My job at Providence Row

Sorry for such a delay in postings – I have been so very busy.

This past week was my last week teaching Enlgish at Providence Row.  The men that came in have seemed to enjoy themselves are learning a little too.  J  It was quite an experiencing planning for a group of 8 men who are limited with their English proficiency.  Let alone the fact that I speak “American” – “Southerner American” – and not “English”.  (There has been some debate in class about this.) 

As I was working in the kitchen one day, one of the students came up and said, “Oh hhello, Djessika!”  He then turned to his buddy and said, “She is my teacher.  My Amedican teacher!  She teaches me Amedican!”  -- this was also the same student who said I didn’t speak ‘normal’.

My days at Providence Row are filled with a number of things.  Sometimes I work in the kitchen, sometimes I manage the internet service, sometimes I working reception, and sometimes I teach.  The afternoons are a bit different.  I have been running a training program called CSCS.  (PR offers a service to the clients to practice the test for CSCS certification.  This certification allows the clients to work on construction sites.)  I also help clients with CVs (resumes) and help them search for available jobs. 

I am actually coordinating the planning of an event for the end of July.  I had the job of naming it.  I came up with M.O.R.E.  (Meaningful Occupations Reaching Everyone)  The girls on the team loved it.  I think my supervisor liked it too…he just said, “Wow.  We’ve never called it anything like this before.”  LOL  We will have offer some food and drinks and allow for the clients taking part in Meaningful Occupations services to showcase what they have been doing.  (Music, art, English class, etc.)

It has been a great experience thus far and I expect it to continue!

A Fabulous Fourth in London

The 4th of July is always filled with fun, family, food and fireworks.  This year was slightly different.

London does not have big celebrations to honor America's independence from...well, them.  Random pubs held hot dog eating contests, free drinks for American's, specials on ribs, etc.  Alas, there were no fireworks to be found.

A small groups of us Winant's ended up getting together and made homemade pizza.  I bought a chocolate fudge brownie cheesecake and we feasted!

It was nice to spend the evening with some fellow country-women and share a meal together.  I did miss the fireworks.

I did get the chance to Skype with my sis, brother-in-law, and nephews.  The boys loved watching themselves on screen.  LOL!!  It was dark outside for me and I had to explain time-zones to Max.  He's so silly.  Wesley kept asking, "Are you at London?"  They both sang "On Top of Spaghetti" and "Happy Birthday" for me.  :)

Shows, sights, sniffles, and sleep

Friday - Sunday
7/1-3/2011

In an effort to keep this post in less than epic proportions, I will only hit the highlights of the weekend.

National Gallery -- I saw paintings older than the US.  Most of them were of Lords and Ladies or of biblical scenes.  My favorite was the small collection of Van Gogh.  I noticed there was a draw and learn session if I waited around for 30 minutes...so I did.  I met a lovely French woman named Jeorgina.  We talked about my volunteering and her studies (she's working to be a teacher).  We talked about how the American school systems were set up and how they differed from the UK.  We sat together during the learn and draw.  The learn and draw was excellent.  One woman spoke of Van Gogh and explained the origins of the picture.  Another woman talked about the painting artistically and gave us some hints on how to draw it -- using only pencil.  Then we had around 45 minutes to draw!   I will post mine soon.

DAVID TENNANT -- I mean -- Much Ado About Nothing --
I FINALLY got a ticket to see Much Ado.  It. Was. FANTASTIC!  The entire cast was brilliant.  It was funny.  It was dramatic.  It was simply, well done.  I sneaked a few pictures.  Catherine Tate is wonderful.  BUT the crowning jewel of the evening was seeing David Tennant!  He connects with his audience like no other stage person I have seen.  During his monologues a Benedict, he would look out into the audience (all three levels) and make eye contact with them.  ME INCLUDED!!  :)  I think we stood and applauded for a solid 5 minutes.  The cast came out for four separate curtain calls.
After the show, I went behind the theater to attempt and autograph.  I succeeded!!  David not only signed my program but told me, in his lovely Scottish, "You're so very, very welcome," when I thanked him for signing it.  I would love to see it again, but will definitely go back to try to get a proper picture with him.

