I'm coming home

I’m home now and definitely jet lagged. It’s been really strange coming home, it feels different than I expected it would. It has almost seemed as if it is too comfortable here, as if I never left. It is the weirdest feeling that I have ever felt, it’s as if the last eight months were all a dream and never happened,

I have already spent hours looking through my photos and reminiscing, yet it seems as if all those memories belong to someone else. It has only been just over 12 hours since I actually got back to Ontario, and that was after 40 hours of traveling, so maybe I just have to give myself some time to adjust.

The last leg of my journey wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, although I only finally slept on the plane from Vancouver to Toronto. Vancouver International definitely deserves the title as one of the most sleepable airports in the world. It was perfect from a travelers point of view. Food spots that stayed open 24 hours, quiet areas with dimmed lights, and friendly security that kept an eye on you. Too bad the jet lag had me wide awake yet exhausted. Thank goodness for free wifi so that I was able to watch a movie and get back in contact with the outside world.

So now I’m home. Mum and Dad met me at the airport, and I’m now in my nice comfy bed in my room back in Wasaga Beach. I just had breakfast, and now it’s time to go back to sleep.

Am I home yet?

I am now once again sitting in an airport departure lounge, this time it’s in LA, which for those that are geographically impaired, is part of North America – the same continent as Canada.

I am freezing (which isn’t helped by the frappacinno I’m enjoying) and am exhausted after having been up for the past 24 hours. Yep, I didn’t end up sleeping on the plane. I have no idea why because I was tired when we first took off, but for the 10 hour flight sleep decided to evade me. The upside was that I was able to watch the sun rise for the second time on the 14th. That was a novel occurrence, and seems extremely sci-fi ish to me.

It didn’t take long to become genuinely sick of the entertainment options available. I don’t know how ancient the system is, but it seemed as if we were viewing the movies through poor-quality VHS.

On a side note, I just had a mini panic attack when I glanced at the clock on my laptop, before remembering that I’ve traveled across who knows how many time zones and haven’t set it yet. I caught the shuttle to Sydney airport exactly 24 hours ago.

Anyway, brekky wasn’t bad, although I’m not sure the sausage was even made of meat, but it was edible. It was getting off the airport at LAX that offered up the most annoying of situations. With three major international flights arriving at the same time, and only 23 immigration officers on duty, the wait to just let them know I was going home lasted over an hour. It was then to collect my baggage, and through customs, just to check my bags in once more, and go through security yet again. You would think that with the number of times that I’ve been screened in the last few days that they would realize that I’m not a threat. At least this time I timed it perfectly and had no waiting. What a relief.

There was something very important that I had to do before settling down to wait for my flight yet again. Phone home. I know that by now I should be fairly independent, but it was killing me that I hadn’t talked to my parents in days, and the time zones finally allowed easy communication. It was unfortunate that the funds made it a little harder, but thank goodness for collect calls.

So now I had dropped off my bags, phoned home and made it through security once again. It was time for sustenance, since I hadn’t had anything since brekky, and it was now almost five. I was excited to see that Starbucks was offering half price frappacinnos, hence the mocha coconut frozen concoction that has made me shiver uncontrollably, but has tasted oh so yummy.

I did have an interesting moment at the currency exchange counter. I hate changing money there, but I was so hungry it was a nessecity to acquire some local currency. A young man and I got chatting about traveling, and he was really keen to hear about all of my travels, which when I compare to some of my friends is really nothing. I was then enjoying my dinner when he approached me once again with his friends. It seems I had become something of a celebrity and they wanted to hear more about my travels. It was a fun little moment that made me feel a little less alone in this crazy world.

I have now finished my dinner, my drink and have run out of things to write about. It isn’t helping that my fingers are shaking as I attempt to type due to the cold. I am also starting to see double as exhaustion is starting to overwhelm me. I have been awake for about 27 hours now, with perhaps a total of 2 hours of cat naps. It might have been a silly idea to get a drink that had caffeine in it, although falling asleep now and missing my flight would be a bad situation. So I’ll stay awake for another hour and a half until I can finally collapse in my seat and get a good 3 hours of sleep in.

