Casually Crazy Crete

Here it is... I know some have been waiting for this!

Our room in Crete was horrendous. Well, the room was ok- I guess. At a push. The bathroom on the other hand... Oh. My. Goodness. I nearly passed out at the sight of it! I opened the bathroom door and literally exploded with laughter. It didn't look clean, for starters. And the shower? What shower?! Basically it was a shower head on a hose, no walls or curtain so the water just went everywhere and there was a token shower "floor" which was a half metre square jammed in the corner. Scott took one look at it and erupted in laughter too. I couldn't believe we had just come from a palace in Santorini to this. Talk about a downgrade! 

Having spent the day at the beach and most of the night aboard a ferry, we needed showers. I went first. Cold. Freezing cold. I washed my hair (which was really rather difficult due to the shower being just 'in' the bathroom) and managed to wet the floor only a little. I didn't feel all that clean, but emerged and it was Scott's turn. I could hear laughter coming from the bathroom- Scott having a lol. He emerged stating two things. 

1.) "I flooded the bathroom. How did you not get water everywhere?" And;

2.) "I'm too fat for the shower square. Bum kept hitting the taps."

More laughter. What else can you do? 

The bed wasn't great- sheets were provided and there were blankets- but as Scott was "bloody boiling" all night I pulled a blanket on, from atop the wardrobe. I thought it had a strange smell. Oh yes. That's the smell of dust and filth! I ended up coughing most the night until I worked out that the blanket was dusty and threw it off- and froze instead. 

The next day, knowing full-well we were in the middle of nowhere, we asked where we could rent a car and were quite pleased when they said "Right here". Once again, Scott was keen to drive- fine by me. We basically followed the road and stopped wherever we felt like it and then drove back again, a five hour round trip. The little red Kia Picanto can't have been more than 1100cc- hilarious on hills, but the saying that fast cars are red? Ahem. Not a chance! Scott was really brave- the drivers in Crete are completely nuts. They don't seem to stay in lanes (if there are any lanes to begin with) or give way, they pull out whenever they feel like it, rarely signal and it really is just manic on the roads. They *try* and parallel park - as in jam on their anchors and try reverse into spaces they don't have a chance at fitting into! At times I felt like we were stuck in a game- spot the hazards! Scott was excellent actually and even though we saw multiple accidents, we were not involved in any. 

I can see how the Greeks thought that Scott was Greek. LOL 

Greeks also seem a little chillaxed on safety. As in I saw countless small children sitting on knees of adults in the front seats of cars- and nobody seems to wear helmets?! It didn't seem to matter- scooter, motorbike, quadbike... Even the Police didn't seem to wear them? Far out- with the way these people just pull out I would think a helmet a necessity! Mmmmm. Scrambled brains on the road... One guy even had his helmet dangling from his wrist. Seriously. 

Eek... not a nice sight to see first thing in the morning... 

Hmm. He tried to fit that beast in that small gap for a good five minutes before giving up. LOL. 

Casually not wearing a helmet. Safety? What?

Basically Scott and I just drove around Crete for two days - we found the market and made some small purchases- but this market was nothing compared to the one in Istanbul. Cocktails by the pool at night were probably the highlight in Crete... And the giant cheese platter for €8- that was pretty epic too. We both wished we stayed in Santorini and gave Crete a miss. Hindsight's a bitch. 

So beginning to end, this trip to Greece seemed to have a travel curse. Scott's iPhone was stolen from under our noses, we missed our coach to Gatwick, our flight to Greece was delayed by a few hours, our ferry was no longer running and we ended up randomly on a French tour *and* we were tricked into thinking that there was no public transport so forked out for a taxi unnecessarily. No trip would be complete without one more hiccup. I'm sure you would have heard that the public sector in Athens keep striking. Well today was our unlucky day. Our flight was delayed by two hours due to "striking of the control room staff"- not overly enjoyable. This also meant our return coach tickets to London will become invalid - as we will be arriving back after it departs. But... a holiday isn't a holiday without some adventures- and thank goodness both Scott and I have been chilled about it- as Scott kept saying "It is what it is". We got on really well- and I really enjoyed his company, especially having spent some time traveling alone. He is always good for a relaxed laugh or ten, as those who know him would agree. Now we are headed back to London town. Scott goes back to NZ on Tuesday (jealous!) and I will remain in London town for a few more adventures before home. It has been awesome seeing someone from home, that's for sure!