The Woman in Black --
Roni posted on FB that she had planned to go see this show called the Woman in Black.  I looked up tickets and found a front row seat for 27 pounds, so I decided to book it and go.  Although we both were a few minutes late because we were totally lost, we managed to get to the theater and saw the show.  It too was fantastic!!  It had a cast of only two people...and one more, but it was just so good!  It was almost like a ghost story.  It made the entire audience scream and jump out of their chairs on several occasions.  (This was promptly followed by giggles from the audience for reacting in such a way.)  I would highly recommend this show to anyone that has a chance to see it.

King's Cross --
Fun, but a bit disappointing.  It is nothing like the movie, but that have a little cheesy platform 9 and 3/4 where tourists can take pictures....which Roni and I did with out a second thought.

Lion King and the Globe --
EPIC FAIL for Lorena and I.  But we are booking for the next few weeks during the week day.

Tower of London --
WOW...I had no idea it was so huge!  There is a little city within the walls of the Tower.  Lorena and I joined up with a guided group.  Our Warbler was great, but we broke off about 30 minutes into it.  I loved his stories and the information he was giving, but we spied the line for the crown jewels.  We both wanted to see those, so we opted for that.  We saw the jewels and soaked in the glistening beauty.  We then roamed a bit through the courtyard and found things were starting to close.  (We had a later start than we first had set out for.)  We were able to visit the small chapel where Ann Boleyn was buried.  We also were able to walk much the of perimeter on top of the wall.

My allergies have started to act up and effected some of my progress on all of these days.  I am also suffering from some major lack of sleep -- which I did my best to catch up on this weekend as well.

"There's NO time! There's NEVER any time!"

I have been trying to cram as much London in as I can after “work”.  Unfortunately, everything closes so early!  Most ‘tourist’ sites close around 5....I get off around 4:30.  Even many shops close up fairly early.  I would have never thought that this would be the case.  I seem to find myself rushing to run small errands everyday.  

Relying on public transit is also a bit tricky and a brand new thing for me.  I have to leave my home-stay around an hour or so early just to, hopefully, get to my placement on time.  Depending on what I want to do and what is going on, I can take two tubes and a train, take a train and a tube, or a train and walk for 5 minutes.  Of course the walk to the station is around 5-10 minutes from my home-stay.  

I am so used to hopping in my car, driving wherever I need to, and going home.  Not to mention putting purchases in your car instead of carrying them around with you.  Let me just tell you, carrying groceries on a train and walking all over tarnation and back will make you REALLY think about what you purchase.  

(Inner monologue:  ‘Do I really need this....I’ll have to carry it on the train.  I was thinking about going somewhere else after this.’)

I plan on doing a bit more exploring this weekend!  My list of things I want to do is very long...I have a lot of work to do!

Providence Row -- week in review

6/27-30/2011

Week 2 at Providence Row:

I definitely feel much more like a helper and much less helpless.  I worked in the kitchen both Monday and Wednesday.  I ran the dishwasher and served food.  

I also taught the English class on Tuesday and Thursday this week.  Since I am ESOL certified, I am filling in until the new teacher starts.  One of the men looked at me on Tuesday and said, “I see you in kitchen, at internet, at front, now here!  What you do?  You everywhere!”  This same man also told me to slow down because I don’t talk normal, I talk “American.”  When he says American, he does it in a very nasally voice.  For the most part, the guys have been very appreciative and take the class seriously.  

After lunch, I either work with the CSCS training, help out with filing, or plan for English.  We had a staff training session on Wednesday.  It was interesting to see that a training workshop is not too different from the training workshops I have taken part of in my job.  I guess some things are not effected by cultural differences.  :)

Next week seems that it will be much of the same, but only time will tell!

Saturday Recap -- just in time for the next Saturday

Saturday!

To start my first official day off, I went on a quest to obtain tickets for Much Ado About Nothing.  At 10am they hold a lottery for 20 best seats for 10quid (10 pounds).  I got my ticket and waited until they called out the ‘winning’ numbers at 10:30.  I, unfortunately, was not one of the lucky ones this time.  :(  BUT I have a few more weeks to give it a shot!  Besides, David Tennant will be very sad if I don’t come to see it!  

