Update: both of my toenails have officially fallen off!
Day 51: Thursday, November 1st Changed rooms at my hostel in Melbourne in the morning, VOTED, got lunch at a spot with vegan food, wandered around the beach a bit, and spent more time figuring out plans for where I want to settle and work. That evening once I checked into my new room, I spilled kombucha all over my laptop. I knew right away that my computer wasn’t going to make it. Just adds to the list of things that have gone wrong in Melbourne. Day 52: Friday, November 2nd Left early in the morning for Apple in Chadstone, a famous mall known as the “Fashion Capitol.” The mall was massive and even had its own transit station. I got an appointment for two hours later so I explored the mall to see what was there. Shortly after my Apple appointment began, it became clear that it was a much better idea to replace my computer. RIP. Luckily, the employee helping me for 3 of the 4 hours I was there was vegan, Australian, and great at keeping a conversation! It helped make the best out of an expensive situation. When I left the mall, I hopped on a bus that, of course, was going the wrong direction. That night, I managed to find a room for the night at a hostel called Summer House that had been recommended to me. The staff was really nice so I was feeling positive. That is, until I saw my room. I walked in the door and there was just crap everywhere, clothes, alcohol bottles, DRIED VOMIT, spilled soda. But what could I do? I needed a place to sleep for the night so I stayed. I met some nice people but wasn’t feeling very social after the past few days. Day 53: Saturday, November 3rd I left the hostel pretty early in the morning to Facetime Caitlin (finally) and work on some job applications. I Facetimed my dad to show him my new computer and he gave me the brilliant idea of leaving Melbourne because I felt so miserable there and had a horrible hostel. I booked my Greyhound bus for 10pm that evening! So after spending last night in the most disgusting, abhorrent room I’ve ever seen (seriously check out the pictures), I got two nights transferred to a hostel in Sydney because I fought with them over a refund. Once I finally checked out, I left and just started walking down the street to look for a café or restaurant to camp out at until my 10pm Greyhound ride. While I was walking, an Irish backpacker commented on all my bags. We got to chatting and he said I could wait at his sharehouse a few blocks away. He didn’t seem creepy at all and I really didn’t have a better option, so I went. Wow am I glad I did! I met the nicest people I’ve met in Melbourne. Four of the people I met will be in Sydney for Christmas and invited me to their home if I need a place to go. It was nice having somewhere to sit and relax because I had a headache and was feeling pretty down. At night, I took an Uber to the train station, grabbed dinner, and killed time until my bus. As much as everyone told me I’d love Melbourne, I hated it. I didn’t meet good friends, I didn’t like my hostels, and the city felt like Seattle so I felt homesick because I wasn’t with anyone I knew. Just in the past few days of being in Melbourne, I took the wrong tram, had an Uber driver cancel when I was carrying all my stuff, called a new Uber and it was the SAME driver who was rude over the phone, went to an extremely antisocial hostel where I didn’t make any friends for five nights, broke my computer and had to replace it, got on a bus going the wrong direction, ended up in the most disgusting hostel room I’ve ever seen, lost my toothbrush, felt so homesick I cried, and rode on a Greyhound that broke down at 2am (see the next day). I was beyond ready to go leave. Maybe one day I’ll go back and (hopefully) experience the Melbourne I was told I’d love. Day 54: Sunday, November 4th In the middle of the night, my Greyhound broke down and added an hour to my travel journey. Seriously, Melbourne is filled with bad luck. A few hours later, I remembered that my friend Maggie who is traveling Australia might be in Sydney. I messaged her and honestly never felt so happy to learn that not only is she in Sydney, but she is in my hostel! I was so excited to check into Wake Up! Because it’s clean and social. Luckily I was able to go straight to my room even though it was only 11am. It had only been 20 minutes and Sydney was already better. After I showered, I met up with Maggie and we went walking around the city. It was perfect being with someone from home, especially after my emotionally exhausting few days in Melbourne. We both did laundry and then spent the evening together at the hostel’s event. Day 55: Monday, November 5th Maggie and I spent the morning being productive, she voted and I applied for three jobs. Straight away, I ended up with a job trial at two of the places! Sydney just keeps feeling more and more like