February 2012
1 post
It's just, like, memories.
Apparently we’re cruising at an altitude of 40 000ft right now. We’re even running a little early. Thanks for the heads up, pilot. Now any chance someone could throw me a box of tissues, or a brown paper bag, because have a look at me. Yeah, that’s me, the pathetic mess in 26F. We just flew out of Sweden, and for the millionth time this week, waterworks. Well instead of replaying every happy...
January 2012
2 posts
Nostalgia-ing all over the place
It’s 3.30am. I put down my book half an hour ago and have been waiting for the sandman, but the realisation that I have 10 days left has flipped me out a little. The other day, my buddy, Julia, asked Lloyd and I what our top three memories of exchange have been. It’s an astoundingly difficult question, and one to which I have no definitive answer. We decided we could answer if we...
'Tis the season to be... wondering where the hell...
Back home, amongst friends and family, I’m probably the biggest fan of Christmas I know. Well, over the age of 14 at least. Every year, come December, I’m the one hanging off the edge of the roof, dangling Christmas lights and finding replacement bulbs, the one blaring Christmas tunes in the lounge room, the one smiling as I struggle to find a park at the shops in Eltham on Christmas...
December 2011
1 post
The aimless post that turns sentimental
I’m lying on the couch in the TV room at Kalmar. I hate this couch. It’s not long enough. I’m feeling sleep-deprived and reflective. In the past four days (Saturday - Tuesday), I have spent over 44 hours here. I can’t remember the last time I cooked a meal at home. I don’t blog often because I feel like I’ve got nothing to say (“Yesterday I spent far too...
November 2011
1 post
München 'n' Crünchen
November arrived and I hadn’t left Sweden since a cheeky booze cruise to Tallinn in early July (thank you so much, migrationsverket). Shit, I’d hardly left Uppsala except for a weekend down in Göteborg. So it was planned. A booze cruise to Riga. It would be cheap, easy, drunken and… cheap. Or so we thought. The dickhead who planned the trip (yo!) didn’t book tickets early...
October 2011
2 posts
1 tag
Exchange application essay
I just found this from July 1st, 2010. It’s weird to think about how much has happened since I applied for exchange. I’m on the other side of the goddamn world. That’s kinda cool.
Marita Battles the Exchange Conundrum
Once upon a time there lived a young woman named Marita who lived a very happy and comfortable life, but it was not the most exciting of lives. When she...
The blog post in which I write a whole bunch about...
Updatin’ the bloggins so I can try and work out what the hell I even did in September. Honestly, not an awful lot, yet I’m still going to write allllllll about it. The four most likely places I could be found the past few weeks have been work, bed, the pub…. and occasionally Engelska parken for classes… ha. What’s that you say? You want me to elaborate? OK THEN.
I...
September 2011
1 post
1 tag
Summaaaaaaaaahhhhhh, shit, it's gone.
I thought August in Sweden was going to be like February in Australia. Y’know, when the real heat arrives, but it’s still holidays, so everything’s lazy and awesome. I thought wrong. For me, August was 4 weeks of doing a lot, yet not much at all, largely mediocre to shitty weather, being frustrated with the noobs (please don’t make me write ‘n00bs’), getting my...
August 2011
2 posts
Göteboring? Hardly
As I’ve mentioned previously, I’ve been pretty much stranded in Sweden, still waiting for this goddamned residency permit. But stranded in Sweden doesn’t mean stuck in Uppsala, so the first weekend of August I got out and about and headed down to Gothenburg (Göteborg). I jumped on a train to Stockholm bright and early (1pm), nervously checking and re-checking my train tickets to...
3 tags
Q: How many residency permit extension...
A: Just one
I’m sitting here, it’s a lazy (read: pretty fucking boring) Tuesday night and it’s August 2. Time to watch the sky turn pretty colours and get lost in thought. Where the hell did July go? If you put it in the context of how I spent most of June, kicking around northern Europe, it’s pretty easy to suggest I wasted July, spending a lot of time doing sweet f.a....
July 2011
21 posts
1 tag
Huh
Today would have been the day I left Europe had I not extended. I can’t imagine how totes devo’d I would have been.
More Steve times
Ok, so where are we at now? Monday, Day 10 of the trip, according to my diary.
Oh, yep, more photos.
So anyway, we touch down in Köln/Cologne at some stupidly early hour, like 6am or something, and it is the smoothest landing I have ever experienced. Like, I was willing to applaud the pilot, Ryanair style. Skillz, brah. At the Central Station we’re supposed to be catching a bus to Utrecht...
1 tag
The Steve times
Firstly, here’s the photos.
On May 29 my brother-from-another-mother, Steve, touched down in the land of the beautiful socialists, jumped on a bus and made his way out to Uppsala, brimming with anticipation of spending a month with yours truly (I assume. He may have been brimming with dread, antipathy or hunger. Either way, he was brimming). What he wasn’t anticipating was me standing...
June 22
Home (to Uppsala) tomorrow. I’m actually looking forward to it. Travel is making me tired (ha such a tough life). Berlin is pretty damn cool. I have stories. I will share them when I am reunited with my beloved laptop. Cooool.
