Week 1, May 30 - June 5; The Happiest Start

May 28, 2014 8:45am

I am SUCH a happy mouse!!! The airport was unusually stress-free! My luggage was not overweight! They did not notice I technically have two carry ons as my ‘personal item’ is always heavier than my weighed-in carry on! We flew through American customs! We! Meaning me and Jas! How incredible it has all worked out, not only to be flying out of the country on the same day as my big brave bro, but both through America, so we ended up in all of the same lines and now we are only a handful of gates away from each other with two full hours to kill at the airport bar. THAT is why I am such a happy mouse I could cry. I get to actually see my big brother off through the terminal and onto his plane! I could also cry because my phone is being flooded with the most excited / heartbroken messages from all of those I love most. Also the photos my family members are posting on facebook and instagram, the snap chats, the plane letters tucked into my carry on, waiting to be read… those all also almost bring tears! But what puts the lump in my throat is how happy I feel! Just to be sitting here … beside my Korea-bound brother, laughing joking, being sweaty and smiley having run through the airport in our heaviest layers…

I am going to Australia! I will be there in two days! Not even! … I can hardly believe it :)

3pm (San Fran time) - 6pm (Canadian time)

An easy enough first flight, and rather comfy! Window seat with no one in the middle, the girl on the aisle must have been my age, wearing the exact same lulu sport sweater as me; mine bright pink, hers electric blue! She knit for 5 hours, while I doodled. One movie, multiple funny episodes, and a short hour in-and-out nap, drifting to sleep with Eric Church and thoughts of my last night in Canada … I don’t think the immensity of it really hit me until today. It had my heart racing all over again.

A long 6 hours until take off to Auckland! It will be tricky trying to stay awake through this…

4pm, I tried to wait until my longest flight to read my plane letters from Sarah and Meaghan. Now I am just sitting here, tucked away into the little corner (with plug!) that I found here near my terminal to reside for the next 5 hours, and my heart is bursting and I am beaming. These two ladies I have known mere months - not at all before this calendar year. They have completely changed me; I can say that without an ounce of hesitation or exaggeration. Their gorgeous, outgoing, bubbly, smiley faces and personalities absolutely drew out the best in me and I only ever radiated around these girls. Reading their words has me feeling like the letters I wrote them must have been inadequate; even though theirs were as long and meaningful and heart-felt and genuine, I still don’t know how I could have possibly matched the effect that their words had on my heart.

If you ever come across the absolute honour to connect with someone who makes sure you know how much of an impact you have on them as well, hold onto that feeling forever, because it will always bring you back to a grateful heart. The feeling I got reading their words, and the influence they claim my journey back home had on them likewise, that is a feeling Richard would have me spin, faster and faster until everything is tingling and there is nothing but this positivity, this remarkable, unwavering happiness, seeping from every fiber of my being. I continue to feel like the luckiest girl in the world.

6:30am (New Zealand time) – unknown (Canada time… I’ve lost some serious sense of time through that last flight!)

I wanted to write from Auckland, simply to be writing from Auckland, NZ. The longest haul wasn’t so bad; I didn’t even let a broken tv set & no entertainment for 13 hours fluster me! Pretty proud of that. And also for not letting my mind get anxious and panicky and sick. Most proud of that. I even slept a little, dreamt a little, but I’m pretty sore and head achy.  But the food was decent, my plane seat neighbors were a pair of cute American brothers from Ohio off to continue their dream of making international hunting videos. The flight staff was friendly, and the safety demo was performed as a premade video in dedication to the 50^th anniversary of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition… Yes, it was conducted by actual swimsuit models, frolicking in bikinis and life jackets. Brilliant. It set an awesome tone for the rest of what will be my longest flight ever (at least for now!). I’m happy to have survived.