the right place for me. Maggie and I walked to the Harbour, took a picture to prove we met up 8,000 miles away from home, and had lunch and gelato. Once Maggie left for her flight, I picked up a case for my computer and ate dinner at Din Tai Fung…in a food court. They even had little packets of ginger, soy sauce, and vinegar to make my sauce. Day 56: Tuesday, November 6th It’s officially been 8 weeks abroad, time has flown by. I had two job trials today. The first was for a Work for Accommodation job for the hostel Wakeup! Sydney working as a Kitchen Hand. My trial consisted of cleaning dishes, putting things away, and doing some basic food prep. The staff was really friendly and it went so well that I was offered the job! Two hours later was my trial for Peterpans, a backpackers travel agency, as an outside promotions person. The trial involved me walking up to anyone who looked like a backpacker and talking to them to see if they needed any travel help. Surprisingly, it was so much fun! At the end of the trial, they offered me a week paid trial. I had a big decision to make and only one day to decide! I talked to my mom, dad, and Facetimed Kevin (about time) to help me decide. I made dinner and went to the trivia event where I met up with some of the people that Maggie was friends with when she was in Sydney. We got fourth place!! Day 57: Wednesday, November 7th Big Day! I went down to Wake Up!’s reception early in the morning and accepted the position to work for accommodation as a kitchen hand! I’ve had the idea of working for Wake Up! in the back of my head ever since I first stayed here two months ago, so it’s exciting to be working for the nicest hostel in Sydney now. I made my decision because I’ll get an amazing community of backpackers, get to stay in a central location, gain more experience in a kitchen, and have a place to live through at least New Years! Before I moved into the staff room, I went to a vegan burger shop and vegan grocery store fifteen minutes away where I had the BEST fried chicken burger of my life. It was crispy, fresh, and bursting with flavor. I found three other vegan spots on my walk to the Cruelty Free Shop where I stocked up on all the vegan chocolate I could fit into my backpack. When I got back to the hostel, I moved in my staff room, a 6-bed room with four other girls who immediately welcomed me and invited me to join them to hang out with them. It was fun unpacking and actually getting to hang up my clothes. I got groceries and set up my dry food locker. Within just a few hours, I knew I made the right decision to work at Wake Up! Day 58: Thursday, November 8th Since I broke my computer and have to ship it home, I thought I would find an Australian Christmas ornament to send home. I trekked to a Christmas shop 35 minutes away only to be met by what seemed like a dollar store filled with cheap decorations. On my wander back to Wake Up!, I bought a $3 towel because now I can live a life of luxury. I signed up for a gym nearby. I’m excited to get back into a workout routine. In the evening, I had a shift cleaning the community kitchen at the hostel. It was a really simple job and nice to feel like I had a responsibility. Day 59: Friday, November 9th Went to the gym in the morning! After finishing up some resumes yesterday, I printed out seven and decided I wasn’t allowed to come home until all of them were passed out. It was kind of fun passing them out and talking to different café and shop managers. Hopefully I’ll hear back from somewhere! I had another evening shift at the hostel cleaning the kitchen and then hung out with my roommates and got to know them better. They’ve been introducing me to other people at the hostel who work for accommodation and showing me around the area. Day 60: Saturday, November 10th In the morning, I went to Glebe markets with the hostel. I bought some earrings and a beach towel because now I have room to store my belongings! I met a really nice girl from Vancouver, BC and after Glebe markets, we walked to Newtown to explore King St. Countless people have told me it’s fun to just walk the street and go into random shops, but I wasn’t expecting so many vegan places. We happened upon another market where I found an adorable romper. While I was talking to the booth owner, she asked if I was interested in working for her selling clothes at various markets when she needs help. I love markets already so to be paid to work at one every once in a while sounds like a dream. Along the street in Newtown we went into a bulk foods shop. I could have spent hours looking at all the varieties of bulk dried fruits, flours, seeds, nuts, and chocolates. I was thriving. We finished walking through Newtown and then headed back to the hostel to eat dinner. To my surprise, the woman from the market texted asking if I could work for her the next day in Bondi. Although