Running Out of Time

Time is just flying now. Only 1.5 months actually left now until I set off. Quite a thrilling but scary thought! I still feel like I have so much left to do for preparation. But I'm sure it will all work out. At least I have the backpack now. And some shoes.

So you must be wondering what my travel plans are so far! Well first off a wee pre-holiday to Singapore and Hong Kong in January to meet Anth's family. Come back and do all that last-minute panic packing/getting rid of all my stuff/tying up loose ends. Quit my job *gulp* Then in Feb I am zipping over the ditch to Australia first for 3 months. I will be working somewhere remote in the outback. Hopefully in a small hospital rather than a bush since that's where the money is. The money I earn there will be a huge bonus towards my trip. And I have no clue whereabouts in Aus yet. I will only find out where my contract is about 2 weeks before going eeee!

Then once that's done, a quick trip back to New Zealand to see my whanau one last time, Anth and Snazz. And it's off to London in June where I'll meet up with Shelley. We plan to start with a contiki tour first. Shelley and I have booked into this one (btw there is still space to book in Snazz if you wanna come!!) which goes all over Europe. This will give us a bit of a taste of the different countries. Then once that's done Shelley has a friend who will hopefully be joining us. Then we will spend July touring round the UK itself. Maybe spend a week in each country and sight-see, have a fantastic time, before we settle down and get some jobs in Bath.

Bath is meant to be really really lovely. So I am quite excited that it will be the first the first place we "live" in. Then I figure we will work for 3ish months, have another month off to go see some other countries, come back and work another 3ish months, then same thing again. And this will be for up to 2 years :D

Left Behind

My Christchurch flat. So warm and cozy

For those of you out there wondering, this is what I'll be leaving behind when I go. First off I'll be leaving behind a nice normal house and stable living conditions. Having a roof over one's head, and the same bed, and even a room to myself to call my own is quite a luxury. And I don't know when I'll have that again. I am anticipating that me and Shelley will be primarily using backpackers and B & Bs to start with for the first few months. Then hopefully we will find a nice cheap flat preferably with furniture to live in. And sunshine!! New Zealand has amazing weather a lot of the time. I hear it's a bit rainy in the UK.

Snazz :)

Next up is my bestie Snazzy, who as you can see has lots of fun playing in children's playgrounds :P Snazzy is an amazing person with such a fascinating personality. She always knows how to have fun and keen for the next adventure. We are addicted to similar things like Glee (one of my all-time fav shows!) and a dream of travelling. She has a very generous soul. One of her favourite hobbies is the selection of presents for others. I'm still trying to convince her to come with me next year.

My other half

And of course the biggest and hardest thing to leave behind is Anth - my amazing boyfriend. We've been together for about 18 months now. And he is still just as amazing as when I first met him. Such a sweet and caring guy. Really good in the kitchen. Very very good looking too with an amazing bod to match his personality ;) I love him to bits. But he understands that it's my dream to travel. And that it's something that I need to do. Otherwise I think I'll just be disappointed in myself for the rest of my life for not taking the opportunity. Ideally I would go travelling with him, but it's not the right time for him with only just starting his own dream of becoming a doctor. A dream that he has wanted his whole life. And his particular dream will occupy him for the next 5 years with studying and living life as a poor student on noodles. 

On another side-note. I had better not forget to mention my family! My parents and younger brother live up in Blenheim. I usually see them every couple of months. My parents love me so much. They always support my choices and give me great advice. I will miss them so so much next year. Especially my mum who is my rock.

Travelling is something that I particularly want to do before I settle down, get married, and start a family. Which don't get me wrong, is something that I hugely want too, although not for a couple of years yet. But having children does tend to put off any travel dreams for a good few years. Really when I think about it, as hard as it is to take this seemingly scary step and leave everything I've ever known behind, now is the perfect time in life to do it.

Decision

So I booked my New Zealand to London flight the other day.. and made it all real..

What a strange feeling. As much as I had been making all these huge plans and thinking of the the things I wanted to see, it hadn't quite felt even set in concrete that I am definitely going. There was still that part of me that knew I could back out. But now it is definite. How exciting!

I have even managed to plan it so that the friend I am going with arrives in London a mere 30 minutes after my plane lands. And even in the same terminal. I am flying with Singapore Airlines who I hear are amazing to fly with.

A little bit about my friend now. Her name is Shelley and she is 22, blonde, and just completely fascinated with rocks, planes and wine. We went to high school together and have been good friends for about 7 or 8 years. Right now she  has already started her adventure in Canada doing a 6 month job contract within a ski resort in the beautiful snowy remote Banff. I'm not sure what her role is exactly but I think she tells people things. All in freezing temperatures and blizzards. Crazy girl but she is having a brilliant time there.

Other developments for my travel include me trying to sell off some of my junk. Like for example my beloved motorcycle jacket. Which I have kept hanging onto despite my bike being stolen a good 3 years ago in the small desperate hope that it might reappear, or I might get a bike again. And lots of other junk with a similar sob story. Does feel good to be digging through all these things and sorting what is actually sentimental and worth keeping, and junk that I've been carting round for years for no real reason.

Makes me kinda feel like an onion. Right now I'm peeling away all those yucky inedible crusty layers and revealing all the lovely shiny fresh stuff below. Quite a freeing sensation

Preparation

Back in April this year I made the life-changing decision that yes I would embark on an OE and see the world. And then began the planning of this massively exciting trip and crucial decisions like what colour backpack and how many pairs of shoes to take...

So a little bit about myself. I am 23 year old female and live in earthquake city Christchurch in New Zealand. Which is not a part of Australia! I am a nurse and work in the Emergency department right now. Get to treat lots of nutty people and lots of drunks, and lots of really lovely people too of course. My boyfriend is also a nurse but is living out his dream of becoming a doctor down in Dunedin right now. He has just completed the first year! And will find out soon if he gets into med school.

He is not craazy about the idea of me travelling without him.. But as he will be stuck studying for the next while, I decided to go travelling anyway in the meantime and have life-changing experiences while he slaves away.

And yes I know.. long distance relationships are incredibly hard. And I have found being just a mere 5 hours drive apart this year very hard.. let alone being on the other side of the world.. But I believe we can do it.