Welcome to Fiji

I am in Fiji! I’ve always wanted to visit this island and now I’m finally here. At the airport. At night. Not so exciting at the moment. I was hoping that I would be able to catch a glimpse of the lush landscape as we touched down. I didn’t take the time to consider that we would be arriving after the sun set, and being a small island and a small airport there weren’t really enough lights to light it up the way I had hoped. The only thing that has shown me that I definitely am here is the humidity that blasted me as I transferred from plane to airport.

I am dressed for Australian and Canadian weather. I forgot that most of my flights will be touching down in warm countries; hence the strange looks from people in singlets and short shorts. Well I’m definitely not out to make any sort of fashion statement anyway.

At this point I am extremely bored. My flight boards in just under two hours, and I am here alone in Nadi Airport with no local currency and no credit card to purchase anything. I am just hoping that I do get a meal on the plane so that I wont be kept awake by the rumbling of my very hungry tummy.

I have also noticed that I seem to have started to smell. I guarantee that I did spray deodorant this morning, but despite that attempt the stench of travel has already started to weave it’s net around me. Yuck.

I might as well do a bit of reminiscing since I will be sitting here for awhile.
I started my day bright and early, as per usual, and proceeded to chow down a nice peanut butter and jam sandwich, again, as per usual. Checking out of the hostel and catching the shuttle went smooth, and I only gave myself one last forlorn thought to all of the belongings that have been left scattered around this country due to baggage restrictions.

As I stood in an excessively long line to check in for my Air Pacific flight, which it turns out was also a Qantas flight, I prayed that the attendant wouldn’t think to weigh my carry on luggage. I’m sure I was carrying at least 15 kilos, and the limit was 7. My heart sank as I got closer to the front of the line and saw so many people repacking luggage at the counter. They were being tough today. I started to make a mental note of which attendants I didn’t want the bad luck of getting, and rehearsed my pleading speech.

Suddenly, 45 minutes later, it was my turn. I made my way to the counter, hoisted my surprisingly light case onto the scale and smiled. 21.5 kilos! Sweet, I did it! It was then that I thought I might have a problem. Without even glancing at the massive pack on my back the attendant asked me, “Did you change your flight?” My heart sank as I answered with a confused “No” and was then forced to stand helplessly as he went to check if I was really supposed to be on the flight. He came back with everything sorted, handed me my boarding pass, and explained the luggage procedures for LA, and then I was on my way! Relief washed over me, I had gotten away with my massive pack.

The flight was uneventful. I got to sit in an aisle seat beside the galley and almost at the rear of the plane, but it wasn’t as bad as I first anticipated. Our “light” meal was actually delicious. The fish option had some sort of white fish, with pasta salad, crisps and biscuits. It was definitely much more appetizing than peanut butter and jam.

So here I am at the airport, and I just noticed that many of the staff are crowded around the duty free shop. It seemed an odd place to gather, until I noticed the small screen in the electronics section that is playing some sport that everyone seems to be intently watching. I later learned it was a local footy match during my walk around.
I should mention that getting off the plane was actually a really nice experience. As I waited to once again pass through security, I was able to listen to traditional Fijian music played by locals to greet visitors. It was very entertaining, and made the whole travel experience seem just a little more friendly and comfortable.

An hour and 20 minutes left until I can line up once again to board the plane. I only have to do it another three times. Let’s see I had 39 hours of travel to complete. It started at 1pm today, and it’s now 6pm Sydney time. That means I’ve completed a whopping 15% of my travels. Oh God, how am I going to make it?

Now there are only 50 minutes left. I’ve started the people watching again after playing a game of Sudoku. There’s a very friendly lady that’s flying to LA and is annoying the family that waiting in front of me. She wont believe them that the plane has an upstairs. She’s got it in her mind that they are making fun of her, it’s been amusing. I’m starting to wonder if I should have tried to get a seat upstairs as well. At least this time I have a window seat, and hopefully it will be a good flight. I just want to fall asleep and wake up in LA. Although it might be interesting to see the sun rise again, so I might try to wake up for that. Let’s see, my flight is going to be ten hours long, with me arriving in LA at one in the afternoon. Sun would probably rise around six, so I should wake up only 3 hours after we start flying? That just seems strange.

