Blogs from Preston, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Oceania

So, its all finally happened: I am unemployed (resigned), the car has been sold, the leaving party has happened, the trip starts tomorrow and the packing has been done (all apart from toiletries which are required tomorrow morning). With the realisation that has happened over the past few days come a few surprises. I experienced elation, excitement, concern, worry, hope, comfort and another million other emotions which has culminated in enjoying a glass of bubbly with our 'last' supper in Melbourne for a while and a surprising calm. We seem to be just going through the last minute motions of any holiday where we can be sat quietly one minute and the next one of us has run upstairs having just remembered one last item of clothing we want to pack or the decision to swap ... read more

Happy (belated) New Year. I can't believe it's nearly February. Incredibly, I've been in Melbourne for over 4 months. I'll rewind to September when I managed to get a flight from Singapore to Melbourne at short notice. Bear in mind I hadn't experienced a day cooler than 35 degrees for months. I staggered off the plane at around 4:30am, collected my luggage, left the building and almost had a heart attack. It was absolutely freezing: I could even see my breath. Everyone round me wore coats, scarves, gloves and hats. I was dressed in a t-shirt and cropped trousers. I only have one jumper with me and - naturally - it was at the bottom of my backpack. Fortunately the bus arrived quickly. I was shivering so much, I think the bus driver took pity on ... read more