What's on YOUR Checklist?
When I landed at London’s Heathrow Airport on February 8th 2010, I was ready for a much needed break, and a long awaited adventure. Traveling just a short 7-hour skip over the ocean from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, it was not my first…or second…or third time in London, but it was my first as a soon-to-be local.
A two year work and travel visa? Oh yeaaaaaah!
To make what could be a long, and mildly entertaining story short, it was a Monday afternoon at 1:30pm, exactly one week after I had arrived in London. I was asleep (still not over my jet lag) in a small, dingy room above a pub, no bigger than a small walk-in closet. The smell of stale cigarettes, must and mold wafted into my nostrils, and my red, watery non-smoking eyes opened to the sound of my mobile phone ringing.
Who the heck could that be?
A groggy ‘Hello?’ was greeted with an enthusiastic “This is MyCityDeal…and do I have an offer for you!”
Fast forward 2 months and I had gotten the first part of my visa down. Work? Check! Travel? Well….
As a semi backpacker, 5-day a week worker, and a full-time adventurer, I found myself finding little ways to escape to bright lights of London…courtesy of MyCityDeal. I mean the London deals were great…I had hit up some fabulous restaurants like Archipelago where I had Kangaroo as a main course as well as enjoyed a fabulous massage and facial at Kuno Tierra. But as fabulous as these deals were, I felt like there was something more out there…something I was missing.
Then I got an idea, this wonderful thought, I knew it could be, this wonderful thought it just came to me! It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages, boxes, or bags! (Dr. Seuss…anyone!?)
Anyhoo, it dawned on me…why not take what I love about scoring deals in London…and rock it all across the UK! So, I did.
First stop? Cardiff! Some friends and I took off to enjoy the sites of Cardiff…for half the price. After hitting up the castle we took in lunch at Mocka Lounge and dinner at The North Star. Both deals snagged off the MyCityDeal website. Excellent…by saving on our meals we had the chance to do more (like a night time boat cruise along the Taff River) in the sawesome Welsh city because, well, we had the cash.
Rocking out infront of Cardiff Library
But we weren’t done there, oh no! Next on the hit list was Reading. We scored a fabulous deal at Quality Hotel off the MyCityDeal site, plus…and here is the best part…60% off go-karting at Premier Karting. Heck yes!!! On top of that, a lovely stroll through Forbury Gardens combined with a delicious picnic meant money saved, and an excellent time had!
Up next? Hellooooo Edinburgh! A fantastic tour around the city included the Edinburgh castle, some AMAZING Polish cuisine at Pani Solins and some savoury Indian at The Verandah. Of course a frolic around the capital of Scotland is never complete without a fancy hat! Ah yes, a friendly city with friendly people, the Royal Mile and some delicious Haggis…I can’t wait to go back!
Fun Times at Edinburgh Castle
Now those are just 3 cities down…I still have plenty more to go. And I can’t wait! Scoring deals and having the chance to experiences places I never would have had the chance to…or even known about…if it weren’t for the great deals offered on the MyCityDeal website. Most importantly, it has given me the chance to be a tourist in this amazing country and, better yet, it gives YOU the chance to be a tourist in YOUR country. Take a weekend trip to Brighton, or if you are from Manchester, how about a day trip to Leeds? Endless possibilities, with countless hard earned pennies saved!
So let me go over my check list again…
Work? Check! Travel? The adventure has only just begun…
-Hailey
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