Aurora158

I can't believe I'm here!

aurora158 — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 17:56:00 GMT

Seriously. I'm here! no, really? REALLY! Yet I have a cold from the time+climate adjustment. Word to those with a tap water complex: The Gold Coast's water tastes like DIRT! I kid you not! So it's certainly not helping with the whole cold thing. It's been rainy/windy/humid here as well...certainly different from a chilly and dry California. Okay, enough winging...

Tristan got an apartment-style hotel room for us to have some quality 'getting to know you again' time together, wink wink cough cough lol. the view from the THREE balconies was gorgeous. Every morning that we stayed there when I woked up at a prompt 7am (due to jetlag and lack of proper dark blinds over windows?) I would get up and just have a ponder looking over the balcony, thinking how all this planning and preparing has culminated to basically that one point in time, as I looked out over the rolling waves and watching the early birds below. I AM IN AUSTEALIA.

now what?

TOMORROW!!!

aurora158 — Sat, 9 Feb 2008 22:30:00 GMT

In 24 hours I will be boarding a plane to take a 14-hr flight in seat 39G that will arrive on 12/2/2008 at 8am in Terminal 1 to catch a connecting flight in Domestic Terminal 3 that will board at 9:30am, expected to arrive at 10:35am in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, Southern Hemisphere, Planet Earth!

Anticipatory Blog

aurora158 — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 01:10:00 GMT

So, I suppose there aren't many exciting details to reveal in this first blog, since I'm still in my hometown of Merced, California (don't ever include this place in your itinerary, people!). The work right now is all the preparatory stuff. I'm going to Australia on a working-holiday visa (YAY for the US and Aus finally initiating the working holiday visa!!), so that surprisingly only took probably an hour to apply for online, and it was approved in less than 24 hours! Again, total surprise and relief felt over here. Then there was the airfare (studentuniverse.com was exceedingly difficult to deal with, but that discount..man..VERY worth it!), and now travel insurance thanks to some insurance group called World Nomads..hehe.

Domestically I'm slowly getting squared away. That equates to selling off my furniture, selling my car (*tear*, goodbye Egg, you were not really a good first car), and PACKING! Oh! The joy of packing!

Since I am returning to my beloved significant other, Tristan, I need to make sure I bring some American goodies that he so loves. I'm sure he'll love the Hershey's Kisses. Aw, how precious. Then there's the essential pharmaceuticals for myself (sorry Panadol, you just don't cut it for my headaches. I guess I've built up too much American tolerance for drugs for you to have any effect on me). Anyway, I hope I make the weight limit at check-in...

Yes, this is me being Susie Home-maker during Thanksgiving weekend in my current apartment.