The worst is yet to come though: baggage claim; my biggest fear. Here’s hoping and praying both my luggage and the last minute plane-side carry-on checked bag make it through to SYD. David injured himself and won’t be able to get me from the airport, but I have this weird feeling of calm. I’ll figure it out. As long as I make it there with all of my luggage intact, there is no rush to get to Wollongong, I’ll figure it out and take my time and do it all by my big mouse self :) :) Aussie Land is but 4 hours away! You ready, mates!? Lol

10:20am (AUSTRALIAN time!!)
I’m sitting on my train! My train: I caught it! And the right one! AND the 2^nd transfer! Little mouse with big suitcases made it onto the right line, twice in a row! Oh, that’s right: me and my bags! Both bags! All three impossibly heavy bags sit in a pile next to me on the train and I could not be happier about that. I’m sitting right on the platform because an actual seat would require lugging these things up or down 5 steps. I love it here, with both sliding doors on either side of me like big picture windows, floor to ceiling look-outs over my first glances of this Aussie world. So far it just reminds me of Europe, my only other rail experiences, but soon I think I should see the ocean. :) I made it, I made it!!

11:10 ahh, too good to be true! No one told me about the 2^nd transfer! Temporary layover in Sutherland an extra hour, without any way of contacting my North Wollongong Station pick-up :s Shucks.

Noon – I met this really wonderful older lady during my stop over, so chatty with me my whole wait at the train station and through the whole trip to North Wollongong. So many facts about the town and her life and her kids and all of her old-fashioned opinions. Such a beautiful soul to be the first individual I met here :)

5:30pm, laying on my new bed in my new house with my new roommates giggling about Drake in the next room.

It isssss alright here! It’s alright! It’s not the worst, and it’s just temporary, and it’s cheap. So that’s my focus. But (briefly), it is a messy student house, just when I thought I’d escaped those! A kitchen that stinks like dirty dish rags (I literally wouldn’t wipe my blackened window sill with the towel available to do so), floors that need constant sweeping, unmentionable things collecting in the corners of each room, and the bathroom…….. goodness, I won’t even disturb you with the details. It’ll just be keeping a broom handy & scented candles that will be crucial for the next 3 weeks of living here. BUT, on the biggest plus side of all: my roommates seem awesome. The three I’ve been around most of the day are loud and energetic and giggly and random and hilarious and they make me miss Jacobson so strongly, but I am so happy to be around such happy, welcoming people. I feel so lucky.  :)

It was really nice seeing David in person again! Poor guy hobbling along on crutches, but we managed to have a nice lunch catch-up at the COOLEST café/restaurant ever, Three Chimneys (https://www.facebook.com/threechimneys2500), tucked into a corner of town surrounded by the most incredible graffiti covering all of the massive surrounding industrial buildings. I would LOVE to work at a place like this. Also… Funbuns. Everywhere. Thick, blonde, salty-looking funbuns. Lol, uhg miss my Lindas.

Tomorrow I will check out the first three hot spots just around the corner: the Salvation Army for a desk, the fresh fruit and veggie market, the hot yoga studio (!!!). Heaps excited about that. I’ve temporarily ‘unpacked’ some things, my yoga mat lays in wait for when I am not 2-days-lost exhausted. I’m fighting my decision to join David for a dinner party with his friends tonight. I really want to! I want to go and make a good first impression on this country, and it is Friday night, and I really shouuulld try to fight this jet leg to get me started on Aus time. So, I think I’ll push through and go!

Saturday May 31^st, 7am

A cool, bright first morning wake up in Australia. My earplugs and face mask did the trick to give me a full 8 hours, and I feel pretty adjusted already. I already know mornings will be my favourite, as the girls all joked last night about not waking up til noon most days, it is rightfully quiet, peaceful here now. When I am a little bit less sleepy and scatter brained, I will begin my morning meditations. It is wet outside from last night’s rain, but the sky is looking hopeful to clear up. I am in bed still, eating leftover apple cake from last night’s wonderful meal with some really kind people, which is saving my grumbly tummy before my first trip for groceries today.

Early morning (for her evening) messages from my best friend make me feel still instantly connected to my loved ones back home.  I’m hoping for some facetimes soon!

I would really like to explore around town with my camera today.  I think I shall.

