A new era for Bangor

The new Debenhams in Bangor (and my place of work) opened with a flurry of excitement on Tuesday. There was a huge queue waiting for the ribbon to be cut at 10am and I was dying to know what was in the free goody bags that were being handed out. A slow start for us on the shoe department with many people 'just browsing' but people were impressed nonetheless. I lost count of the number of people who told me how beautiful the new store was and how nice it was to have a shop this good in Bangor. I must say I agree. Debenhams is the first into what is going to be a small shopping centre and, by the look of the signage thats gone up outside, River Island and Body Shop will soon be joining us. Finally I can really shop!

In other news I finally found a dentist. Tragically the local NHS dentist has a 2 year waiting list and none of the Denplan dentists are taking new patients so I find myself in the somewhat luxurious and definitely expensive position of 'going private'. I rang round a few and was shocked and appalled by the prices. Initial consultations ranged from £45 (which I initially baulked at) to £80!! Just to look at the teeth and take a few X-rays! My Teesside self died as I rang back Mr £45 to make an appointment. And that appointment was this morning. The dentist was nice enough and got rid of a few stains but didn't actually even clean my teeth! Apparently I need to pay an extra £35 to get the hygienist to do it! When I baulked once again at this suggestion he promised it would be the best clean ever and I would really be able to see the difference. I'll let you know if he's right.....

I got a job!

I finally managed to get a job! Perhaps not a classic move for a former PhD student but I am now a very happy store assistant in the shoe department at the new Debenhams in Bangor. I've been training this week and next week we get to play with the stock before opening the week after. Yay me!

Not quite the tempest we expected

Well the 'storm' was frankly disappointing! It did sound quite windy and rainy last night but no thunder or lightening. Good for the ferry port I'm sure but as a spectator it was quite dull :(

Batten down the hatches! There's a storm brewing!

Well the sun is shining at the moment but according to Radio 1 newsbeat the worst storm in 80 years is due to hit Anglesey tonight. Holyhead port is being closed because they fear it will be so bad. I thought the weather had been too good to be true! I'll update you on whether we've been blown away in the gales tomorrow.

In other news I may be close to getting employment. I had an interview for sales assistant in a shoe shop the other day and I've got another interview this coming Friday so watch this space. Not exactly making the best use of my 8 years of higher education but it'll do for now ;) Today I will be mostly filling in application forms for high street banks in an attempt to get a job that may one day become a career. Fingers crossed!

Other than that its been thesis thesis thesis.

The sun has got his hat on

Apparently it doesn't always rain on Anglesey. We're currently enjoying a couple of weeks of lovely sunshine. Its still blumming cold but at least everything looks nicer. Buoyed by the sunshine we've just enjoyed 2 pretty perfect weekends.

The weekend before Valentine's day marked a year of being engaged to Ben so we celebrated with a yummy meal at seafood restaurant Cafe Neptune in Beaumaris. During the day we decided to investigate the charms of Holyhead and set off up the A55 to the coast. 10 minutes of wandering away from the car taught us that the only charm of Holyhead is the opportunity to make a quick getaway by ferry over to Ireland. Our 'daytrip' cut short we decided on a safe bet and drove to Rhosneigr for a walk along the beach. My search for a pet crab was once again fruitless but we had fun nevertheless.

This weekend we were playing host to Ben's dad so we were forced to go out for another meal (and by forced I mean we suggested it). This time it was Ruby's in Menai Bridge. Mmm sea bass. To work up an appetite we went to Newborough beach. Ever the optimist I wore my flip flops for this and even braved a little paddle in the sea. After about 10 seconds my toes went numb which made it easier to enjoy paddling around in the rock pools in search of a pet crab (no luck again!).

On the Sunday we did the quintessential 'tourist in Llanfairpwllgwyngyll' trip and went to the gift shop at the station. No less than 5 coaches were parked up and after stopping for the compulsory photo under the sign they all piled in to the shop! Surely there is more to look at than an admittedly enormous gift shop! In search of slightly better attractions we headed down to the church that the village is named after to take some pretty pics (and unwittingly make friends with someone else's dog by throwing a stick). A final stop at the lookout point to look over the Menai Straits and we were all touristed out.

All moved in and making friends

The last weekend of January saw me and Ben making the now familiar drive back over to Leicester to collect the final (really!) 2 car loads of my stuff. At this point I was forced to conclude that I have a lot of stuff - not such a revelation to Rhian and Ben who have been telling me this for ages. Anyway the point is that I am now fully moved out of Leicester and into Llanfairpwllgwyngyll!

While in Leicester I took the opportunity to go into work and remind Gordon of my existence and also to attend afternoon coffee and see my friends! Being in the house all day in Wales working on my thesis has not helped in my quest to make new friends. I have joined the gym and tried smiling at people in the hope it might spark conversation but I think people just think I'm a bit odd. The old ladies in aqua class seem to be warming to me though so I may have a new knitting circle soon! Apologies to people in Leicester for probably talking them to death that day - it was so nice to see you all!

I may have turned a social corner this week. On Monday night ChemSoc (yes Ben is masquerading as a chemist these days) held a cocktail party and Ben took me along to meet his friends. I came back from the loo at one point to hear people saying to him "so she is real" - well it has been over a month since I arrived! They turned out to be a lovely bunch and very friendly and welcoming, telling me I should come join them for lunch and spend time with them when Ben's away at conferences. Perhaps settling here for a few years won't be so bad.

A visit from the outside world

As it turned out moving all of my remaining stuff out of Leicester in 2 cars was wildly optimistic and my long suffering housemate Rhian kindly agreed to let my stuff squat in her flat a little longer (love you Rhi!) Even my sister ended up being drafted in and driving 4 hours out of her way to bring a car load over.

While she was here I took the opportunity to do some exploring of my new surroundings. First we took the very cool 40mph cliff side road over to Beaumaris which I'd visited with Ben the previous summer and discovered the best fish and chips in the world. Unfortunately it seems that businesses in Beaumaris don't like to take money in the month of January as almost everywhere was closed - damn the tourist based town! With rumbling stomachs we drove back over to Menai Bridge and found a cafe that was open (and as it turned out did yummy food). In search of a slightly bigger town to explore we decided to take the scenic route over to Holyhead, the biggest town on the island. At this point good old Welsh weather intervened and by the time we arrived it was raining so badly that it wasn't worth getting out of the car (and also we forgot any money for parking) so turned the car round and headed back home.

Day 2 of Charlotte's visit and she was gagging for some shopping (must be in the genes). Ben suggested nearby Caernarfon which he said people had recommended to him as having some nice boutiquey shops. We enjoyed a good few hours wandering round the castle town which did indeed have some lovely little shops. And a Woolworths! Even Leicester doesn't have that ;) Fish and chips overlooking the Menai Straits rounded off a nice day until Charlotte decided to prompt an attack by an assortment of birds by throwing a chip. We beat a hasty retreat back to the village.