Half-Year Recap (Part Two)

Greetings everyone,
 I can barely believe that I now have less than a month-and-a-half left in London. How time has flown! Before launching into the post, a quick announcement that I have finally booked the second - and final - leg of my flight HOME! I will be flying first from Malpensa Airport (Milan, Italy) to Singapore on Monday August 22, scheduled to arrive the following morning. 
 I look forward to catching up with the family and friends who are based there, as well as fitting in a trip to Malaysia over the weekend to visit my other maternal relatives, before flying out of Singapore late on Sunday evening August 28, scheduled to arrive in Melbourne at 9 a.m. the following morning. Funnily enough, both flights cost me 294 pounds each!

Plans for rest of time in London

 After the end of my stint at Queen Elizabeth Girls School, my main agency Vibe offered me guaranteed supply work until 4 July which I decided to take up in order to have some sort of stable income for the rest of my time here. I didn't really draw up a list of things to do before coming, and I'd like to think I've done most of the main touristy stuff now, especially when Vanessa was here.
 However, two things that I still haven't done yet which are high on my priority list are: 1) Go see a West End musical; and 2) Watch a day of cricket at Lord's, which I live close to. There are of course tons of musicals to choose from, and my cousin Vivian recommended Book of Mormon, which I might catch when I get back to Melbourne, but Aladdin has caught my interest. 
There are also of course things I need to sort out before leaving, which includes paperwork, notifying bank and internet / phone provider of my impending departure, and planning - and paying for - my summer holiday, which leads perfectly into the next part.

Summer holiday plans

 During the second half of July, as the school year gradually comes to a close and supply work dries up, I will take the chance to visit parts of Britain I haven't yet got around to. Depending how much time and money I have, the main places I want to see are Bath (pictured below), the Cotswolds, Cardiff and Snowdonia.

Once my pay from last week comes through, I will book my flight from London to Hamburg for August 1st. I will then have three weeks traveling around before flying out to Singapore. My basic itinerary looks like this: 

• August 1-4: HAMBURG, then take bus to Dresden
• August 4-7: DRESDEN, then take bus to Vienna
• August 7-13: VIENNA, during which time I hope to enrol at the Institut EWI for a week-long intensive German course
• Take bus or train to Salzburg
• August 13-15: SALZBURG, then take bus / train to Kitzbühel
• August 15-17: KITZBÜHEL, meet up with Greta, one of the tour guides from MUCS Choir Trip back in 2014
• Bus / train to Kitzbühel to INNSBRUCK, then stay overnight in Innsbruck, then take bus from Innsbruck to Milan on August 18
• August 18 - 22: MILAN, including a day trip to Como. Flying out at 12 pm on the 22nd, taking the Malpensa Express

It's voting time! 

 There probably hasn't been that much news about it back in Australia, but over here the time has almost arrived for the people to decide. This Thursday there is going to be a referendum on whether the UK should stay in or leave the EU. There are strong arguments on both sides, and the question of whether to leave or stay has divided the public. Although the government's official stance, according to their website, is to remain, there are a number of ministers and MPs who have gone to the other side. Although as a Commonwealth citizen I could have voted, I have decided not to since I'm not staying here much

longer, and would most likely not return to live here unless I could afford it. Whatever the outcome of Thursday's referendum is, it will be interesting to observe the consequences.
 However, there is something else that has got my attention, which is of course the upcoming Australian federal election on 2 July. Over here, we have the option of either postal vote or going to Australia House until July 1 to submit our vote. Although some people I know who are overseas have opted out of it, either because they can't be bothered or they can't see how their vote is going to make any difference, I nonetheless wish to exercise my civic right and responsibility to have a say in who should run our country. Whichever party is elected, I hope and pray that as always they will govern wisely and ensure that Australia will remain a place of peace and prosperity for future generations.   
 Cheers and God bless!