10:30am
An arm full of nude knit sweaters and white lace dresses, walking home from ‘The Salvo’ (Salvation Army) in full smiles as the warm rain starts trickling down once more. It is so run down looking through these side streets, and some people might only see the muddy, filthy combination of weather & construction. But it is still warm! And there are the most gorgeous flowers growing around every corner! And the young cashier at the Salvy asked me if I was from Europe, when I corrected him he only said, ‘I just knew you weren’t from here – you’ve got such great style’ and that made me smile too :) Also! I realized quickly how good it feels to be walking on the left hand side again. I never knew why that British habit stuck, maybe it was all of the ‘Keep Calm and Stay Left’ signs that lined the Cantell hallways (lol), but for some reason I never fell back into step with Canadians in public, and here, where things are back rightfully reversed, I am passing strangers on the street, on the left, with a smile and a ‘good morning’ :) It’s a happy first real morning here!! And what makes me happier is being proud that any previous version of me would not have found all of these genuine reasons to smile.

4pm, the absolute best first day in my new hometown continues :)

Sitting around the kitchen table making food, reading out loud the words from my Australian catch phrases travel guide, laughing, absolutely dying. Swapping all things Aussie and Canadian culture; ‘ahh maan! This is so fun!’ a direct, real-time quote from one of my roommates. I’m in love with these girls, they are hilarious and easy and relaxed and generous and just ideal Uni housemates. I feel like we already communicate as if I’ve lived here for months, and we’ve known each other for years. I am going to be really sad when we part ways in 3 weeks to our different houses! So we’ll enjoy it while we’ve got the days together, and today was a great day.

Krysten and I went into town to get my cell phone set up, and I walked out with contact information & a reference to work at the biggest bar in town here, The Grand Hotel! Not bad at all, haha. We did groceries (yep: cost of living is certainly higher, a $70 bill to get me started, back to the glorious diet of yogurt parfaits, cereal, rice & tuna!), and then came home to change and eat quick before we headed to the beach for a birthday party with some friends.

I had the most magical afternoon, my first visit to the beach, and my goodness it was breath taking. A cloudier day, windier by the water, but so so beautiful. The colours, the deep, rich, dark blues and golden sands, so soft. We wandered over the rocks in the water, pointing out little crabs and chatting all things travels and relationships and Aussie bars. The boys met us on the beach and it was amazing to just sit, sand settling into my shorts, heaps of friends around chatting and laughing, watching them out there catching windy waves. I’ve never ever seen anyone surf in real life, and it had this awesome effect on me. And I just sat there and sort of tuned out the conversation around me, and I’m looking out over the water, the boys bobbing up and under, gliding smoothly into the shore, and the mountains from the rainforest in the distance, the famous Wollongong lighthouse, a picture-perfect rainbow falling down over top of it… I’m really here. These are the things I dreamed of and google-imaged! And here I am… just.. in the midst of it all. I can’t describe the feeling that came over me, so I wont. But my goodness, I felt warm and happy, even as the late afternoon sun was cooling down. I felt incredible. Invincible. It was a moment of true discovery, even if a part of me already knew it (and most everybody would love to claim it): I am 1000% a beach girl, and I will undoubtedly spend the rest of my happiest days chasing the sun and sand.  

Now we’re youtubing Summer Heights High & Iggy Azalea; Aussie’s proudest productions, as the girls claim ;) Now I’ve got a date in Thailand before evening sangria in town with the girls!

11pm,
A night of tacos and sangria and FaceTimes and flight booking… My Thai boy and I FaceTimed for a few hours and right then and there in front of me, he found a flight, he booked a flight, he paid for a flight to Thailand for my birthday. I can hardly believe it’s actually booked! In 70 days I will be flying to his island and basking in his big smiley silly face again :) It is a one-way, I will spend a few weeks there maybe, and then fly back home to Australia to sort out the fall with the girls arriving. It is so much to look forward to, while also still having the next couple of months to truly enjoy my time here, being a big brave solo mouse (which I am coming to love being). Two months away is plenty of time to settle into a taste of life here, and begin to understand what I truly want long-term. I am so excited.