Hmm all the men that work here are wearing skirts; even the security officers. I think that I would really like to come to Fiji again some day. Perhaps I can convince dad to go to Hawaii. That’s what I will save up for – to go to Hawaii with my mum and dad.
One major thing that I’ve noticed while sitting here and waiting - almost everyone sounds like me. It’s kind of depressing. I miss hearing all of the accents and being unique with mine. I guess that I am going to have to get used to it since I am going home.

Sometimes it feels like forever ago that I left and started this crazy journey, and then at times it’s as if it has just gone by in the blink of an eye.
The musicians have made their way to the departures lounge. Time to get excited that in only 40 minutes I’ll be boarding a plane that will take me back to my home continent.

Yes, Australia is cold

Waking to aching feet and legs is not a fun start to the day. Especially when you look around and realize that you're on the top bunk in a hostel with none of the creature comforts of home. I was so ready to just be over traveling for the moment.

After stretching as much as I could, and once again making my peanut butter and jam sandwiches for the day, I followed the crowds of commuters to King's Cross station to pick up my day pass. After getting lost a couple of times I made it to Circular Quay where I changed my mind from going to Bondi Beach and caught the ferry to Manly. It's supposed to be one of the best trips in the world, and it didn't disappoint, although I think I was frozen by the time we actually finished the ride across the harbour.

A short walk through The Corso and I was standing on the sun soaked, yet wind whipped Manly Beach. I would love to say that I took my time exploring, but in all honesty I was freezing and tired and only ended up spending a quick 45 minutes. Long enough to capture some gorgeous shots.

The ferry ride back to Circular Quay was just as freezing as before, but this time I was focused on getting images of the Opera House and the bridge, and even managed to capture a video of the what it's like to cruise around the harbour.

When I arrived I set out on a train ride across Harbour Bridge - I just wasn't in the mood to walk it. But the ride was less than thrilling, so I sucked it up and climbed the stairs to get a different perspective. It was worth it as I looked at across the harbour.

I trudged my way back to the train station, and caught the next train bound for The Blue Mountains. I must have been tired, because I awoke to realize that I was the only one left on the train, and I was at my stop in Penrith. After a minor panic attack, I was out on the platform waiting for Bec to pick me up and drive me up to her place in the mountains.

It is frigid up here. I'm sure there are those that think that I'm exaggerating, after all Australia shouldn't be cold, but when high temperatures aren't even coming close to double digits it's cold. I awoke this morning in Bec's lounge, with Bec on the couch opposite. It was the only warm place in the house so we just didn't move.

In the much warmer temperatures, although still only about ten degrees, we drove off on an adventure through the mountains. Visiting the Three Sisters was cold, windy and spectacular. The valley stretches forever, and the sun was just right to get some beautiful shots. Then we were off to see some other sites, including Govett's Leap, before enjoying my last Australian pie at Wentworth Falls.

Now back on the train to King's Cross, a little bit of repacking and more stuff left behind, and tomorrow I'm on my way home!

Icons

Sydney, Australia. It may not be the capital of this country, but it's the city that everyone thinks of when first hearing about the land down under, and I am in it. To be honest, it isn't as great as it has been made out to seem. I really did become a Melbourne lover during my time here, so poor Sydney has been shafted.

My first morning, awake at an early 6:30 am, I made my peanut butter and jam sandwiches for the day, packed my bag, and with map in tow I started out on my adventure around this iconic city.

As I ventured out into what is the bohemian and burlesque area of Sydney by night, I was greeted with well suited businessmen and women rushing through their commute to work. It was a completely different scene than just a few hours before.

