So, about 15 years ago I was in Australia for the first time. This time around? I am an adult. In New Zealand, I was in Auckland without a plan. I caught a bus from Auckland to Wellington and began my life as a hobbit. My first week in Australia was meant as a mix between vacation and getting things set up for my visa.
Two big things (besides a mullet)
The main goal with spending the week in Sydney was to get a bank account and a tax ID number. This I achieved within two days. That left the rest of the week for vacation!
Hostels are the way to go
My first experience with hostels was back in 2016, when I lived in Mosbach, Germany. I laid in bed for most of the day as I contemplated my life choices. They had a buffet breakfast where I tried some German ham as well as bread and I was sold. Now, nearly a decade later, I’ve stayed at plenty of hostels. Some have been amazing, others dingy. When looking for hostels in Australia, I was surprised how many 8 star and above hostels there were. I settled on one a short walk to the city and not too far from the airport. This hostel had activities, a rooftop, and a free breakfast; the free breakfast I utilized almost every day. To save money, I bought pasta and bread so I’d have food for lunch and dinner. My room had a balcony where I was lucky enough to watch the Sydney marathon!
My room was modest and the only issue I really had was finding an outlet. The pillow was a little bit on the lighter side but nothing folding it in half couldn’t solve. Showers were my least favorite part of the hostel. They didn’t have a spot where I could put my clothes easily. But for seven days, it was a great stay!
The Sydney Opera House
15 years ago I was struck by the beauty of the Sydney Opera House. 15 years ago I didn’t go inside the opera house. This trip, I did my research. If you’re under 35, you can sign up with Opera Australia and get a 15% discount on tickets. That said, it can still be pretty expensive! Luckily, I found a show that was around $90 (AUD, I think). An hour and a half of intro to opera and I was sold. There’s a nice little bar on the harbor, so stop by there if you’re early for the show!
During intermission, you can walk around the cathedral, grab food and a drink, and simply enjoy yourself. After 15 years of waiting, I finally got to see the interior and it did not disappoint. The architecture is like nothing I’ve seen before and it was a true joy to see it firsthand.
Mullet Mike
As you can see in my Sydney Opera House photo, my hair had gotten pretty long! New Zealand had me sporting long hair, mustache, and no ponytail. When I got back home, I sported the ponytail when I started attending professional events. Years before, I did a skin fade when I was in Germany. For better or worse, hair is starting to define my travel. So with that, I knew Australia might be the only chance in my life to rock a mullet. So, here it is, in it’s full glory:
A modern mullet for a modern man
Botanical Garden and State Library
Each state in Australia has its own library and garden. While originally heading for the garden, I saw a beautiful building that I quickly detoured through. Unfortunately, my photos for the Sydney state library and botanical garden are all on Instagram! Fear not, for I saved a few photos from the Melbourne state library.
A few people playing chess on the upper floorThe library in Legos
Absolutely amazing architecture and of the two state libraries I visited, Melbourne came out on top. These are places I feel like I can spend days getting lost in. Check out books, do research, read. On one of the floors, there were chess tables and people just playing; my kind of place!
A Little Rooftop here, a little rooftop there
In Sydney, I had a nice rooftop hostel. In Melbourne, an even nicer rooftop. And I have to say, the Melbourne skyline is absolutely stunning.
The trip was fairly low-key. I spent my time between wandering the city and hitting the live music scene at a few bars. The evenings were spent clubbing and drinking with friends at one of the many rooftop bars. Clubbing was a miss, where I was bored for the first time in a club. I was told later that there are clubs for 25 to 35 year old’s, which is where I should have been! Mornings were for brunches, and one of my favorites was a Korean infused croissant.
A Melbourne coffee
Getting to Adelaide
The simplest way is to fly. I however, went for the train! Sydney to Melbourne has a fairly cheap commuter train and to get to Adelaide, you can take a bus. If you want to see Australia, this is a great way to do it!
The train had a food car, so I had fun eating throughout the trip and enjoying the sights. The journey overall took about 20 hours, so if you’re going to Adelaide from Sydney, make sure you take time to rest in-between by visiting Melbourne!
And that’s it! There will be more to come in the coming months. I’m currently living and enjoying life in my quiet home in the suburbs of Adelaide. My goal is to have a lived in experience in Australia. As always, thanks for reading!
I’ve heard that anything done once can be a fluke, but if you do it twice it becomes a pattern. New Zealand was supposed to be one last hurrah. It was a way to say my dreams were worth pursuing, however grand they may have seemed at the time. And now? I am currently living in Australia, in this fever dream I’m calling life.
After New Zealand
When I had left for New Zealand, I was a mess. I had a job that I sought since college, a partner, and student loans freshly paid off. But something was missing. So I left, on the chance I might find myself. And I did. I came away from the trip more confident than I ever had been. My confidence to move mountains was restored.
The Task to move mountains
Holiday working visas are no easy feat to pull off. You have the application fee, the plane ticket, and the initial months without work. Not to mention miscellaneous, unforeseen expenses. For example, if you’re tired and want to grab food after your flight. Or if your bank randomly adds foreign transaction fees to your card. If you’re doing back to back holiday working visas it can be extremely difficult.
My timeline is as follows: Pandemic -> quit job -> find work -> Pay of Student Loans -> get cavities -> New Zealand… New Zealand -> find work slowly -> start making good money -> travel last month of visa and accrue debt. Then I come back home and have 9 months to make money, which created a completely new timeline… Hop off plane -> say hi to family -> go to alumni event -> become soccer coach -> new job saving a Gala -> Finish Job -> Mini Vacation -> Job Market collapses -> become cashier -> Hop on plane. So as you can see, very little room for error. All this to be unemployed in a foreign country (at least for a couple weeks).
