I dont mind where you come from, As long as you come to me, But I dont like illusions, I cant see them clearly…

Do you ever have those days that you plan out a certain way and in the end turns out nothing like the plan…but it still a fun day? Yep we all have them and today was one of them for me.

To start off you should probably know the planned day.  I had met Ally out one night and even though he is actually from Thirsk (a town 49 mins drive north according to google maps) he comes to Leeds quite a bit. We got chatting, found out that we shared quite a bit in common and in my semi-conscious attempt to make “A proper-like English friend” we made plans to catch up again. It also doesn’t hurt that his parents are both chefs and I may be able to get the friendship to the point where I have access to proper cooking 😉 The plan was that we would catch up for lunch, watch some movies, have a drink, buy a few things I need for my room but can’t carry alone, etc.  Nothing too planned out, or original for what I’ve been doing in Leeds, but with a new, and this time English, person.

Well what actually happened was I met up with Ally and then we went to have lunch with two of his other friends who actually study at the University of Leeds (as he took my “semi-conscious” attempt to make some English mates and ran with it haha).  We had lunch at this place in Leeds that made AWESOME wraps. I had Chicken Noodle Stir Fry one and although I was quite full, it was so good that I wanted to buy another one as soon as I had finished. Ally’s two mates (Rachel and Morris) were pretty good conversation and certainly helped me out by giving me a few tips about “what to do in Leeds”.  Rachel did though ask if I “was american or canadian?” which has me slightly worried about how my accent is transforming 😛

At this point I would also like to point out something about Leeds that is quite different from Melbourne.  You can’t walk 5 feet down the road without someone handing you a flyer, generally about the nearest pub/club night, but numerous papers quickly end up in your hand or back pocket – especially as its harder to ignore them when chatting to people, and without the protective shield of the iPod with two headphones in.

Ally and I then set off on my favourite past time.  DVD’in!  The plan had been to shop for some more necesary, and awkward to carry, items but who can say no to the thrill of DVDs. Unfortunately there is no JB Hifi here so we were forced to go through the aisles at HMV and with the prime bargains picked clean during the post christmas sales and yet to be replaced we ended up leaving empty handed.  I think it may have been the longest I spent in a DVD shop without actually buying anything…something of a record, although it may have been more affected by the fact I only had 50 pounds in my pocket and I am waiting until my money transfers before I can access it, than my will power.

We then went and bought some ‘candy’ (Yes, I know I annoy many people with my Americanisms but it sounds so much better than sweets!) and took off back to Sentinel Towers to watch a movie or two.  However, once again our plans changed as when we were just about at the peak of our sugar high, Ally had to rearrange things as a result of some family stuff and we didn’t have time for a movie.

So in the end, of our well planned out day of movies, shopping, drinks and lunch…only lunch was successfully completed. This goes to reinforce why I generally don’t plan out my days to the letter as it was still a fun day.  I may even have the “well proper English mate” to add to my collection of Australians, Swedes, South Africans, Americans and Canadians here in Leeds 😀