When I arrived in the UK there were three countries I was determined to visit before home. Turkey: tick. Egypt: tick. And now... Greece: tick! In just 9 months I have achieved so much... 9 months is the time it takes to have a baby. In some ways (without getting too ridiculously deep) I have been reborn in a way. I have grown as a person and learnt new things along the way. Moving out of NZ for this time has been the best thing for me- and I'm proud of all I've achieved in that time. So before I go on any further and you need to crank out the tissues... I'll just say;

Cheery bye :)

Sun-kissed Santorini

We arrived into the Port of Santorini at 12.45am on the 18th of September. People starting herding off the ferry in a great hurry and it was strange, because what we could see outside just looked like cliffs - not very populated and very quiet. The owner, Stelios, from our accommodation "Stelios Place" was waiting for us with a sign- how amazing it was to arrive at nearly 1am to be picked up! Scott and I were a little jaded from our ferry ride and were looking forward to a nice, clean bed. We were not at all prepared for what our accommodation would be like..... 

Don't panic! It was an absolute palace. It was beautiful. Fresh, clean colours- probably recently decorated, a double *and* a single bed and as far as a room goes- huge! Stelios explained a few things to us before excusing himself for bed. As soon as he left, both Scott and I leapt with excitement. Well I did. Scott kept saying "Shit, this is a palace!" as I danced about, and inspected the bathroom- so nice! For anyone who knows me well, it's all about the nice bathroom! (Ooh Dad- great tapware too- all Hansgrohe... I inspected the plumbing! Hehe)

How nice is this bathroom?? For 'cheap' accommodation, anyway!

Amazing... nice and clean :)

We finally went to sleep, air conditioning blaring away much to Scott's pleasure (this boy is seriously hot-blooded!) and woke when we woke- about 10am. After amazing showers we ventured out and headed to the reception/breakfast area where we ordered chocolate milkshakes, bacon and eggs. Epic. Nom. 

This is the breakfast area... oh, and the pool. Quackles and Paddles came on this trip too, of course!

This photo is rad.

Once we were done there we walked across the road to "Moto-mania" to rent a quad bike for the day. There were two choices. The first was a 150cc quad bike, €15 for 24 hours. The other? €30 for a 200cc. Insert "Tim the tool man Taylor" grunting here (in fact I can hear my dad making this noise right now!) How stoked were Scott and I to have chosen the bike with more power as we whizzed past 150cc bikes on all the hills?! Scott, being the boy, did all the driving. I wasn't phased either way but he was dead keen! It has to be said that he was *outstanding* as far as quad bike driving- he slowed for all the corners so we avoided sudden death (Greeks like to cut corners... they appear to be rather lazy drivers!) and was generally very good- I felt perfectly safe as we rode around the island. 

Um. I love Santorini. It is beautiful and SO blue!

Scott and his new toy...

Rocking the helmets - Safety Sarah insisted...

I'm going to mention, briefly, the driving skills (or lack there of) of the Greeks. In one word, Scott would sum the driving up as "casual". And that it was! They sometimes indicate, but rarely. They tend to drive in the shoulder of the road a lot, they park wherever they want- which ever direction they want, even randomly up on curbs outside shops, and they don't wear helmets when on motorcycles, scooters or quad bikes. Casual indeed! We couldn't work out the give-way rule for the life of us- it seemed to be that if there was a space, it must be your turn. People randomly pull out and sneak into traffic- I don't think that the Greeks know what the traffic rules are either, to be fair. 

Some awesome side-saddling going on there...