Ellen, Kristy & I went to Amigos (http://www.amigosmexican.com.au) for soft tacos & sangria. Again, I’m beaming from how well we all click. It would have been really fun to live with those girls for much longer. After four tacos, a pitcher of sangria, and a whole lot of excellent conversation, we were walking home giggling with the herds of people out for their Saturday night bar crawls. The evening finished perfectly as I got to Facetime Linds before bed! So so nice to see her happy smiley face :) 

What a day. <3 :)

Sunday, June 1^st

6:30, an hour before heading off to a BBQ with David.

Another lovely day! I was up early with the light grey sky, stretching, balancing, inversions for a couple of hours. Quick cereal, two green teas, and then a run up the main street to the playground on the corner. An awesome continuation of my yoga poses, balances, back wheels, dancer pose, scorpion, forearm stands in the sand, pull ups on the monkey bars, incline push ups on the slide, triceps dips on the picnic bench, etc. etc. Felt so nice to be so active again finally. I came home to research & discover Bikram Yoga a 7 minute walk from my house! So that will be my morning tomorrow :) Freshly showered, it was a day of video editing, organizing the week, cookies & cream milkshakes with the roomies, and happy chats with a happy boy.

Now I’ve got Hook by Blues Traveler on repeat and I’m trying to stay awake for the BBQ! I think my jet leg is hitting me a couple of days late… Zzzzz

Monday, June 2^nd

Today was an incredible day, right from my 5:30am start.

I stretched, I practiced my guided meditations, I closed my eyes and felt the grey morning sky brighten through my window. Breakfast and tea before my first Bikram hot yoga class. A fantastic experience! Challenging and terrifying at moments, losing my vision briefly through the heat and exertion of it all, but I took my child’s pose and I never left the room. And then I became an official Bikram member :) I set my own challenge for June: 30 days, 30 classes. I can’t wait to incorporate it into my every day.

After a wonderful skype with my beautiful best, I wandered the main city center, orienting myself with the streets and shops in walking distance. I am feeling so proud of myself for how confident and comfortable I am walking these streets. How good it felt to be walking around and not lost, and if I was lost, not caring! I make a trip to the Tibet store and I purchase some smaller meditation crystals made of citrine, an energizing stone that provides happiness, courage, hope and warmth. It is said to hold the energy of the sun, enhancing our self-esteem, self-expression and creativity. My tag tells me citrine is a powerful cleansing and revitalizing stone, invigorating and awakening the mind, body and soul. It attracts abundance and prosperity into our lives. I am very happy with this purchase.

I bought a candle (apple, citrus, peonies), and I set up my banking and I reward myself with a fresh juice :) On my walk home I wander into another Op Shop (Opportunity Shops, thrift stores) just before they close for the day, and I snag two of the cutest pairs of shoes, mint green cut outs, fuchsia wedges – for a grand total of $20! I literally follow the smell of incents home to the Buddhist temple next door <3 I chased the sunset around the neighborhood for a while without knowing yet exactly how to get to the beach quickly enough (now I know! Tomorrow I’ll go!).

I spend the evening with the girls, Kristy & Ellen, zooming around town listening to Matt Corby, and I am having another one of those ‘pinch me, this is real’ moments, for no apparent reason. I am just happy. I am so happy. I am so lucky.  Our trip to the grocery store was educational in proving Australian boys to be rather bold! 

My evening was FaceTiming a smiley boy as well as my blonde soul sister from back home. And then my roomies and I set out to learn the moves to Thriller… And Single Ladies. Lol! These girls kill me <3 Falling asleep so smiley tonight.

Tuesday, June 3^rd ~ Up at 6:30am, stretch with the sun, tea & raisin toast.

10am Bikram was much more successful, I did not sit out even once! One move still makes my vision go funny, but I’ll get there :) I hit the fresh fruit market on the way home for my brief lunch stop before turning right back around again for 1pm Power Yoga. Fantastic. I came home again for cooked zucchini, just like Silvia used to make it in Italy :) The sun is so bright and warm today, walking around in my lulu shorts & loose sweater, yoga mat in one hand, banana in the other, the simplest things give me so much purpose. The clear sky and the warm wind is more than enough motivation and invitation to keep that mat in hand and head to the ocean for workout #3: stretching & inverting with the setting sun.   

