the job

I HAVE A JOB!

but before I get ahead of myself let me start from the beginning.

after living in a hostel my first week in london I moved to the international students house (ish).

http://http//www.ish.org.uk/

at first, it was a definite upgrade from the first hostel I was in because I had a 4-bed room all to myself. as flat searching dragged on, I eventually moved to a cheaper 6-bed dorm. I met some interesting characters living in that small room, including an old, polish woman (apparently homeless) who loved americans, supposedly she lived in the U.S for a while, and would offer me chocolates and shoes she didn't want anymore. she was only one of the many characters ish provided.

this was only one-side of ish though. I met many new people in the bar/restaurant area of ish and found out that the accommodations there were provided to students from universities all over london, whether it be short or long term. obviously, also to people like me just passing through, but most accommodations were long term for students.

that said, it seemed like a good environment to work in, especially with my international studies major, so I asked about any job vacancies. I was told a full-time front desk receptionist position was opening up soon so I applied. I interviewed for the position one week ago...

***

about my third week in london I saw a job vacancy posted in the bunac office (my work abroad office) for a student center coordinator position at regent's college.

http://http//www.regents.ac.uk/

it sounded like a good opportunity, so I took a chance and applied. I truly did not think I'd even receive an interview but the following week I received a phone call from regent's telling me I'd been short-listed for an interview! I scheduled it the day after my interview with ish.

when I arrived at regent's college for my interview last friday, I felt like such a grown up. I realize that sounds cheesy, but it was my first "real" interview since college and in a way it signaled my entrance into a new phase of my life. the "after college" years. I was interviewed by two guys, one older the other younger, and even though the questions were a bit tough at times, I felt good overall about the impression I had made.

after my interviews I planned an evening out with my roommates to celebrate. before leaving our place, I was messing around on my roommate's laptop when I finally got around to checking my email. the first new message I saw was from ish offering me the full-time front desk position! I was so excited, jumping up and down in my flat with my roommates. my roommate, jenn, actually chronicled the moment:

I went back to the computer and looked at my email again, this time seeing another new message, but this one was from regent's college. I also was offered the student center coordinator position! it was too much for my head to comprehend, realizing I had two great job offers within 3 minutes of each other. wait, what?

so would you finally like to know which one I took? drum roll please.....



I AM THE NEW STUDENT CENTER COORDINATOR AT REGENT'S COLLEGE!

this place:

yes sirree, I work at a reputable educational institution right here in london, england. not too bad for my first "real" job. awww, being employed again feels so good.

here is an overview of my job. I plan and organize daytrips and weekend trips for students. my second day of work I had to set dates for 3 saturday daytrips. one to bath, one to warwick castle and stratford, and one to stonehenge and salisbury. these are daytrips that have happened in the past, but I had to figure out how to book each reservation and coordinate with bus transportation. I was pre-warned in my interview that it would be a bit stressful during my first 6 weeks of work (no easing into it, this is head-first job training).

starting tomorrow, my fifth day of work, I must begin to organize weekend trips to paris, edinburgh, and wales. I need to at least start to figure out what dates would work best for each trip so I must contact hostels, check availability of train tickets, and work around a big rugby tournament going on throughout europe. as the job title states, a lot of coordinating is involved with this position.

along with organizing day and weekend trips which also includes making posters to advertise the trips and creating itineraries, I'm gathering information and putting together welcome packs for new students, making and issuing international student cards, managing sign-ups for music rooms, renting out sleeping bags, giving directions around campus, and doing my best to answer an innumerable amount of questions from new students. that's just a general description of my job.

I'm sleepy now so I'm going to wrap this up. thank goodness I don't have to be at work until 10 a.m. but I still must leave my place an hour before.

I'll leave you with my college address, just for fun. and because it makes me feel official:

Chanelle Trowbridge
Student Centre Coordinator
Regent's College
Inner Circle
Regent's Park
London, NW1 4NS

the new address

I was so excited to share pictures of my new place that I failed to mention exactly where in london it is. most londoners locate a destination/place within the london area via postcode (similar to an area code) since it is the easiest way get a general idea of where something is located. postcodes are indicated by direction (sw, se, e, w, etc.) and number of section (sw19, se14, e1, w4. you get it). here's a little map of all the postcodes:

I live in postcode nw2, which is in the grey, top-left section of the map (see it?). my full postcode is nw2 3lj. I can not begin to tell you what the 3lj is for but there is it.

according to this map, it does seem like I live way, way out in the boondocks but that is still central London and I am very connected to the bus and tube system from my place. once you've lived here for a little bit, the sheer size and capacity of london truly starts to set in. it's incredible.

the new address:

Chanelle Trowbridge, Flat 3, 1 Ash Grove, London NW2 3LJ

(after each comma you can obviously write a new line. the formatting on this post is simply being weird and creating too much space when I type it like that.)

any and all mail is welcome! looking forward to getting some good things in the mail soon ;)

the search has ended!