We rode that quad bike, with just €10 petrol in it, all over Santorini Island. It was so, so much fun! We stopped when it looked interesting, including at two beaches to swim and bask in the sunshine, and we also stopped for drinks and snacks. Oh and togs for scott who didn't bring any!!  Quad bikes are awesome. We had the wind in our hair, bugs and dust in our faces and hair- and we were *happy*. I couldn't stop grinning! It was just so cool being out in the open air when the view was as stunning as it was! I snapped photos most of the way (look Mum! No hands!!) and held onto Scott for the faster bits. 

Yep - it's this way! 

Mmmm. Sunshine, ocean and sand.... WINNING

This was taken from the end of the driveway from where we were staying.
Yep. That's Perissa Beach, right there. AMAZING

We rode from 11am-5:30pm after an epic day which we both thoroughly enjoyed. We didn't see donkeys for riding (much to my disappointment) but it was made up with riding a quad bike! We went back to Stelios Place to shower and dress up before embarking on a dinner trip- on the quad bike again. It was rather random being all dressed up on a quad bike, but hey! We had transport! We found a restaurant which overlooked the sea and ordered Pizza and Fries- not overly Greek but nice all the same. Does it count that I ordered the Greek pizza? We left there and headed home again, via a supermarket which was closing as we entered so the women working there were grumpy that we went in there- but we wanted snacks to have later with our wine we had bought earlier.

Dinner :) Scott looks a litte red there... check out my brown arms!! OoooOooOoooo!

Once 'home' we enjoyed our wine (actually the wine was awful, but miraculously it got better the more we drank it!) with cheese and crackers and had a D&M (deep and meaningful) before retiring for the night, ready for another day on the beach. What we found out that day, is that our favourite beach of the ones we visited was actually only a two minute walk from our accommodation - awesome. 

The following day we woke, packed, checked out and ate breakfast again before heading to Perissa beach- a whole two minutes from our doorstep. We found ourselves a good posse with two sun-loungers and an umbrella (amazing) for €5 and settled in for some rays. Scott laughed at me during this trip to Santorini because I put sunblock everywhere- whereas he never wore any block at all. I'm not keen on skin cancer though. Even though I wore sunblock- I most definitely got a nice tan (for me!) I know this because when I'm naked.... I'm still wearing a bikini! Haha!

We had a ride to the ferry to Crete arranged with Stelios for 5pm departure, so at 4pm we decided to go back and see about getting organised- and hopefully change our clothes. As we strolled up the driveway to Stelios place we were greeted by Stelios himself who said that there was a change of plan and that we needed to leave right now- so there went our plan of getting changed!! We got to the port and I went to collect our ferry tickets, only to be told that actually, the timetable for the ferry had changed since I booked (which was the end of June) and no longer goes to Heraklion- which is where we needed to be. Scott was outside, having a yule, whilst the man at the counter was telling me that it was "Ok- you can go somewhere else". Um? I think not. He then explained that we could board a tour group ferry, bound for another port and catch a bus to Heraklion. So we ended up on a ferry full of French people. 

We were told once on there that we could stay on board when everyone else got off, and then the ferry would take another two hours to get to Heraklion, arriving just short of midnight. We were supposed to be arriving at 8:30pm. Not impressed. Not impressed because 

1.) We paid twice the price to catch the 'fast' ferry, and:

2.) We would not be able to bus to our accommodation as originally planned, so we had to taxi. We got there in the end though. 

The ferry ride was (sorry to use this word again...) casual. When we made the first stop and all the French got off, Scott and I just sat there. It was an eerie feeling - knowing you're the only ones left. Some of the crew thought we had forgotten to get off! From the moment the ferry was empty of the French passengers, we felt like flies on a wall. By this I mean that the crew behaved as if we weren't there. There were casual groups of Greeks sitting around, some were cleaning- some going hard out and some doing the bare minimum. What cracked us up the most were all the "No Smoking" signs posted around the ferry. But once those passengers were out, the crew were lighting up. So random. So chillaxed. So... Casual! Scott was a good passenger and still went out on deck for a yule- he wouldn't do that inside. 

So random to be on board and see what goes on once everyone gets off!

Having a casual rest... he struggled to choose where on earth to lie...cramped for space, you see!

Smoking club... hmmm... no smoking on the vessel... really?