5:20pm, The most incredible moments of my life.

I’ve never seen anything like it. Actually, I have. On the instagram account I am completely obsessed with: @miannscanlan, but those crushingly beautiful photos are nothing compared to what I got to witness this evening. I stretched, trying to capture my entire range of vision in one arm full. I practiced inversions, to learn it doesn’t matter which way is up, there is no distinguishing between the pastel overheads and it’s mirrored image, letting the ocean become the sky and the sky drain into the ocean, upside down, downside up. I back wheeled to open my entire chest, my whole ribcage to the sky; letting my shoulders sink down and my lungs fill strong – I release whole parts of my soul, my spirit to this universe.

I took my sunnies, I took my yoga mat, I took Thubten Chodron’s Buddhism for Beginners and I walked the 8 minute trek down these suburban roads, across the Princes Highway, around Wollongong’s elite golf course, over the tiny wooden foot bridge opening up to the ocean. Gorgeous, secluded, serene, absolutely perfect. And I can’t for the life of me understand why I thought I might want to be reading on that beach, when there is so much to see, but Chodron proved to be incredibly useful, as I couldn’t help grab my pen and scribble over the back cover,

‘I just want to capture this moment, from peripheral to peripheral. And I feel guilty even looking down at this page, away from the hands-down absolute most beautiful view I’ve ever seen. I am reminded of the Eiffel Tower, the only other view that has ever truly taken my breath away. And my phone has died, and perhaps that is a blessing, yet here I am: trying to capture it anyway, of only just in words. And there are no words.  The Easter egg painted sky, every shade of pastel, the most incredible sea foam blue waves, untouched, soft, cinnamon sand all around me. The waves are so immense. The crowd of surfers in the water are so beautiful. But they are far right. And the lighthouse is far left. And I am all alone in the middle; toes cold, heart whole, brand new eyes illuminated. And the tide rushes back from the shore, leaving a thin, soapy film of soft pastel rainbow; exact reflection of the sky above. It is unfair that I am experiencing all of this alone. I feel selfish, like some sort of criminal, stealing these exact precise moments from the universe that not a single other soul will ever experience. Not from this exact, flawless, serene, heart-wrenchingly breathtaking perspective.  

And then I sit. I sit until my toes are as blue as the fading sky. Until I am satisfied in convincing myself that I can (and will) come back tomorrow, and the next day, and the one after that, and it will be here all over again! Maybe even more beautiful, though that seems an impossibility. I am overwhelmed with gratitude; this has been the most amazing few days. I have the most amazing new life here, when I already had such a fantastic old one. I miss my friends and family, I miss the boy I love, but I will never ever take this – any of this – for granted. Namaste.

Wednesday, June 4^th

I’d like to revisit my initial impression of this household. Rereading it now seems so harsh and knit-picky and I’m embarrassed for that, especially now when I’ve seen my new apartment where I’ll be moving to in just a couple weeks, and suddenly I realize how much I LOVE this house here. I love my little white room, so bright and kept clean and the hardwood floors and the CLOSET <3 <3 <3. I wish I could have made it mine for the whole year. I wish my Canadian blondes could have moved here sooner to take over this house with me. I’ve never lived in an apartment building before. The carpet physically makes me anxious, lining the entire living space. I’ve also never lived with a boy who wasn’t my boyfriend, so that will be new. BUT having said all of that, of course, this is just my next newest first impression on a place, the way that I had a much too negative outlook on this one a few days ago. I will of course make the best of it and focus on the little wins like the big window in my room (thank god, that might have been my only deal breaker), and the little balcony off the living room which gets the morning sun <3 And you know what? At almost 24 years old, I just need to accept the fact that it’s time to start living with pants on. Lol, humph! It’ll be fine, it’ll be good! The price is lower than usual, even though its $30 more a week than where I am now. I just have no choice at this point in time and so what I do choose is to approach the situation as if I had chosen it, and be so happy about having a place with a couple of really nice people, close to North Beach, still biking distance to Bikram, hopefully close to a job when I land one, etc. etc.  :):):)

6pm,

I had another awesome day, no complaints at all, not even one. I spend between the hours of 10am-2pm completely drenched in sweat, with but 1 quick costume change and light lunch of 3 oranges in between. The Bikram/Power combo has me feeling so energized and relaxed, and I wish I could live a life that allowed me to double-up on yoga classes everyday foreverrrr. I did nothing else today, lol. Besides my classes & applying for my new apartment with the girls, all I did today was stretch, invert and write. I’m feeling sleepy because I feel content with my day, lol. I feel as though I was happy enough and accomplished enough and now I deserve an early bed time :) So I think I shall do just that.