I HAVE A FLAT!

yes, it's true. I moved in just yesterday to my new home here in London. it only took 2 weeks and 2 days but Lord knows it seemed like a lot longer than that before I had a place to call "home"....and had a bit of my privacy back. believe me, living in a space with 2 people vs. 5 other strangers is a blessing.

since the battery in my camera is dead (has been dead for a while) I am stealing pictures from one of my new roommates (Jenn Sweeney) to give you a little visual of what the place looks like. (pictures, finally! I know.)

this is what the place looked like when we first viewed it about 2 days ago:

the main room with our beds and wardrobes. there's also a love seat, two chairs (blue thing in picture) and a table with a stool in this room

we have a backyard! this is very unusual for these types of places so we are very lucky ladies :)

kitchen with all the amenities

I was ready to move in right away

once we did move in, Jenn and I rearranged everything (well...almost everything) in the main room. (the other roommate, Lizzie Clapper, was at work). here's a little glimpse into the chaos that was, and still is, the "moving in process":

hey, hey! welcome to the chaos :)

dancing in our new space!

Jenn, claiming her bed

too much unpacking in one day for me

no need to move the luggage, Lizzie was ready to sleep like this! ha :)

so there you have it. a small glimpse into my new home here in London.

I'll fill you all in on my roommates later, but I must leave in about half an hour to go to an interview....more on that later too!

so much to share, so little time. but don't worry, you will all be clued in very soon.

please pray/cross your fingers/ for me that I get a job soon. one flat down, one job to go!

the flat search

lesson learned (an obvious lesson): finding a flat in London is difficult. very difficult.

so for the past couple weeks I have been searching for, looking at, and putting down deposits on flats only to come up short on all counts thus far. here are a few things that differ in terms of searching for a place here vs. the US.

1. landlords generally do not deal directly with housing applicants, you must go through an agency to find/view a flat.


2. you are not seriously considered for a place unless you put down a deposit fee.


3. the landlord can reject your offer even after putting down the deposit.


4. on top of the initial deposit, there can also be an agency fee.


5. if you make a deposit, but change your mind about the place, you don't recent your money back.

so yeah. agencies handle the initial work, then the landlord takes over once a tenant(s) moves into a place. it's a proces to say the least. luckily I've had some help throughout this whole process from 4 other girls (all from California ironically) that are part of the BUNAC program too. we were all trying to find a place together (the upside: being able to live in a nicer place with lower per person costs) but decided yesterday it was going to be too difficult (the downside: not enough space or availablility for 5 people in a central location).

we already put down two deposits on places but both places fell through. the first, didn't work out because the agency could not reach the landlord (direct quote from agent, "I think he's dead"), and the second, did not work out because the landlord's wife did not want 5 people in the apartment (even though it was more than big enough).

we have an appointment monday to look at more places (reference image above) so cross your fingers I don't have to continue staying at the International Students' House for another week. it's fairly cheap, but I'd love to receive my privacy back someday soon.

the essentials

hello from London!
I'm so sorry I've been MIA as of late but using the internet has been a bit of a hassle while here in London. I'm at the Bunac office (my work abroad program) now using it for free, but normally I must pay at least £2 per hour at a hostel or internet cafe. Not too cheap. It's late here and I must leave the office soon but I wanted to send out some essential information to everyone while I can.

Address (until I have a flat and even after the fact):
Chanelle Trowbridge
c/o BUNAC
Incoming Programmes
16 Bowling Green Lane
London EC1R 0QH

Mobile (I'm already using British lingo):
If I'm lucky enough to get a call from you in the US first,
dial 011 (international access code)
dial 44 (UK country code)
then my number - 79 6410 8296

If that doesn't work try dialing a 0 before the 79 in my number but I think it will go through.

I'll let you all know once I secure a flat and job. In the meantime, I've been doing a lot of research and spending the majority of my time in the underground. I've definitely used more public transportation in the last 2 weeks than I have in my entire life.

Talk to you all later!

Introduction

Welcome! Chanelle, this is your domain now. Share your London stories/pictures with us!

-Caleb