First stop was the El Alamein Fountain right in King's Cross. I took my time having fun being a photographer and capturing the fountain with different shutter speeds before beginning my long walking tour of the day. My tour next took me past the Woolloomooloo (yes that name is real) naval base, where I caught a glimpse of many of the nation's huge warships. Very impressive. It was here at Finger Wharf that I stopped to enjoy the first half of my pb&j breakfast. The area is known for a multitude of al fresco dining spots that cater to the rich and famous. I just thought I would join the in crowd for a few moments, before I snapped a pic of Harry's Cafe de Wheel's pie place and continued on my backpacking journey.

It was still early morning here in Sydney, and quite a chilly Autumn morning at that, but the hike out to Mrs. Macquarie's Point and past her chair. The view across the harbour were spectacular, but as I rounded the point and looked towards the city, it was the sight of the Opera House that took my breath away. My entire life I have seen images of this iconic structure, and here I was looking across at it, and having my picture taken by it. The experience really was the crowning jewel on my entire trip.

But of course it wasn't enough to view it just from a distance, not when I could actually go right up to it. So after finishing the rest of my breakfast sitting on a sandstone formation that had been worn by the tides, and in full view of the Opera House, I set out on the path to this icon.

As I trekked around the harbour, I took in the sights of Fort Denison, the Sydney Skyline and the Royal Botanical Gardens. It was at the gardens that I received a pretty good shock. I was wandering the paths when I heard the strangest sounds coming from above me, it was unlike any bird that I had ever heard. And it wasn't a bird. Glancing up I took in the sight of thousands of bats resting in the trees, fighting over branches, and swooping amongst the foliage. It was extremely creepy.

After a few more detours I finally made my way up the steps of the Opera House, and there I was standing on the icon. I have to admit that the most exciting part was realizing that the sails are all made with tiles. I don't know what material I thought they would be, but tiles just didn't ever come to mind.

The rest of the day was spent wandering the city and taking in more of the free attractions, while capturing them on camera. I had fun, and plenty of memories were created, including a short visit to St. Mary's Cathedral.

I'm not going to lie that I did a bit of praying surrounded by the solitude of that cathedral. It may just be a building, but I did feel as if I was closer to God while I sat there and asked him to take a more prominent role in my life. To just show me a little more obviously that he was there. Strangely, as I left the cathedral and walked through The Domain, I said hello in passing to a man sitting on a bench. We exchanged pleasantries, but in response to my query on how his day was, he responded that God is good. I just felt it wasn't coincidence.

By the time I made my way back to the hostel at only 5pm my feet had been done in and I was exhausted. After enjoying some more rice crackers and canned chicken I settled in for an early night, and more adventures the next day.

How do I get there from here?

Well I made it to my hostel in Sydney in one physical piece, although I think I left my sanity at the airport. Flight ended fine. I was one of the first off, and then it was straight to the toilet before a detour to maccas for some much needed sustenance and then on to baggage claim.

I devoured my mcchicken burger as I watched my case go around the carousel a couple of times. I was too starved to bother putting the burger down even for a second. A quick phone call to the hostel informing them that I had arrived and it was off to the shuttle meeting point to get picked up.

That’s where the problems started. Now I’ve always found that when traveling in a new place the best way to not make a bunch of mistakes is to ask a bunch of questions. That policy didn’t work this time. Not at all.

The first shuttle driver I met I asked if he was the one who was supposed to take me to the Funk House Hostel. “Oh yes they just called me” he replied. Then my massive case was loaded into the back of the van, I was loaded into the front and there I remained in the shuttle bay for the next 2o minutes. The next thing I knew my case was back on the ground and I was told that I had to wait another few minutes for a different shuttle. “Do I go back to the terminal meeting point?” I queried. “Nope stay here.” And that’s what I did – for another hour. I asked every driver what was going on. No one knew. I called the hostel, and they were less than helpful.

Finally I made my way back to the meeting point. There I waited for another 45 minutes. And after another 3 calls to the hostel my driver finally arrived. I was fuming. Two hours waiting all because a shuttle driver from a different company had thought he could make a quick buck off of me and confused the hell out of me. I was not impressed.

On the up side the hostel is decent. Cleanish, and not too noisy considering it is on what is basically the sex strip of Sydney. Only for a few nights, I keep reminding myself, and hardly any time will actually be spent at the hostel.