Thursday, June 5^th
6pm, today was my first round in the job-hunt! My roommates think I’m crazy for being so keen to find work when I just arrived not even a week ago, but it is just not in me to feeling comfortable spending when I have no source of money coming in. Not that I’m really spending anything at all, and it’s not that I couldn’t afford to just spend for a little while! It’s just not me, call me my father’s daughter! It was a productive day, but not super successful. Besides the one person who hired me on the spot for less than Canadian minimum wage, no one seemed to be hiring. One lady did let me jump behind the counter and make my own latte though! They steam their milk a little differently, but it felt good to be back behind that machine. My last resume drop off was the toughest, because I instantly fell in love with the place. Diggies is literally right on the beach, a stones-throw from the ocean waves rolling in. It would be a dream to work there, but it didn’t feel super promising. Maybe I’ll get an unexpected phone call! I just need some interviews (I’m so good at interviews!). Tomorrow we’ll do round two drop-offs, a few more beach-front locations and then if none of those pan out by next week I’ll get my RSA (smart-serve equivalent) and try for restaurants/bars. David has some gym connections too!

It is day 1 of the job hunt, I need to keep reminding myself. No need to feel discouraged or panicky! I’ll find something, I’m sure of it :) It’s been a rainy, dark day, but I’m hoping that hasn’t completely demotivated my roomies from wanting to go out tonight! But if this evening falls through, I’ve been invited to a ‘Hoe Down’ themed party on Saturday (haha, how appropriate for this Canadian country girl!)

Side note: have I already expressed my gratitude and admiration for SnapChat? It truly deserves the award for best ap out there! Especially when traveling; the quick snippets to and from home keep me in constant smiles. I get to share tiny profound moments with my best friends and family: I get goodnight kisses from Baby Lindley & good morning kisses from Samson; I get ‘bored at works’ from my gurl Linds, & I still get Cantell snipits from Miss Bunz in England; I get flowers from Thailand, I get to share my bro’s hostel view in South Korea, and garden zen & mugs of tea with Sarah! It is a magical little ap, and if you don’t already have it you NEED it!

Side note #2: Emoji conversations are huge here. Full sentences disguised and replaced by little images. I say this because anytime anyone is describing me, I get to be the princess emoji (because she's blonde!!) Haha, the little things, people.

I snuck my Power Yoga in this aft, which just reset and rebalanced my whole day. I had the studio to myself for the half hour that followed class, and I occupied it with my longest inversions yet. Progress feels so, so good. I can’t wait to get out there on a paddle board!

7:30pm
Romantic dinner date of Mackers drive through (McDs) & parking at the lighthouse, overlooking the rainy ocean crashing in. Wine stop ($7 for 13%!) & a 3-way pre/get-ready in and around our other roommate’s bible study (lol). Teaching them all of my Canadian drinking games, gushing over outfits and blasting classic JT & Missy Elliot. Looooving this first night out already :D

2am

Best first night out ever! To the retro throw back uni night with all the best old school songs, from Nelly to the Grease soundtrack haha. And I stood on stage until they played my request, Kanye’s Gold Digger, and I got my little “leave yo ass for a white girl” moment! We drew everyone to the dance floor and shook bums alllll night long. A few dance floor proposals, some incredibly interesting first bar interactions with Aussies, cartwheels on our bare-foot walk home, and a whollllle lot of giggles. Heaps good, I just LOVE these girls myyyy goodness. Shared so many smiles and made so many lovely first memories. I can’t stop thinking about how hard I lucked out.