After two hours of reading, wandering the empty ferry, spying on the crew and watching how they behaved when not "working" and having had a nap stretched out across multiple seats, we arrived at Heraklion Port, Crete. Basically the ship crew opened up the ramp, said "Bye-bye" and suddenly Scott and I were in a new city at midnight, with no way of reaching our accommodation without first finding a taxi. We walked for a bit and asked a couple of men at a kiosk about the buses, which had long since stopped for the night. They then said that the options were a taxi (which they said would set us back €50!!) or stay in a hotel nearby. We decided to keep walking and call our accommodation to see what they said (secretly hoping they'd take pity on us and the dramas we had experienced that night and come pick us up- HA!) who explained to us where to find a taxi- luckily it only cost €30.... But still- it should have cost us less than €5 each on a bus. Never mind. We were finally at our abode for the next three nights, exhausted and ready for bed. The man at the accommodation greeted us and showed us to our room. Scott even hauled my suitcase up the stairs for me- an actual gentleman... Well-trained Leanne Gaddes! What happened next? Not much, really... I guess if you really want to know you will need to read installment number four of the Greece blogs!

Cheery bye :)

Athens - the ruined city...

Scott and I flew into Athens airport after our palaver of plane trip. It wasn't all that bad- we had full bellies consisting of all the snacks available on the menu because we were so ravenous. Perhaps overkill, although we enjoyed our chocolate, chips, cheese and crackers, pepsi's, soup and hot chocolate very much. Oh- Scott had a bacon baguette too. The runway was interesting... We landed onto it and taxied along, *above* the motorway- very odd to see cars driving below! We found our way to the bus to our hotel quite easily, and ended up in Syntagma Square. From here we needed to get onto another bus, but didn't really know where from. We were soon pounced upon by two taxi-men who proceeded to tell us that the buses and trains stop at 10pm- so we ended up forking out the €25 to get to our hotel. It was the following night that we realised we were done- public transport goes until midnight. Fail! 

Our hotel room was nice - interesting decor, but nice! It had an Arabian sort of flavour with its reds and oranges and draped fabric, but there was a bed and clean towels. And our own bathroom. Happy :)

In the morning we casually got up at about 10am, showered and headed out for something to eat, do and see. We were waiting to cross a busy street and there was a random old lady standing in the middle. When it was safe to do so, we crossed to the centre- I was standing next to her. The next thing I knew, she was grabbing onto me and muttering something or other, so I offered her my hand for support to get across - whilst she rambled on in Greek and I smiled politely. When we reached the other side, she went on her merry (but painfully slow) way and I caught up to Scott- opening up my bag to get out a travel antibacterial wipe. Scott laughed about that, but I didn't know where the old bird had been and her hands were slimy. Germophobic Some things never change. 

We realised there wasn't much around where we were staying so ended up buying a baguette and some brie cheese - the cheese only cost 90€ cents- but that's probably because it was bitter and 'orrible!! We then needed to find somewhere to sit and eat- Scott mentioned he found a park nearby... not sure if that's what I'd call it! Barren and brown... And dusty and full of rats of the sky (pigeons, shudder!) but it did us fine. 

Scott turned into a giant holding his Coke Zero...

The playground... hmmm. 

From there we needed to find something to do or see, and by about 3pm we had finally worked out where the city centre was, and had worked out where the Acropolis was, which was the one thing I really wanted to see in Athens. Athens is an interesting place for tourists. Very little signs in English if and when there are any signs! The trains are quite hard to work out at first, because the signage is so bad- (slash: non existent) but once you know your way around and how it works it's fine. I think that once you have lived in London and mastered the underground system, anything else you come across you pick up quite quickly. 