I wasn’t expecting to work so soon, I said yes! AND one of the resumes I passed out a few days ago worked out and I have an interview Tuesday! After dinner, I went and had a second dinner with three of my roommates at this place called Spice Alley, which is an alley that has been upgraded and filled with tables and lights. There’s probably eight different stalls there and you can order from a variety of them to have a really fun meal. We ended the night at Side Bar, the bar below Wake Up! Day 61: Sunday, November 11th I headed for Bondi Beach Markets first thing in the morning. I helped set up the booth and was on my own for the day. One of my customers was the founder of the vegan chocolate company Alter Eco. Crazy! It was the slowest day at the market that any of the vendors near me had ever seen. So that was an unfortunate first day. After the market, I stopped at Bondi’s bulk food store and got some snacks and a vegan pesto I’ve been wanting to try for weeks. I cooked up a curried coconut quinoa dish with veggies and chickpeas. My feet were exhausted from standing for eight hours today so I called it a chill night and just applied for a few more jobs. Day 62: Monday, November 12th Today I went to Tamarama beach with two girls I met at the hostel. This beach is on the same coastline as Bondi, but much less busy. We swam and tanned. The water had strong currents that made it exhausting trying to get out of the water each time. After the beach, I went to the gym. I had my first shift as a kitchen hand tonight for free pizza night at the hostel, which essentially involved me cutting nearly 100 pizzas for the guests at the hostel. It was actually really fun! After my shift, I hung out with two of my roommates and a few others who work at the hostel. It’s really nice being settled and finding a vibrant community of backpackers. Day 63: Tuesday, November 13th 9 weeks later… Today I had an interview with a café in Glebe, which is about a 20 minute walk from the hostel. They offered me a trial but didn’t confirm until I got a text from the manager at 3am. The whole situation made me uncomfortable so I declined the offer. After my interview, I went to the gym and then had another shift in the kitchen at night. During my shift, I was running a meal out and the customer happened to be two friends I met at surf camp two months ago! For how big of a country Australia is, it’s still a small world. Day 64: Wednesday, November 14th I went to the café at the hostel for breakfast with my roommates. I feel so lucky to have roommates who have been so friendly and welcoming, especially since they’ve known each other for a few months now. I had another shift in the evening and went to Side Bar in the evening because there was a mechanical bull! Day 65: Thursday, November 15th I applied for a bunch of jobs throughout the day and by 3pm, I had a call from the Bridge Climb Sydney, the most popular tourist attractive in Sydney! I have an interview on Tuesday for a customer service role that would fit perfectly with my schedule. For dinner, I met up with Danielle (my friend from New York who I met on Facebook) for dinner! We’ve been trying to meet for nearly two weeks now but our schedules kept getting messed up. We ate at a vegan Italian restaurant and caught up on our lives from the past two months. Day 66: Friday, November 16th I went to the airport in the morning for my roommate’s hostel job because she was out of town and needed someone to pick up her shift. Later, I went shopping to find interview clothes for Tuesday, some more workout clothes, and this vegan ravioli and cola flavored sparkling water that I’ve been searching for. Luckily, I found everything I needed. I cooked up a delicious tofu scramble and watched a movie. Day 67: Saturday, November 17th Had my first 6:30am shift at the hostel, which ended up being great because there was so much variety in my shift and it got me up early. I am loving working in the kitchen because I get to be surrounded by food and awesome staff for hours. I applied for more jobs, got more groceries, went to the gym, and relaxed. At night, I hung out at reception with a few others who work for accommodation. My days have become less interesting than they were when I was traveling every day, but it’s been good making friends with people who I’ll be with through at least the New Year. P.S. Check out the cost of the ice cream I buy at home for $5! Also, I finally got my surf camp pictures and included a few fails for your viewing pleasure. Finally, I found toothpaste from Trader Joes at a market and just had to take a picture.
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Janine Denney-MazzilliI'll be posting journal-style entries about my adventures in Australia every 2 to 4 weeks. Contact me on my homepage to let me know if you'd like to be added to the email list! Archives |