After somewhat settling in I started on the task of making my bed – not fun when it’s the top bunk. Why does the shortest one always end up on the top bunk? It just doesn’t make sense. I then made my way past all of the glowing signs for gentlemen’s clubs, VIP rooms and lingerie shops to the Coles, where I purchased my dinners and lunches for the week.

So now I have once again returned to the security of my top bank to chow down on rice crackers and canned chicken. It really isn’t as bad as it sounds. I’ve met my bunk mate Kyle, and he seems decent.

Now to go about planning the next couple of days so that I keep myself busy and not get too homesick before Saturday rolls around.

I hate scales

I’ve made it through check in, through security and onto the airplane – and now I’m airborne on my way to Sydney for the first time.

Luckily my wait in line for check in was minimal, not giving my sense of dread about weighing my luggage to build to too great of a level. As I very awckardly hoisted my monster of a case onto the platform I crossed my fingers as the numbers of the scale crept higher and higher. Only 500g over, not bad at all. Until the wonderful attendant informed me that it would be an extra $26 charge for that 500g. Being flustered I ridiculously paid the fee instead of taking a few seconds to consider what I might be able to remove. Well at least they didn’t bother to weigh my carry on, which was well above the 7 kilo limit.

From there it was quickly through security. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve passed through those ominous metal detectors. It doesn’t even phase me anymore.
Whew only an hour until boarding now. Got my pain killers and water for my developing headache; although, now that I’m on the plane it really isn’t doing much. Plus my refusal to purchase any more food products is starting to annoy me as the smells of snacks being consumed are filling the cabin. Hopefully my hunger can hold out for the next hour and a half.

I had an exciting moment during my wait. Two girls that are on the Aussie show Winners and Losers were at the airport. First Australian celebrity sighting.
One good thing came of my extra baggage fee. I think the host took pity on me and I’ve been placed in row two with a window seat and no one beside me. That’s not too shabby. There is a man in the same row as me, he seems to be a washed up surfer who still thinks he’s really cool. I was drumming my fingers on my laptop while I was waiting for it to start. The glare he gave me informed me that he didn’t appreciate my expression of boredom. I’m sure that this tip-tapping of keys is trying his patience to the extreme, especially because my latest quick glance across to him showed him with closed eyes and a furrowed brow. You can’t please everyone.

I’m really starting to get hungry now. Too bad the only menu in this row is in the seat pocket in front of mr. grumpy. He doesn’t look asleep enough for me to reach over and grab it. Alas I will continue to sit here, belted into my seat for the next hour. Can’t we just land already?

The only game that I have on this computer is chess. I hate chess and am horrible at it. I can’t even win when I’m playing on easy mode with the computer giving me hints. Why didn’t I think to download another more exciting game? I could watch a movie, except those are all packed in my case, which is (hopefully) stowed under me in the plane. I really hope it is, because what am I going to do if my luggage gets lost?
This is what happens when I have too much time on my hands and nothing to do, or to eat. I ramble.

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

This post is coming to everyone via the Hudsons Coffee stand at Adelaide Airport. It really isn’t that exciting. Getting here nice and early to save money on a shuttle seems to have backfired, as I just spent over $10 on coffee and a breakfast muffin, and with three hours until my flight I’m guessing hunger is going to set in again. It isn’t helped by the incredible boredom at all. All of the shops are through security. To get through security I need a boarding pass, and to get one of those I need to be able to check in for my flight. That’s not going to happen for another hour yet… well 56 minutes, but who’s counting?

Sadly this isn’t even an area where a great extent of people watching can be done. There’s the old man with his wife who is sitting over by the foreign exchange booth. He seems to be suffering from some sort of allergy, as he is constantly rubbing his very red and watery eyes. There is the friendly, but half deaf information man, who was the one who kindly directed me to the coffee stand. He’s doing a fair bit of wandering and directing. Other than that there are just a bunch of other bored looking passengers waiting for flights, or lifts from the airport, or people to arrive on flights.