Oh the things you observe on the train. There are always interesting things that happen on the train, and I'm not referring to the random Greeks who would walk up to Scott and speak in Greek. To be fair- his wooly black hair, olive toned skin and aviator shades do make him *look* suspiciously Greek... I'm also not going to elaborate on the men who seem to think that rearranging their nut-sack any time, any place is acceptable. No. This time I'm talking about the homeless person trying to sell packets of tissues, the woman with the hairiest arms who then decided that raising her arms to hold onto the rail, baring the hairiest armpits I've ever seen on a woman that I've ever seen. Then there was the man who unfolded a piece of paper and rambled on about who knows what, before finishing his can of Red Bull, opening the window above me and throwing it out of the train. I was shocked. I wanted to say something but obviously didn't. He then threw his friends can out too. Clearly they don't care so much about the environment - which is terrible... it is filthy dirty. Rubbish is everywhere - it seems that people see a space and decide to fill it with rubbish. Yuck. It's not a patch on Egypt, mind you!

Anyway. Back to the blog. We emerged at Akropolis station and followed the signs to the Acropolis. You can't miss it, really. It is huge! We paid our €24 for two and entered the grounds- ready to embark up the hill. I mean mountain. In the blaring heat no less, Scott saying over and again "God it's hot! I can't cope" and me laughing about it- it was most definitely hot- 37 degrees at one point, but I didn't seem to be doing too badly. We reached halfway up the Acropolis and came to the theatre of Dionysos Eleuthereus, which we had a sit in and were quite impressed with, although it is quite dilapidated. 

Theatre of Dionysos  

Pondering...

Continuing on, Scott moving onto; you guessed it, "Shit, it's hot!" we came across a second theatre. This one was a thousand times more impressive than the last - and more complete. It even had light and sound equipment installed so was clearly in use. Breath taking. Scott and I decided we should do a show there. This one was called the Odeion of Herodes Atticus. 

The view from the Acropolis 

Odeion

Onwards up the hill and up some huge marble steps, through a passageway and BANG! There it was. The Parthenon- the thing I had wanted to see since learning about it in sixth form Classical Studies. Amazing. It is being restored so there is a fair amount of scaffolding there, which will be there for years to come because basically- it's falling down. A bit sad really- and bizarre standing in front of something that finished completion in 438BC. I have stood in awe of so many places this year- how lucky I am to add this to my list of things I have seen. 

Amazing! There it is!!!

Just add it to the list of AMAZING sights I have seen this year...

After we had looked at be view from the top of the Acropolis down on the city of Athens and talked about how insanely dense the city was with hardly any green patches at all, we ventured down the northern side to the streets below and went back to the hotel to get showered and dressed to go out for a meal. 

We easily made our way back in the town (now that we understood the rail system) and went to The Hard Rock Cafe, which was very nice although we ended up ridiculously full because we had a starter and then the main came out with no time for a breather... Whoops! Full up to dolly's wax we decided to go home and lie on our beds. It was then that I explained to Scott that in ancient Greece and Rome, the wealthy would gorge on food, then use a feather to throw up again after so that they could eat more. We considered this. Briefly. 

More food than I could eat... but so goooood.  

At the Hard Rock Cafe 

It was so hot in our room that neither of us could sleep and Scott kept proclaiming that "It's too hot- I can't cope!" so we talked rubbish for a bit before drifting off. I woke at about 8am- but we stayed in bed and finally got up about 10:30am- plenty of time for our 12 o'clock checkout! By 11:50am we were ready to leave, as I put my watch on, glanced down and noticed it was reading ten to two. 1:50pm. No way. It couldn't be. I checked if the battery had stopped- nope! My iPhone was still on London time- whoops! Auto time update? Umm? Fail! Luckily the girl downstairs didn't say anything- although we wondered why they hadn't called us to see why we hadn't checked out yet! Must be common to wake up and check out late with the Greeks. 

Now we are on the ferry, Santorini bound- we are both excited about the next few days as we intend on doing nothing but eating, drinking and swimming. Bring it on!

Cheery bye :)

Sarah and Scott: A series of unfortunate events...

