At Work in Toronto

93 Madison Avenue, Toronto, ON

Before leaving Glasgow we made a dodgy deal on the internet, which luckily turned out sound. The room was incredible, really spacious and the apartment had everything we needed. Including an excellent group of flatmates, who we made a nice lasagne dinner for. Pictured below.

Flatmates: Siobhan, Michelle, Rima, Jenny and Diana.

The first week was hard, getting to know the city, the transport system and learning how to cook! But worst of all finding work was hard, places just weren't interested in short term workers. All except for the nasty callcentres that were at least an hour out of town. So there I was selling credit cards to Americans over the phone. I lasted about 4 weeks before I managed to get work as a receptionist in a gym downtown.

There was never a dull moment at Yonge St Fitness Club, everyday there was another scandal. 3rd degree sunburn, pregnancy, thefts, lost keys, mice, staff quitting, or being sacked - most of it revolved around the head receptionist, until eventually she got fired too.

The Cirque Du Soleil Ushers

I wasn't getting enough hours at the gym, so I found a second job at the Cirque Du Soleil as an usher. It was incredible watching the show every night. Some of the stunts were breath-taking, even the 20th time round! They also have the most amazing juggler I've ever seen. The staff were an excellent group of people, I had a really great time working there.

When I wasn't at work, Michelle usually was. She did mornings and I did evenings, with alot of overlap in between. That wasn't to say I was bored in the mornings as she was working at The Croissant Tree, which is basically a coffee house - with the nicest muffins, bagels and cookies I've ever tasted. It also got myself - a non-drinker of coffee completely addicted to coffee. AND they have free internet! Michelle also had an excellent staff team to work with, which I kinda got to know as well.

The Croissant Tree