1 tag
Ice ice(land) baby
I’m lying in a hostel in mf’ing Reykjavik. There’s a bunch of Danish girls drinking and singing shit songs on the floor of our room. It’s midnight and the sun is still setting. Coke comes in 500ml cans. What is this life?
1 tag
Things wot I am up tooo
Last Saturday I cleared out of Uppsala with my buddy Steve for a couple of weeks. I caught a train to Oslo, then the following day headed up to Bergen. In Norway I had my bank account raped so I was pretty pleased to be leaving. I’ve been in Copenhagen since Tuesday and have been generally loving it, except my cast was making me hate life… so I cut it off yesterday. This afternoon...
Croatia, eh?
In May I went to Croatia. It was 5 days of in-jokes, quotes, obnoxiousness and awesome. It’s gonna be long…
(Let’s turn this into a story with pictures. The photos are here!)
Day 1 (Saturday)
A typical Friday evening is had by all parties, so we meet at lunchtime at the Uppsala train station stifling yawns, nursing miiiiiild hangovers. I’ve been awake since about 8am,...
1 tag
Solid run of fail
This past week and a bit has been, ahhhh, failtastic.
Last Saturday I went to a party, fell asleep on a couch. Someone went through my bag and nicked my ipod and 300kr. Irritating, but I’m the moron who passed out, so ehh.
Thursday night I was at some club, imbibed some stupid amount, managed to collect one bag from coat check whilst losing another at some point. In the line at Max I...
1 tag
Valborg'd
So, some background on Valborg. Pay particular attention to the stuff about Uppsala.
Pardon the vague hyperbole, but yesterday was one of the best days of my life. It went a little something like this:
Was supposed to be up at 7 for a champagne breakfast down by the river, but owing to a rather big previous evening (Kvalborg) and a phone stupidly left on silent (and recently dropped in a glass...
1 tag
Never Gonna Give You Up(psala)
I just realised I haven’t written one of these in nearly 2 months. I guess it’s time for another shitty pun be-titled update.
Brace yourselves.
Ok where I left off last time I’d been living a pretty hectic life. Gasquing, Arctic Circling, Stockholming, I was vaguely busy. First weekend of March I finally left Sweden. Caity and I jumped on a plane for a lazy one hour flight...
1 tag
Hungover as hell in Helsinki
I may or may not have had one of the most disgraceful/awesome nights of my life in Estonia last night. I may or may not have full intentions to return to the awesomest bar on the planet asap.
Baltic Itinerary, awww yeaaah:
Day 1. Riga April 19th We meet in legendary Fun Friendly Franks Hostel in Riga 3 PM. After checking in and enjoying a free Latvian beer we head out on a guided walk to explore the city. During the evening we go to a pub for a meal and get to know the other travelers. Day 2. April 20th Riga to Tallinn After breakfast we go with bus to Tallinn the capital of Estonia. In Tallinn we check in at our...
Extending
The other day I realised I’m pretty much applying to stay on exchange for another semester because I’ve got this sneaking suspicion that my life isn’t going to get any better than this.
And I mean this in the most positive way possible.
Yep.
Up(psala)date
7 weeks? I’ve been here for 7 weeks? Well then, here’s what’s been happening:
I’m loving my subjects. It helps that they pretty much happen once a week or fortnight. I’m studying Conflict and Consensus in American History, which I adore. There’s seven in the class and we sit around for 2 hours discussing the readings and it reminds me why I’m a massive...
1 tag
Problems I never had to deal with in Australia:
“Is that snow/ice stuck on my face, or did I drool a bit and it’s now frozen?”
Giddy Upp... sala!
Ok, in case you’re interested here’s what’s been happening.
I left Melbourne at 12.30am on Friday January 14, 2011, having been delayed by an hour for some retarded reason, and proceeded to cry for the first 25 minutes of the flight, but it was nothing a COMPLIMENTARY HOT TOWEL couldn’t fix. Fourteen and a half hours later I’d watched Fantasia, Inception (ok, I get the hype. Jesus, that movie...
Words I have taught non-Australians, thus far
Goon
Shitfaced
Doona
Chap laps
Munt
Jumper
Lollies
Powerspew
Op shop
First couple of days
Sweden is awesome and cold and full of attractive people. However I have no net yet so I have to keep coming back to the same burger joint for free wireless. I’m starting to look shifty…
Jan 13, 2011: Leaving
Sitting in the departure lounge, on my own, missing family already. Why did I decide it was a good idea to leave the country? I was ever so teary in customs.
…and I’m wearing moonboots (in disturbingly tropical weather), so I’m sweating like a bitch.
1 tag
Obligatory first post
Hokkai, so here’s the Earth…
I’ve been here for half a year already and whatever updates I’ve provided, whether on my other blog or on facebook, have been spasmodic, to say the least. Hopefully by creating this I’ll actually write down and update what I’ve been up to with a little more regularity, for the sake of my own memories, if anything.
I guess...