I feel that I need to start at the very beginning, because it is a very good place to start. I arrived at Victoria Station a few minutes before mine and Scott's agreed meeting time, to receive a call from

Scott to say that the Jubilee line was down- so he would be late. Three trains and many minutes later he arrived. We were busy enjoying our cooked breakfasts from The Dukes Arms inside Victoria Station when some random man from the street walked in, up to us with a Starbucks brochure in hand, and in broken English (or perhaps not even English) wanted to know where Starbucks was. The brochure is a significant thing to mention, because as he was asking for instructions, he randomly lay the brochure down on our table. Scott looked at the man, saw I tried to help him and continued on with his breakfast. I explained where Starbucks was located (shocking I knew, really tehehe) and thought it seemed random that this man, wearing a brown jacket with an orange and brown plaid shirt underneath, had laid his brochure on the table. He then awkwardly picked it up and left. I saw Scott's passport sitting on the table, where that brochure had been laid, and asked if anything else was there before- as I jammed his passport into the safety of my handbag. Scott said "No- that was lucky", we both had a lol about the strange event and we finished our breakfast and headed towards the coach station. 

It wasn't until we only has 15 minutes to go until our coach left for Gatwick Airport, that Scott patted his pockets and said "Wait on. Phone." He then checked his bag. No phone. 

"Right- well we will have to go back then." so off we went- back to the pub- cutting time finely. We arrived back at the pub and checked our area- no phone. It was then we were convinced that the asshole who was asking "directions" really did us over- and was now the proud new owner of a Black 16GB iPhone 4. Outstanding. 

Scott was taking it quite well. Both of us were annoyed that it was something that stupid that caused this. How easy it should have been to see coming, and how trusting and helpful Kiwi's are. Perhaps not now. 

We were really cutting time finely now- we arrived at the coach station, checked which gate we needed and high-tailed it to the gate only to find that we missed the bus. By one minute. Un-freaking-believable. We then had to walk back and find the National Express booking office and pay to change our ticket to an hour later. We were so lucky that we had time up our sleeves before our flight was due to leave!

Finally we arrived at the airport, checked in and Scott had a cheeky smoke. Meanwhile, I was feeling more and more stressed about missing the flight (anyone would think that this has happened to me before... it has...) and finally we were in our seats. 

Once settled in, we were waiting for the plane to start up- but it didn't. Time went by. Minutes even. Half an hour. Forty five minutes. An hour! At last the cabin crew leader came across the speaker to explain that we were to be delayed due to a refueling problem. Awesome. More minutes later and the Captain was standing at the front of the plane. He went on to explain that the fuel tanker had been filling the plane, but it drove off mid-fill because our flight should already have departed. What the? We waited longer - getting frustrated. Scott was losing it he was so hungry. Ravenous. It was, in all fairness, getting beyond a joke. The Captain came out again to explain that the fuel tanker had returned, but a puddle of fuel had leaked onto the runway and we were unable to fly until it had been cleared. More waiting. And then there were fire engines on the runway. That's different... 

Yep. That's a bucket of rags used to mop up spilled aviation fuel...

It's serious business... 

Finally the all clear was given- after two and a half hours of sitting on the plane. By the time food came around during our flight people just went nuts for it- and things were running out left, right and centre. Madness. People were just ridiculously ravenous. 

But- we are now in Athens and we are safe....

So... cheery bye :)

Blackpool. Lights, flamboyancy and pretty boys

I spent three nights with Kylie and Martijn in London town last week, seeing Les Miserables for the second time at The Queen's Theatre and having the amazing opportunity to see Alfie Boe in the role of Jean Val Jean, and the incredibly talented Matt Lucas in the role of Msr. Thenarider. Alfie's voice filled the theatre every time he opened his mouth to sing, and you could hear a pin drop, he has such an effortless voice. It was lucky he was well enough to perform as he has missed quite a number of performances due to illness recently. Matt Lucas was amazing as Thenardier. I can't think of anyone else suited better to the role. His comic timing was simply brilliant. He ad-libbed a few times but it was so clever and so fitting and true to his role that it added to his performance. He owned the stage each and every time he was on it.

A really funny thing he did (which I have not seen before) was during the Master of the House scene he was seen meandering about the stage, grabbed an empty beer bottle from a customer, went to the side of the stage, fumbled with his pants and pretended to pee into the bottle, then gave it back to the customer after taking some money. He then walked around the stage and by the end of the song the bottle had made it back into his hands and he took a big swig just before the end of the song - then realising what he had drunk from he ran around the spit it out. I was quite focused on him and his characteristion so I noticed things that he did. Anyway - long story short, I *loved* Les Miserables the second time around, no stand-ins and it was just magic. Really pleased I saw it again before I return home to NZ.

If you haven't seen Matt in action as Thenardier, you'll appreciate this snippet from the 25th Anniversary.

I was up early on Thursday morning in order to get from Fulham to Euston Station, and got on the train at 8:30am to Carlisle, arriving at midday where Neil and Pam were waiting patiently on the platform. We then drove for two hours to Blackpool where we were to be spending the next five days. The hotel we are staying in is called Hotel Babylon, and is owned by the loveliest couple, David and Craig. It is clean, comfortable and has everything you would want - I would recommend anyone staying here looks them up! On Thursday evening we ventured out to find some dinner and a drink. We had fish and chips and then went into a pub that Neil and Pam go into most years they come here. Unfortunately one of the guys who worked there was really one of the people who really brought in the customers and is no longer there, so it was pretty dead. We went onwards to another pub, where that man I just mentioned now works, and it was humming with people. Neil ordered me a drink at the bar, and the barman took one look at me and said 'Not without ID please'. I was quite surprised, but understood that he was just doing his job. I said it was funny as I am 29 in a month - the barman thought I was taking the piss with that comment! He said I have an incredibly young face. I'm happy to look younger than I am - but I don't really want to look younger than 18! The pub was also awesome because it had karaoke. Now, I really enjoy a spot of karaoke. In fact that is a lie - I *love* it! In saying that, I have only ever done it in front of friends or family, so the idea of singing in front of a crowded pub of people in the middle of Blackpool was not something I was seriously considering. After listening to some other pub-goers have a go, I decided I couldn't do any worse...

I quite fancy a spot of Billy Joel... Jeez I look like Mum!

Happy times in Blackpool, with Neil and Pam

It is funny how people get a microphone in their hand, a drink down their throat and are suddenly convinced that they can sing famously. Even me. Haha. Seriously though, I love listening to people have a good old sing, even sometimes if they really can't hit any of the right notes at the right time, because anyone should be allowed to sing. It makes you feel good. I know that in the past I would belt out songs in the car (when nobody could hear or see me) and it just does something to you - it releases endorphins, it is like free happy medication. I wish I was a better singer than I am, but I know at least I am able to sing in tune. After a number of Malibu and Cokes I had plucked up the courage, and Neil put in my song: "Piano Man" by Billy Joel. That song always puts me in a good mood. My name came up and I approached the 'stage', was handed the mic and waited for the intro of the song to finish so I could come in. I don't know what the audience thought, but I was standing there (knees knocking at first) thinking "Bugger it, I don't know any of these people and I am highly unlikely to ever see them again in my life!" and from then I owned that stage, hilarious as it may sound. I had actions and everything - the audience loved it and I even got some joining in on the 'La de da's'. I felt pretty high once I was done, but one song was enough for me. I think I did Neil and Pam proud.

After we left that pub we moved onto a Gay Club called 'Mardis Gras' (http://www.themardigrasblackpool.com/) which is somewhere I know several of my friends would absolutely *love*! It was really funny as Pam kept checking if I was OK - she was quite unsure if I was comfortable in a 'gay' environment, which, if people know me, I totally am! It was a good laugh and we got talking to a few couples, one guy whose 40th Birthday it was, Philip, pulled me right up front to where there was a male stripper and kept saying 'Quick - get a photo, get a photo!' so I was busy snapping away, basically on his behalf! All good for a laugh. He decided he was adopting me as his sister for the night, and that was that. It was a great night, and we got home shortly before 1am and fell into bed.

G.I Stripper Man 

Philip, myself and Pam

In the morning we went into town and had a walk around, and down one of the piers in Blackpool. It is amazing how many amusement arcades they have here in Blackpool, insane! But fun to walk around. We played a couple of games, but won nothing! The beach in Blackpool is so vast, it is incredible to see when the tide is all the way out - such a deep beach. I enjoyed being a big kid in the amusement arcade.

