CALIFORNIA

I have been given a green light to go for 4 weeks certification training in San Mateo, California (about 20km south of San Francisco)…. things seem to happen very quickly in London! ….Once I pass the certification, there may be another 4 weeks shadowing a mentor on a project (probably within the US) …. and then off to Moscow after Xmas.
So exciting times are ahead (and lots of work, of course) ….but sometimes you just have to grab the bull buy the horns, and run with it! … This US firm has developed some pretty exciting (cutting edge) applications for the insurance industry dealing with policy, billing, and claims processing.
Pamela is a little sad about the fact that I will be away 4 weeks at a time … but the positive side is that we have the opportunity to meet wherever I’m based … for long weekends, or even a week at a time….. after all, we moved here to see more of the world …. And this will definitely encourage it.

AFTERNOON IN HYDE PARK

After all the studying, technical tests and interviews, all there was to do was to wait for the answer … and this Sunday was a beautiful sunny autumn day …. so we spend the afternoon around Hyde Park … and I have to say, it’s a completely different side of London life … very relaxing.

WORKING IN LONDON

After three weeks of looking for work, I landed a job with an IT consulting company, which has System Integration projects all over the UK (and some within continental Europe)….The projects are Java based, which is exciting, because it is something I have always considered myself very proficient in, and the role will leverage my past experience not only from IT, but also my business background.

The first day on the job, the boss subtly ask me if I was interested in an upcoming project in Moscow, which would involve going to the USA for a months training …. But the American firm would have to interview, test, and accept me first ..... Of course, YES was my response … So basically for the past three weeks I have been flat out prepping for the tests …. Opportunities like this don’t happen too often in a lifetime (not in Adelaide, anyway)!!