the first steps

i am a huge believer in 'everything happens for a reason'. ever since second year of university, i have had some sort of plans to do some travelling after i graduated. i had all of these big dreams and plans in my head, and due to different circumstances, they didn't pan out exactly as i had imagined. i was a little discouraged, as the whole reason i left my adopted home town of toronto was to move home and save up to go travel. i started working on a solo trip itinerary. it was to span 8 countries and 5 months, and cost a whopping $15,000. now, working at a minimum wage job, i'm pretty sure that would take me a long long time to save up for this. i wasn't super happy in ottawa to begin with, and now not really having a plan was bumming me out even more. it was by chance that the summer previously, i had gotten back in touch with a friend from high school who had been living in australia on a working visa for the past year. she knew of my trip plans, and we would talk on facebook every so often. we were having a phone conversation (so weird to talk to someone on the other side of the world and hear their voice!) in the late fall and i was sharing my frustration on not being able to afford my grand adventure. 

since she had previously decided to continue her travels and apply for a second year work visa, she suggested that i just come to australia on a work visa and meet up with her to work and make money as i go. now i hadn't really considered that idea before, but the more we talked about it, the more sense it made. i could use australia as a home base to work, explore, save up money and then go to se asia, coming back to work when i ran out of money. the more research i did, the more people i found who do this exact thing every year.  i was hooked on the idea. we agreed to meet in perth, western australia some time in august. i think that our reconnecting really happened for a reason, because she inspired me to do this and everything is working out perfectly! it makes me (and my mum i'm sure) feel so much better that i will be meeting a friendly face in australia who will be able to help me get my feet on the ground. i honestly don't know if i would be able to just go by myself, so this is very reassuring!  

also, since i will be there for a year (or perhaps two) other friends have been starting to plan their own travels in terms of meeting up and doing stuff together, which will be really great! there are so many jobs for backpackers there, and it will be easy to make a lot of money. the world is our oyster! 

i took the first step on friday and applied and got approved for my working holiday visa. i could leave for aus tomorrow if i wanted to, but i will be leaving around august 13-15. not exactly sure the dates yet, but by mid august, i should be in australia! 

i am beyond excited for this next step of my adventure, and i really hope you guys will follow along on my blog :) since i'm not leaving for a while, most of my posts will be about the gear i'm acquiring, my plans as they get more concrete, as well as countdowns and just posts about my general excitement! i know this is going to be a life changing journey and i can't wait to share it with all of you!

cheers!
soph