Let me start by saying that my anxiety about the new module that I started last week was a bit of an overreaction. That’s not to say that the workload is any less than I expected but it has been a rewarding week based on the fact that what we’ve learned, we have also been able to practice through mock facilitations and mediations. Sounds fun right? Maybe fun isn’t the word, but by the end of the week I was exhausted which is probably why I went into a little hibernation this weekend. During the time that I managed to be awake, I found myself at an International Students Dinner. Everyone brought in food from their home country to share; coming up with something Canadian was probably the hardest thing to do. People helped me out by suggesting I bring McDonalds, Timbits, bacon, beef jerky, or maple syrup but I really couldn’t bring those things seeing as a) McDonalds isn’t food  b)timbits were out of the question since the closest Tim Horton’s is in London and c) the latter 3 don’t really make up a meal. Anyway I decided on a smoked salmon/cream cheese/cucumber/bread concoction and pretended first of all that it was Canadian salmon and second of all that it was a typical Canadian dish. 

 

I had to take a day off from work this weekend; I caught up on sleep and more importantly I saw Harry Potter which was, wait for it, wanderful. The whole movie experience was so different than in Canada. First of all I called in advance to reserve my tickets and picked them up when I got there. I realise that’s not so out of the ordinary but what is different is the fact that seats are assigned and halfway through the movie there is an intermission! I was so not prepared for that part but it was a welcomed break since, as I’m sure you recall from my very first blog entry my tiny bladder forces me to have to pee every hour. And for those of you who are wondering, the movie was great but, then again, I’m 100% biased and I  don’t think there’s any way I wouldn’t have liked it.

On another note, before the movie started, Alessia and I wandered around Valletta just to kill time and get a snack. We went to the most disorganized and poorly managed cafe that I’ve ever been to. Actually I’ve been there before but failed to write about it but I think that if my brother’s company was hired to go there, about half of their employees would be fired. Let me explain how it works: you tell the person behind the counter what you would like to order, he or she (usually she) then gives you a piece of paper with your order only for you to literally turn around and walk 2 steps to the lady at the cashier who collects your money and then gives you your receipt. Then you walk 2 steps back to the original person who then gives you what you’ve ordered and who won’t give you what you’ve ordered unless you bring the receipt which she knows you’ve paid for since she can see the cashier and watched you pay not ten seconds before. Who came up with this system? First of all, it is such a waste of time and second of all it’s a waste of paper. Would it not make more sense if the person behind the counter printed off a sticker with the price of what you ordered and you brought that to the cashier along with your purchase? It seems to me an easy solution to eliminate the customer walking in circles and the company wasting unnecessary amounts of paper. Come on people!  Okay, rant complete and I feel better.