Reflection on experience

This post was originally written on August 7, 2006. I believe it's all still true a year later...

********

I have officially been home for a month now. I kept getting asked what my feelings were about my experience. I found myself lacking the words to know how to answer that question. Even now I’m not quite sure I know how to answer it.

I think there were questions in my head that I needed to resolve when I first went to Australia. Those lingering questions were more or less answered, but don’t by any means have definitive closure. They are just what they are – answers.

I also set out to get a degree that would allow me to change career paths. I was so unhappy professionally in Kansas City. I enjoyed paying my bills and having some money leftover at the end of the day to have some fun, but I was still working 50-55 hours/wk to do that, sometimes more! I wasn’t in love with anything I was doing, I was just loyal to those who helped me out and gave me a chance. I knew I was stuck in a rut and I needed a big change. I looked at schools in the US, but everything was so expensive, so Australia’s allure grew. School was less expensive, though I still don’t have my Masters, I got enough of what I needed to get the ball rolling. As soon as I finish my internship and get the paperwork sent in I’ll hopefully get my final credit and get that Graduate Diploma.

I wanted to see a new part of the world. Boy, did I ever! It wasn’t the country I expected to see though. I always thought that I would have all this time to travel and see Australia. Truthfully, I didn’t see nearly as much as I could have, but it was more expensive to travel domestically there than I had anticipated. Also, my desired travel partner had a larger class load and responsibility than I did, so that didn’t work to our advantage. Instead, I found a different partner and some helpful dorm-mates who sponsored my trip to India and Sri Lanka. I also visited Thailand with suggestions given to us on what to do and got to hang out with a friend I hadn’t seen in ten years in Singapore. I spent ten days in New Zealand with my parents. I may not have seen Ayers Rock, but I made it to the icons of Sydney and the Great Barrier Reef. I saw tons of amazing stuff in and around Melbourne. I saw things this year that I never knew I would see with my own eyes. I had experiences in my friends’ homes that will never be duplicated. It was an amazing addition to my time there.

As for what I am taking away from the experience… Melbourne was a great city, but it wouldn’t have been what it was without the people. My thank you list is as follows: My friends at Grad House made my transition to Oz so incredibly fun. My gals (Steffi and AK) who I love so much that I was fortunate enough to surf with, talk with and have many hilarious times with. My travel partner and awesome friend Kim with her capacity to take each experience in stride and be my balancing half was a true treasure! My housemates (Angelo, Fi, Mauricio, Sab) who put up with my cleaning fits and crazy ways to deal with things and taught me so much about share-house tolerance and patience. To Robi for the great gigs and Ti Amo dinners, grazie! Hutchy, thanks for being you and for being exactly what I needed – forever I’ll be hot for teacher. To my classmates for being supportive and inspiring – especially the “Making Shit Sing” crew! To Steve for being my shoulder to cry on and for the unsolicited advice (ok, a lot of it was solicited), the dissertations, the dinners, videos, soccer nights, the touristy drives, and many hugs – you were an amazing find. Thanks to Lucy for letting me steal Steve and crash on the blue couch so often. And most of all, thanks to Aidan for being you … ten years older, better, and forever my friend – we’ll do it better next time.

I have a list that grows each day of little things I miss about being there… but my time there had to come to an end. The government said so! I was just getting it all figured out when I had to leave, as it happens. But that flight no longer is a deterrent. I look forward to doing it again someday and seeing more and revisiting whoever is still around. And anyone who happens to come to the US some day, please know you always have a place to stay with me!

In the end, I guess my reflection comes down to… Australia is what I needed and I’ll forever cherish my time there.

Last Looks

I took a lot of walks in my last few days in Melbourne. Here are some of the sights I passes each day...

The fountain of remembrance - a fountain for each person killed in the Bali bombing. It's in the park just opposite my tram stop. I walked through this park many times on my way to the library at the Uni of Melbourne.

The view from the Yarra River, which cut the city skyline in half. It was a beautiful, romantic walk in the evening. (Photo by Angelo.)

Flinders Street Station - the main city train station where people "meet under the clocks."

Federation Square and some of the skyline

Part of my campus facing the building where most of my classes took place.

The alley between the tram stop and my house in the city was decorated with stencils from the print shop housed inside the white walls.

I believe this photo was actually taken by Angelo - but it shows the tram lines near Melbourne Central.

Saying goodbye to Grad House

Also on July 2, my friends at GH prepared a last meal/potluck for me. Udeshika made her awesome spicy cabbage. Prashanth made an egg-frittata like concoction. We had salad, rice, fries, fruit, desserts... and lots of fun conversation. It was a super night and a great way to say goodbye to my friends and former housemates.

(left: Udeshika putting out the spread)

(Clockwise from me: Prakash, Krish, Udeshika, Para, Prashanth, Nas, Kim, Leena)

American-Australian relations - July 3, 2006

I spent my last full final day wandering the streets of Melbourne where I met up with Hutchy to buy a couple souvenirs. Being something of a local music connoisseur, Hutchy and I went to pick up CDs of bands I wouldn't be able to locate at home. Three CDs later we headed for dim sum in Chinatown. It was a great way to end my time with him.

Later that evening, the American Consulate hosted an event for ex-pats, Australian officials and special guests. My friend Bob's uncle is the Consul General and so I was invited to attend as Bob's guest.

After we finished the event, Navin, a Fulbright scholar at the event, as well as Steve and Andy joined Bob and me to head to my favorite dumpling spot. We enjoyed the steamed dumplings and soups before saying our goodbyes.

Steve drove me to Aidan's house, my refuge in my final days in Australia. He also took me to the airport the next morning, after a quick stop at Kim's house to leave behind useful things for her that I could not and did not want to take home with me.

Steve waited with me at the airport and we talked as I waited for McD's to switch the menu from brekkie to lunch so I could have a cheeseburger - a necessary food item after our long evening and before starting my long journey home... I only had a couple dollar coins left, so I couldn't afford much, but I had enough to get the burger. It's sad now to think back that McD's was my last meal in Aussie... too bad it wasn't a kangaroo burger.

Footy - July 2, 2006

To ensure I had the full-on Melbourne experience, I could not leave without visiting the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) for a game of Australia's beloved sport: footy aka Aussie Rules Football. Aidan had never been either, so I bought us the tickets and he provided the transport to the city. We grabbed a tram in the rain and proceeded to suffer through the chilly, misting air to watch the semi-barbaric game with men in tiny shorts, no padding, and a broken leg on field after a collision. In short, we had a blast cheering (for the winning team, of course).

Coldplay - July 1, 2006

Kim and I took a last night out on the town together. We started our evening with the only decent nachos in town - Hard Rock Cafe. Sad, but true... good nachos were not to be found in Melbourne. Those Aussies need some Mexicans to come to town and give them a dose of yummy queso and salsa! I digress...

From here we caught a taxi to Rod Laver Arena to see Coldplay. I had advanced purchase tickets putting us in the front row. Problem is, when it said "best available" was general admission I couldn't believe it, so I went with the front row instead... would've helped if I would have paid attention to the set-up. However, we were above the court area so our view wasn't obscured and it was still totally enjoyable as we screamed and sang and laughed. Awesome!

He finished our night by heading down some alleyways to some cool bars. I cant remember the first one we stopped in, but we headed to the Croft Institute from there - a cool bar that looks like a chemistry lab downstairs and played fun dance music upstairs where people were grooving.

Kim and I got our drink on and relived our glory days and lamented our last days. It was a great final night out with her.