Good news at last :)

I FOUND A JOB!!! At last! No more worrying about getting my CV out there and constantly making a good impression. It's such a relief... I now work for a hair product company called Van Tibolli Beauty. To be honest, I was hired because they needed someone who can speak French to help out with the French market. My very first office job, and in the fashion industry! How exciting! Naturally I had to go shopping, as I mostly brought t-shirts and jeans with me (how tragic...). I didn't buy much, just two shirts, one pair of pants and flats, but it's a good start. I'm particularly happy about the flats, as the past has taught me that quality comfortable flats at an affordable price are not easy to find.

And so I had the perfect outfit for my first day today, which was great. Everybody has been very nice, especially my manager. She is the sweetest thing. And the CEO actually told me that I was asking good and important questions. We are off to a great start, I believe I made a great first impression. In the future I will take care of social media pages and I will work more closely with our representative in France (who I met through Skype and who happens to love my accent), but for now I mostly enter data online. I like it though, I leave at the end of the day feeling like I accomplished something. I do however have homework, with is this:

Free bottles of product, selected for me by my manager :) There are worst jobs, that's for sure!

My purchases

Pretty little flats :)

All dressed up and ready to go!

 All and all, it was a good day. I even found the perfect apartment. It is beautiful, clean, and shared with four lovely girls. Problem is, I'm not the only one interested, so I have to wait and see if they call me. If not, it means they picked someone else. I really hope they pick me!

Lesson of the day: You're in Dublin, honey, you're going to walk more than you think. So unless you want to make your blisters bleed, break in your shoes...

Photographic memory

Hello devoted readers,
I realize that my blog is lacking activity, unlike my life. The problem is, I might be crazy busy, I still haven't found a job and I'm still on the hunt for my second apartment, which means I don't have much to say. Instead, I decided to make this post about pictures I have accumulated on my phone. It'll give you a little taste of Dublin and Templeogue.

The view coming into Temple Bar

Very nice paintings on the front of a restaurant in Temple Bar

Never a dull moment on Grafton Street with its many street performers

Saturday night out

Yes, this is graffiti. Although it was probably done legally as I saw the artist working on it in the middle of the day.

Forget the burger, it's all about the apple juice. It's like drinking an apple straight up.

A little piece of home in this foreign land.

The lineup for the casting of extras for Vikings

My lovely free frozen yogurt. You make it like you want, then you pay by the gram. If you guess the exact weight then it's free. Mine was 206 grams and I guessed it right :)

Vespas are everywhere. But this one is especially nice.

What's this foreign language I see?

The price of gas (excuse me, petrol) is really high here.

Legalizing abortion is a really hot subject. There seems to be as many against as there is for it.

Another little piece of Canada, "From our land to yours".

More pictures will come, I'm always on the look out for interesting shots. Hopefully next I write a post it will be about my newly acquired job. :)

Moving day

I have finally checked out of Abigail's for good. No more hostel for this lady. That is, until I start exploring the rest of Europe. It was rather brutal emotionally. After three weeks I had gotten used to the hostel, and moving out was just starting over again in a new environment. Sadly it wasn't as smooth sailing as I had hoped. I spent the rest of the day running around City Centre to pick up various things that I am going to need, which give me quite the workout. And I also got an email from the recruitment agency at which I applied for a job at HMV UK in Dublin, which told me that they had high standards and that I hadn't made the cut. Gee thanks. I have two years of experience with this company, what more do you want? I mean, if the company I have experience with doesn't think I'm qualified enough, who will? So yes, very challenging day indeed. It was the first time I seriously considered going back home. I even looked at plane tickets (which are quite pricey). I'm hoping to return to the grocery store tomorrow to get more than the essentials so that I may start cooking some real food. Pictures of my new room are on their way.

Adventures at the zoo

If you ever go to Dublin, I recommend the zoo. It's in Phoenix Park, which in itself is worth the trip, being twice the size of Central Park. You can even rent a bike and go stroll in the park in style (my next adventure). But yes, the zoo. It's full of trees and huge plants, and even has two restaurants. And while they don't have the biggest variety of animals, they do have a nice African Savanna setup. Plenty of giraffes (my favorite) and a few zebras. I also discovered how good of a camera I bought. The zoom is fantastic. Needless to say I took a lot of pictures. Here is a few:

Seeing as I am nowhere near an experienced photographer, I am rather proud of the ones I took. It looks like having a good camera changes everything, after all. I went with a new friend of mine, who even bought me a little giraffe plushy at the end of our visit. I will hopefully return. There's some animals that were just so interesting to watch that I could have stayed there much longer. 

Yesterday I've kept a bit more quiet, just walking around town taking pictures. They have really nice graffiti here, so I thought I would make a collection of it before going home, like the closed HMV collection I'm making. Later tonight I'm heading to Howth, a village closer to the coast not too far from Dublin, with some Americans that are in the same room as me. That's about it for now, but now that I have found my camera I will keep you updated with more pictures! 

Week 1 Complete

It's a done deal, I have found an apartment! I will be moving in in mid-June. It's a really nice room in a house, with one wall being all windows to a view full of greenery and another wall all closet. I even have my own sink, and there's no carpet! I like the neighborhood, too, it's full of trees and old brick walls, and it's very quiet. The only downside is that it's further from the city centre, but that's what you get for that type of neighborhood. It's actually not in the city at all, it's near a little village called Templeogue. I'm looking forward to moving in, even though it's scary to live with people that aren't my family for the first time. All I know is that it'll be nice to not live out of my suitcase anymore. I would say I'm doing pretty good, having found an apartment only one week after arriving. Although I won't meet as many people, which I'm having a taste of tonight. I'm in a three bed room, but no one else has checked in yet so I have the room to myself for the moment. It's nice to be alone with my own thoughts for the first time in a week. Not to mention I also get the double bed, and there's a mirror in the washroom. It's all so fancy compared to the other rooms I've been in.

Job wise things are good, but not ideal. I had an interview this week and they decided to see me in action for an hour Tuesday, but that job is only part time. Still. if they offer it to me I will take it for sure. I will not spit on work. Especially now that I have rent to pay. I'm still looking around for work, although I'm taking it easy this weekend. I'm due for a break, I'm already worn out. Besides, I've been told this weekend is not a good time to go job hunting as Monday is a holiday, so no one will be thinking about hiring. I'll be back on the saddle Tuesday, ready and hopefully rested. Until then, I leave you pictures to give you something to occupy yourselves with. :)

Fan of the series Vikings?

Double bed! There really is a God!

These are all from the area where my future house is: