A Friendly Visit

On Wednesday i saw on Facebook that one of my mates back home, Fi, was going to be in town. So i contacted her and arranged to meet up with her. I love having visitors particularly whilst i am new to the place. But i have been here long enough to be a bit of a tourist guide and give advice on what to see and what not. I'd arranged to meet up with Fi on Thursday for dinner and drinks. On Thursday i worked at the garage in the afternoon, another fun filled shift, and then went to meet Fi on the Royal Mile where her hostel is. I was a bit early and also very hungry so i walked down the Royal Mile to Jim Garrahy's Fudge Kitchen. I'm a massive fudge lover and i'd been to this shop a few times prior and snaked some free samples so i thought i'd actually go and buy some fudge. Hands down, their Toffee favoured fudge is the best i've ever eaten. You can only have a bit at a time as it's mega rich. I did learn from the fudge maker that you shouldn't refrigerate fudge as it dries it out. Good to know as i'd always done that!

I went to meet up with Fi and i worked out what we'd do for the night. It was great seeing Fi and i think she was happy to see a familar face too after travelling alone prior. I thought we'd try the Grassmarket for food and that way Fi could see Greyfriar's Bobby on the way. Unfortunately it had been raining non stop, not a great welcome to Scotland. Although, a typical one. We got to the Grassmarket where Fi was surprised there was no grass in sight! We opted for an Italian restaurant. I always love pizza and had eaten there before so i knew it was good. We had heaps to catch up on and once we got through dinner we went to find a pub. I mentioned that the Fringe festival was on and that we could probably score some tickets at a box office to see a show that night. Fi was keen so we headed to Udderbelly, a huge Fringe venue, to see what stand up comedy was showing that night. We didn't know any of the comedians so after some review reading we went with Terry Alterton, a UK comedian. Before the show started we headed to the Library Bar for some drinks. It was a pretty cool bar that's basically been built in an old library with shelves of books around the walls. We had a drink then went to line up for the show. Terry would have to have been one of the weirdest comedians i have ever seen. I think most of his routine is enitrely improv and overall i found him quite funny. Not sure i'd bother to see him again but fun none the less. After the show we walked to the Royal Mile and had another drink at one of the pubs. We also organised to do something tomorrow as i was free in the afternoon.

Drinks with Fi



The Gilded Balloon @ Udderbelly - the venue for stand up comedy

On Friday i had a job interview with Tesco Personal Finance (TPF). It is a temporary role for 3 months but could likely be exteded if i did well. The position is as a Resourcing Assistant, so i basically do the administration for the recruitment process. TPF is expanding a lot over the UK, especially in Scotland and bought out half of RBS's customers. They are basically taking advantage of the current bad state the local banks are in. They are adding 800 new jobs in Glasgow which is great news and what i will be helping organise. So i headed to the job interview and was AMAZED i got there. The taxi driver was like 100 yrs old and could not understand anything i was saying. He was getting shitty at me for not understanding my accent and as if it's that hard! He was just old. It was not the best time to have a stressful taxi ride. So i did get there and had thei nterview which lasted for over an hour. I'd hoped that was a good thing. I think it would be a great place to work.

After the interview i met Fi at Scottish Parliament. I thought that Fi might enjoy the Palace of Holyroodhouse which is opposite Parliament and we thought about climbing Arthur's Seat. I had a free pass to the Palace from the last time i went so we opted to go check that out before the climb. It was a good tour. I had only done it 6 weeks earlier but i still enjoyed it the second time around. I think Fi thought it was quite good also. I also rang the recruitment agent about the job interview and i'm told i'm the preferred candidate and i've basically got it! They just need to square it off so i'll know 100% on Tuesday (Bank holiday on Monday). So fingers crossed!

The Palace of Holyroodhouse

We then walked over to Arthur's Seat. Arthur's Seat is basically a huge volcanic rock that people climb. It is the highest point in Edinburgh and is meant to have excellent views. It was quite a windy day so i imagined it to be very windy 250 metres above the ground. I am also so unfit i wasn't sure about how i'd go, especially with someone fitter than me! We started the trek and it was very windy but a nice walk. I did puff a bit as i really am unfit. But at least this might burn off the scone with jam and cream i'd had at the Palace before hand. :) As you start to climb the view is already fabulous as Edinburgh is quite flat apart from Arthur's Seat and the castle. After about an hour of climbing we got to the top. It was SOO windy. I actually felt i needed to hold on the the rocks around me to stop myself falling off! I am very glad i did it though. The view across Edinburgh is spectacular. It was great seeing the Royal Mile from above and seeing how long it actually is. Also, it's great seeing Edinburgh Castle from a distance, it really is an awesome castle. As i sat on the top of the rocks and looked down i had my first moment of 'wow, this is my new home'. After being told i probably got the job and that i'd be here at least until Christmas, it's a weird feeling, and one i hadn't had before now.

The view from Arthur's Seat

We made the stroll down the hill which was nicer than the journey up. We talked about dinner and Fi was craving a healthy meal so i invited her back to my flat and i'd cook up a stir fry. We went to the supermarket on the way back to the flat and got some supplies and headed back to the flat. We also talked about seeing another show so i got on the internet and did some searching. We decided on heading to George Street at the Assembly to see Des Bishop. An Irish comedian who from his You Tube videos looked quite funny. After dinner we got onto the bus and headed to the theatre. We had time for a drink before hand and then headed into the show. As we waited to get into the show at 8.30pm i did get my first taste of the cold that Scotland is. We had to line up outside ad it was quite freezing. I was craving for a hat and scarf! The comedian was very funny and i'd recommend him. He is quite famous in Ireland so when i eventually get to Ireland i might see if he's got a show on at the same time. He was good looking too which isn't what you expect from a comedian!

I bid farewell to Fi as she headed off the next day for a Haggis tour then eventually back to OZ. I then headed home and looked forward to a quiet (and cheap!) weekend in...