Oh, that was interesting. This short little man that obviously works here just came out of the secure area with his hood all pulled up around his face and a very suspicious garbage bag in his clutches. I know that it’s nothing… he’s probably the cleaning man, but I’m bored and have to make up something to keep entertained.

There is the cute guy that came to the coffee shop after me. The unfortunate part is that he chose a spot to enjoy his beverage that is directly behind me. Therefore, if there is to be any ogling it would be extremely indiscreet… so again I must just imagine.

It isn’t even the boredom that is making me want to just be through security already. I know that my poor luggage is overweight and I just want to get through check-in without having to pay exorbitant fees. It’s just eating away at me that I might have to toss even more stuff than the three bags left at Ally’s and the two left in Melbourne. How on earth did I accumulate so much in only eight months?!

Hmm I’m almost out of coffee. Now I am out of coffee. Forty-five minutes until I can check in. Do I splurge and buy another cup for a crazy $4, or maybe get that yummy chocolate muffin that has been calling my name since I sat down? Or do I suck it up and just keep waiting without sustenance to take my mind off the slow moving hand of the big clock over the international arrivals area?

There goes a backpacker. He was kind of cute. I don’t know how people can cram enough into those packs to last for their travels. Volume wise I seem to have been able to consolidate my stuff down, but I’m still lugging around about 35 kilos, and I wouldn’t be at all happy to have all that weight on my back. I should mention that my limit for this flight is only 32 kilos, and for my next flight it is a measly 30! That is unless I suck it up and pay the $50 for excess, and get a whopping 7 kilos extra. Woohoo!

Sadly it will be this weigh in today that will determine whether more of my hard earned money gets sucked up by the multi-billion dollar travel industry.

Down to 39 minutes until check in. Now I think I’m almost glad that I have a little bit longer because that coffee really isn’t sitting well. Or perhaps it was the apple I attempted to eat for breakfast. It taught me a very valuable lesson that you shouldn’t eat fruit right after brushing your teeth because it makes it almost impossible to tell if it’s rotten or not.

Oh a plane just got in. There are the pilots and flight attendants. They don’t look as tired as I would have guessed. Maybe I should learn French so that I can be a flight attendant in Canada. That might be fun. Or I might want to shoot some of those annoying passengers that seem to freak out over every little noise and complain about everything. That wouldn’t be so fun. I might become famous like that flight attendant that jumped from the plane after getting pissed off. Not sure I want to become famous for that reason.

Well it’s now only 34 minutes until I can check in. Time to get my belongings together, make my way to the toilet and stand in line, before waiting for another two hours. Yay.

If I roll it will it fit better?

This post is courtesy of my procrastination in regards to packing... once again. At this point I think I have repacked at least a dozen times, and I'm wholeheartedly sick of it. One conclusion I've reached: I am definitely not a backpacker. I like my clothes (and shoes) too much, and it's heartbreaking to even think of leaving one skirt or sandal behind. Alas that is what must happen, unless I'm willing to pay a few hundred dollars in excess luggage fees... which I'm definitely not.

I'm down to technically only 10 days left here in Australia. I'm not counting today because it's half over and I'm doing nothing except packing which is boring, and the last day I'll be at the airport by 10am so that doesn't count either.

I've had a good time here in South Australia, and I'm looking forward to the next few days. Hopefully see some more of the beautiful countryside and visit a few more friends before it's off to Sydney.

I finally was able to meet up with an old friend from Golden, who I hadn't seen in years. She now has a baby. All these babies and weddings are definitely making me wonder what I've been doing with my life. Then I look back at all my memories and smile. I've done a lot.

I picked my last bunch of grapes (hopefully forever) last Friday, and then got to enjoy an end of season bbq with my fellow pickers. I am now officially unemployed here in Australia - and am loving every minute of it!

Well, my guilty conscience is starting to nag again. I really should at least move all of my crap off of Ally's bed before she gets home. That's my incentive to do something with all of my accumulated stuff. And in only 12 or 13 days (depending on how you want to calculate with all of the time changes) I will be unpacking again back in Canada.