I found myself quite hungry and went off to Leicester Square to find something to eat. I settled on a cafe that had WiFi access.  I stayed there for quite some time, using my iPhone to update my FB and check email.  I also had my top-up phone out to answer text messages from the Winant girls.  I alternated between the two for quite some time.  As I was preparing to leave, a small group of people started to surround me.  One of the men had a tube map and was approaching from my left.  The rest of the group was on my right.  An older lady was directly on my right.  The man on my left started asking, “Excuse me, do you know how to...”  He never finished the sentence; however, because at that moment the manager came over and inserted himself between me and the group.  In a thick Irish accent, he yelled at the group and made them leave the cafe.    I had no idea what was going on and was a bit confused and shaken. The manager then turned to me and asked, “Are you ok, love?”  I nodded.  He then proceeded to explain that he had not seen this particular group of Romanians for quite some time, but they were attempting to steal my phone.  They use one of the group to distract the victim’s attention one direction, while the group is on the other side, ready to take whatever they are trying to steal.  I was dumbfounded!  I sincerely thanked the manager and felt it was time to leave.

After my little adventure, I decided to go to other parts of London and explore while waiting to meet up with the other Winant girls.  I ventured to the London eye and got a few good pictures.  I decided not to ride it as of yet because of the long lines and for the fact that I can purchase tickets much cheaper online.  (London may even offer a City Pass -- this quite helpful in New York.)

I wandered around Waterloo station and found my first Doctor Who billboard.  I was a little surprised that I have not seen more.  I found myself in need of a toilet.  (You don’t say restroom...it’s toilet or loo.)  I also had my first experience with a pay toilet.  Yes, I said PAY toilet.  I had to pay 30p to use the loo.  I looked through my change and found I did have 30p by using 20p and two 5p.  As I walked down the stairs, I saw a sign that specified that to use the toilet you needed 30p.  BUT, you needed to have either three 10p or a 20p and a 10p.  I stepped out of line and rummaged through my change once again.  I did not have a 10p coin.  Thankfully, a nice Scottish woman offered me a 10p coin.  We then discussed the pay toilets and how they are unnecessary.  “It’s all about making more money for each cabinet,” she explained.  “Different cabinets charge.  They just want to get more money of out people.”

I used the tube and headed toward London Bridge.  I was a little disappointed.  It’s just a regular old bridge.  I took a seat on one of the coping stones from the original bridge.  I know this because a little plaque on the coping stone told me so.  It also told me that most of the original London Bridge is now in Arizona.  They shipped the stones to America and constructed the bridge there in the 1960’s.   LOL!  

I visited a little souvenir shop and bought a few little things.  I spoke to a sweet lady at an ice cream stand when I asked for directions to South Bank.  She told me about the Indian family that was sitting close by and how they found a cell phone, had contacted the person it belonged to, and had waited there for 30 minutes to return it.  :)  Bless her, she sent me in the wrong direction, but I figured it out before I went too far.

I had heard from the girls and we were meeting at Tower Bridge.  I decided to take a bus since there was a stop close by.  I was looking at the bus map (frankly, they are quite confusing) and an older couple asked me where I was headed.  (Apparently, when I am confused, strangers can read it all over my face!)  I, for once, was at the right stop for the right bus at the right time!  I had a lovely chat with the woman about London and her grandchildren and what to do while I was here.  They ended up needing the same bus and made sure I was headed the right direction when we got off the bus.

I met up with Lorena, Carolyn, and Molly and we chatted while we took in the views at the Tower of London and Tower Bridge.  Lorena, like me, was wanting to take some pictures.  (It was GORGEOUS today.)  We walked to the bus stop to head toward Big Ben.  

We walked from Trafalgar Square to Big Ben to Westminster Abbey.  Lorena and I stopped several times for photo ops.  We ended up laying around on the grass in front of Westminster Abbey.  It was just beautiful.  The grass was cool, the sun was shining, and a slight breeze was blowing.  We would have stayed there all afternoon and evening....except for the fact we would need some sort of shelter.  LOL

Good blogs come to those who wait!

I know it does not seem like it, but I HAVE been keeping up with a daily documentation of my adventures.  I will put the date of the adventure at the beginning of the blog if it is a "catch-up" blog.  I do not have Internet that works on my Mac at my home-stay and have to tote the thing with me to a free wifi hotspot to submit it.  It is much easier for me to type on my personal computer than my host's, so I am in the pickle that I am in.

If you have read the previous post, you know that I am doing laundry today, so I did not bring my Mac with me because I was already burdened with a Conan-bag full of clothes.  Hopefully, I can work things out for tomorrow!  -- I also have more pics to share!

Cheers!