, but I do have the time on the heathrow express and the time sitting in the airport. DO YOU SEE MY DILEMMA.  Answers on a postcard please (actually, comments on here would be better because I would like your help).

Ok so guys I have set you first mission and I hope you rise to the challenge

Thanks to everyone who has helped me get this far, you know who you are.  Have a fantastic New Year and a great start to 2010.  I certainly will.

Just a quick update to say that all the jumping through hoops for the Australian immigration department was worth it.  I have had my official confirmation email stating that my visa application has been granted.  This means that I can officially work in australia for a year and the even more exciting news is that I can work there, continue my travels and go back for the rest of the year.  That is if I really can’t decide if I am ready to come back to this wonderful land of opportunities and positive thinking. 

Not only is the Australian visa sorted but the Thai visa as well.  My new passport has been christened and I am already starting to wish I had gone for the one with additional pages, 10 years is a long time in travel terms and it only means that the government will get more of my hard earned pennies.

Thanks for all the sponsors for the firewalk we will be looking at around £200 when everyone has paid up so a great job and lets hope it finds its way to the CNST because they are fab.

As you can see from title this week feels like everything is on a go slow and I have got so much to do and don’t know where the start.  My parents decided to grace me with their presents last weekend and managed to do a few essential jobs around the flat so that was good. 

The Gas man came on monday but with the wrong forms and tried to pass them off as the right ones so that meant they had to come back.  It worked out ok in the end because the EPC man was arranged so they ended up coming at the same time (2 birds with one stone and all that).

So now have EPC and CP12, caravan on hold and medical to look forward to. I guess things are progressing quite nicely actually but a bit despondent about the fact that no one wants to let my flat.

I didn’t realise just how much rubbish I had collected over the 4 years that I have been living in this place.  I suppose you just buy things and get presents etc. and it’s not till you start to sort out that you actually realise how much crap you have! So as a result I am clearing out and ebaying things. I only hope that somebody else wants them because of 2 crucial things: 1. I could do with the extra money (due to the mounting cost of visas, medicals, x-rays etc.) and 2. I can’t bear throwing it away, as everyone that knows me will know that I am a total recycling nut. Unfortunetely that is what will happen if not sold.  The moral of the story, get on ebay and start buying other peoples rubbish because some of it could be mine and as the saying goes one mans rubbish is another mans treasure (or something like that of the female variety).

I have actually been progressing with trip plans.  I have been researching hostels in Hong Kong and google earthing sights of Hong Kong and Bangkok and trying to plan a few things to include in the adventures.