Pier in Blackpool. Yes. It was cold and windy!

Such a big kid!

After that we drove into a nearby town called Lytham and walked around the shops, basically had a nice and quiet day. It was pleasant to wander around with no real intentions! I think Neil and Pam were worried I was bored - but to be honest I have done so much rushing here, there and everywhere that it was welcomed to just meander! I realise I have effectively been on holiday since the middle of July, but at the same time it is exhausting to be on holiday! I had been feeling really tired, but once we were out near the ocean I had a run around (pretending to be an airplane) and suddenly found some energy!

That's right. I'm a jet plane.

That evening was the first Friday of September, which is the date that the Blackpool Illuminations are switched on. The Illuminations Festival is an annual event, which started back in 1879. It runs each year for 66 days, and is known as the greatest free light festival on earth. It reminded me of Christmas. Pam, Neil and I went down into town to watch the grand switch on, which wasn't as impressive as I had expected, but we may not have been standing in the best place. But it was quite a nice atmosphere all the same! The Blackpool Tower looks stunning all lit up - and the street the lights are on is the length of the beach pretty much - that's a LOT of lights, about 10km worth! Ryan would LOVE it - so would Mum!

WOW! Mum and Dad would LOVE one of these in their garden at Christmas! 

Last night we went to Funny Girls, which is a burlesque cabaret bar in Blackpool, and is known the world over. For those who don't know... what makes them 'Funny Girls', is that all of them are actually boys! Even Prince Charles enjoys a performance or two - being they have performed at the Royal Variety Show more than once! It was only £4 to go in and stand to watch, or £20 for a table, but in all honesty I would rather stand - especially given we danced and had a good time in-between costume changes. It is just mind blowing - you simply *cannot* get a world-class quality performance anywherre that I know of for just £4! The bargirls were stunning, all with legs up to their armpits and the most gorgeous faces. Some had big hands, but many were delicate wee things. What I would do for legs like theirs!! Zoe is the emcee, and she runs the show smoothly and talks when the girls are changing into their next costumes.

I got a real surprise as someone (even now I am not sure who?!) gave Zoe a piece of paper which had a song request, dedicated to me. The song was "I am what I am" which is super awesome - firstly because Mum has sung that song in a show before, and secondly because 'La Cage' is an awesome musical. Zoe then said "So you have come all the way to NZ to stay in a shit-hole like Blackpool.... whhhyyyy?" which got a few laughs. It was a nice surprise to have a dedication. I spent the breaks in the show dancing with David, one of the hotel owners, which was really fun. All in all, an absolutely stunning show - the costumes were just to die for - Michael Sanders would have loved and appreciated those! I could just see Travis McWalter, I mean, ahem, Anna Rexia up there on stage - he is equally as talented a dancer and as beautiful as any of the performers I saw last night. In fact he would be in his *element* in a place like Funny Girls! They did performances including highlights from 42nd Street, Lord of the Dance, 60s, Abba and the Beatles, Beyonce - as well as some other alternative performances. I was definitely WOWED and had an awesome evening.

Swinging 60s

Lord of the Dance. WOW

Beyonce... put a ring on it!

She reminded me of Travis McW- but Travi has longer legs!

David and I having a dance :)

Blitz section, Boogey Woogey Bugle Boy

42nd Street! 

ABBA

David, Pam, Craig, Me and Neil - professional photo at Funny Girls 

Zoe and I. 

I have had yet another wonderful time with Neil and Pam - have been well and truly spoilt and had a tonne of fun. From here I travel back to Workington for one night, then onto London town until the 16th of September - as I am off to Greece with Scott who arrives tomorrow. Excitement doesn't begin to describe my feelings - I can't wait to see someone familiar from home! I have been a busy girl, and long may this continue as that is what life is about! Until my next adventure (you know it won't be too far away!)...

Cheery bye :)

I will leave you some short videos of Funny Girls if you're interested... I found them on YouTube. I didn't take video as you're not supposed to... photos yes, video no. But here they are!