Deuces, Deutschland!

Peace out, Germany! Hello Begium!!! After endless weeks hearing about other peoples' vacations, it's officially our turn! Omg, I can't effing wait. It's just important for me to continue travelling, you know? I feel like lately I haven't been doing it as often as I'd like, so seeing something different, even if it's just a neighbouring country, is invaluable for me. Yup, we take off for Belgium in a few hours.

Antwerp will be our first stop. And then I've kinda roughly planned it like this: Antwerp --> Gent --> Brugge --> hit the coast --> head back inland onto Brussels. Camping/Backpacker stylezzzz. We gangster like that. We don't need the hotels and the high life. Not yet, anyway. Teehee. Okay kids, have fun!!! And enjoy what's left of the summer, k?! Tschüß!!!!!

Goodbye Tdot, Hallo Germany (again)!

Omg, I can't contain my excitement. Two short months at home (no matter how much I try to deny it, Toronto will always be "home") and it's on to the next Life Challenge! Holy scheiße, I'm moving to Germany!!! As we speak, I am terrified, anxious, ecstatic and a jumble of nerves. But because nothing else in this world makes me feel more alive than living abroad, I am confident in my decision. This is what I love to do and no one can tell me otherwise. #optingoutofthecookiecutterlife

Some people assume I'm on a vacation 24/7. Um, no. I gotta eat too. It's not rocket science: so long as you work in the country you're living in, you'll be able to afford living there. And encountering the challenges of living in other countries is precisely what I crave!!! For example, the whole process of teaching myself German these past few weeks has been fulfilling beyond words. I am proud to say ich spreche ein bisschen Deutsch jetzt :) My motto? Whatever you wanna do, whoever you wanna be — start living it right now. PS. Spot the asterisk & come visit! PPS. The map's old but ain't it a beaut?

Oz 2010-2011: Planes, Trains & Automobiles

For shits & giggs, I've plotted my journey in Oz and New Zealand (11/2010-10/2011) on this map. The dotted lines represent traveling by plane and the solid lines represent traveling by train or automobile. Oz is such a huge country, it'd take me at least 2 years to backpack it properly. As such, I didn't have the time (nor the $) to explore the Kimberleys or SA :( I am, however, proud to say that I literally came full circle and achieved most of my work/travel goals in Oz. Hallelujah! Let it be known that if you (YES, you!) are in need of Oz-y backpacker-ish tips/advice, you know who to holler at.



(START)
Melbourne

flew: San Francisco > Melbs
worked: 3 months in Melbs
roadtripped: up to Sydney (coastal route)
roadtripped: down to Melbs (inland route)
flew: Melbs > Auckland
roadtripped: down the North Island to Wellington (inland route)
roadtripped: down the South Island to Queenstown (coastal route)
flew: Christchurch > Sydney
flew: Sydney > Perth
worked: 2.5 months in Perth
flew: Perth > Alice Springs
roadtripped: west to Kings Canyon & Ayers Rock
roadtripped: east to Alice Springs & up to Darwin
worked: 9 weeks in Jabiru
flew: Darwin > Cairns
roadtripped: down to Byron Bay (coastal route)
road the rails: down to Sydney (coastal route)

(FINISH)
Sydney

Bells Beach - Map Button - Victoria, Australia

DUN KNOWWW!!!!!!!!!! BIGUP BELLS BEACHHHHHHH ♥ ♥ ♥ Much love to the artsies selling these clever/cute Aussie map buttons at the Sydney Road Street Party in Melbs last month.