a curious uni kid takes on 'merica: Pressing on

I don’t know if you’ve ever tried saying goodbye to a group of people that have become your friends, your family, your support group and your ticket to fun, adventure and memories that will last a lifetime. But I don’t recommend it.

Courtesy of Pierre

I believe that there are two types of people in this world; people that sit around and wait for things to happen and people that make them happen. That was my train of thought when I sat in the Swinburne library over a year ago now, and found myself reading the study abroad webpage for the first time. It was a very short time frame from when I first became interested in exchange to actually applying. Considering I had no money, no idea where to go or what to expect I knew it was something I needed to do. First I was afraid, I was petrified, but I’m the type of person that realizes you need to chase adventure, because we are all responsible for our own stories.

Empty 337 apartment

The corridor I called home

Trash #torben

I've waited all semester to see this. And the snowfall the night before was significant enough.

And boy am I glad I did. Moving to Boston was one of the best things I’ve ever done with my life– it’s changed me as a person wholly inside and out. I am so from the person I was when I left, if you placed the old me and the new me side by side you would spend five years noting the differences. And that my friends, is the best thing that a person can do for themselves.

It’s sad, obviously, but change is good. Emotion is good, and a bittersweet sadness that fills your soul when you think of Boston, is in fact a good thing. Because you know that your semester was the best it could have possibly been, that it was more incredible that you would have ever dreamed, and that you are so freaking happy you took the leap to do it.

We mustn’t cry with sadness because it’s over, but in cry in happiness because it happened.

I reflect in sweet happiness about the first time I met people, and all the adventures we’ve shared. Bridget, at the train station in Mebourne, where I listened in on her conversation with her friends and then boldly introduced myself to notify her that we were heading to Boston together. Tim and Adam, who secretly mocked me at the Swinburne pre-departure session, for wearing Dice’s American sweater pictured in the blog header. Annie, whom with I bonded over mutual hate for Nicolai when he was the tour leader on the scavenger hunt we had to participate in when we first arrived in Boston…all we wanted to do was ditch the stupid bloody thing that took over 3 hours, and was strenuous exercise. Annie and I also bonded over mutual hate for exercise. Torben, when he came to Viv’s party at my place, and realised I spoke German, Liz, in Target with her mum, of whom I was annoyed to hear that she was Australian too (boring). Jeppe, at a baseball game, Kirsten, when I gave out my number to her on a business card in a desperate attempt to make friends, Javi and Pedro through dodge ball, Pierre in a class when he stood to catch my eye and invite me to sit with him (abandoning the friend I had just made at the door), Andreas when he walked into my 212 apartment, instead of 312, didn’t realise for a bit, saw me looking at him expectantly, only to be incredibly embarrassed and avoid me for a solid two weeks after that. All the people mentioned, not mentioned and for the stories I’ve forgotten, I thank you. If you’ve read about yourself on this terrible blog, I thank you. I thank you for being there when ~cue melodramatic sadness~ no one else was. You’re all brilliant, amazing, inspiring, interesting and fantastic human beings. So not goodbye, but farewell, until next time.

Dice and I bused it to NYC - and on arrival we were greeted with NYPD cops throwing some guys up against a wall, and then being told how to ride the escalators by tape-recorded voices, that said things like; "don't forget to keep walking when you exit the escalator" "don't stand still at the top or the bottom of the escalator"

Thanks America.

Thank you for this.

C.E.N.T.R.A.L P.A.R.K