So as you can see, even if you are focused and know what you’re doing, you will have a period where you use the money you saved. This is especially true if you want to have a mini vacation, like I did my first week.
My Mini Vacation
New Zealand was messy. I spent two weeks in Auckland where I befriended a British person right away. This friendship pretty much sealed my fate of drinking every day (for the first couple weeks). For this trip, A week in Sydney, a weekend in Melbourne, and then a house in Adelaide. Sydney was bank account and tax I.D. (as well as a mullet) where I ate free breakfast at the hostel, made cheese sandwiches, and had pasta. My splurge was on a rooftop bar during happy hour. Melbourne? Pure vacation filled with live music, brunches, and clubbing. Did I take the train? Of course! And then a 12 hour bus ride to Adelaide. If I didn’t have the weekend, I would’ve lost my mind. And Adelaide? Settling in and getting to know my roommates.
The coming weeks
I just set up transfers with my US bank. Pro tip: do not pay international wires as they will have high fees and not the best conversation rates! Instead, get a Wise account. You could also try Revolut, although I haven’t used them. Set them up as an external transfer, similar to what you’d use for banks back home. That way, you can transfer money to Wise. Once you set up your account, you can transfer it to whatever country bank account you’re using!
My next task is to find work, which means updating my resume and getting a few licenses specific to handling alcohol and if I want to go the extra mile, a food handlers card. It involves reaching out to local recruiters for the industry I’m applying for and as an extra measure, joining local business professional networks.
Once that’s done, I can start looking into things such as run clubs and perhaps even board game cafes!
Is it worth it?
Obviously, yes. The amount of growth I will achieve on this trip is immeasurable. It’s tough to start but gets a lot easier as the visa goes on. I have my own room, with a desk, so I’m already doing a thousand times better than when I started in New Zealand! Cheers to the future and I’ll be trying to post when I get the chance!
As always, thanks for reading! If you have questions about travel, feel free to reach out! I love sharing my experiences! I’ve also expanded to medium, so I’m expecting a lot more traffic in the coming year!
“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor, and another fig was Ee Gee, the amazing editor, and another fig was Europe and Africa and South America, and another fig was Constantin and Socrates and Attila and a pack of other lovers with queer names and offbeat professions, and another fig was an Olympic lady crew champion, and beyond and above these figs were many more figs I couldn’t quite make out. I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn’t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.” ― Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar
I grabbed a branch and held on for dear life.
Hi, yes, so I’m not dead. It has been many months since I last wrote. Why? I’ve been busy living and working. Originally, the plan was to write extensively like I did when I was in Germany almost a decade ago. However, study abroad and a working holiday visa are two very different experiences. Germany was a journey to share while I figured it out. New Zealand, on the other hand, is a journey best left to be shared at the end. So I’ll start the article with a snippet I took from an unfinished article. Then, we’ll move into the end of my journey. I’ll talk about my travels and key takeaways. I’ll add I few questions for engagement, so keep an eye out! Then, we’ll finish!
“If you could travel, where would you go?”
A Little Blast from the past: The Beginning
The hike that turned into climbing a mountain…
So I did try writing earlier in the trip! Some articles were published others were not, I took a few excerpts from the unpublished ones to put in here as a fun way to highlight some of my earlier thoughts as I was going through my travels:
“
So here we are, a few months into my visa and the trip has been working as intended. The goal wasn’t so much a grand adventure as it was a chance to give myself a nice reset. There has been a learning curve, for sure, but each day I learn something new about myself. This trip will define my next decade, so it’s something that had to be done. It was difficult to leave everything behind in the U.S. I’m learning to be more assertive in my approach to life and be more comfortable with imperfection. I’m a people pleaser at my core so advocating for what I want has been a puzzle for me.
Blame, Less
So this year, I’m putting the past behind me. To do so, I’m making an effort to blame no one for the past. Rather than dwell, I’m putting an emphasis on things simply being the way they are. As part of that effort, I’m trying to write less about the past. By doing this, I gain more focus on the future. My conversations about the past have run their course and the journey I was on is no longer relevant. I am attending Adult Children of Alcoholics meetings (ACA). I am also gaining more confidence with relationships. The pendulum is slowly swinging in the right direction.
Who Am I?
That is the question I am asking myself on this trip. What is my purpose and where do I want to go? My work is casual. I work once every couple of weeks or when shifts are available. This schedule gives me a lot of time on my hands. And a lot of that time has been spent doing a whole lot of nothing. I do not have the drive I once did and my boundless energy has become more bounded.
Focusing on Writing a Book
So I have a renewed focus on writing a book while I’m here. I have a few ideas for a horror story, a potential self-help book, and a poetry book. Earlier, I read a friend’s book and have felt inspired to take the leap myself. I have 6 months at my Airbnb. I hope to have a good start by the time June rolls around.
Setting A schedule
At the moment, I don’t really need to set a schedule. Falling into the habit of waking up late is easy. I often spend the day chatting with my 27 other flat mates. Okay, maybe not all at once. As a talker, this is great. For productivity, not so much. If someone is talking to me, I try to put everything away. I find it challenging to prioritize getting work done. There is a shed in the back where I can get some peace. I ultimately choose to sit where people will be coming through often.
A different trip
The greatest shock of this trip is in fact, that it is not study abroad in Germany. In fact, it is not even close. It is survive, thrive, and take a break. There is no go, go, go. No next purpose, no next adventure. It is managing my limited resources to make for an enjoyable trip. I honestly have no idea what to do with myself and that is perfect. It means my soul is still malleable and that I am still open.
“
“Would you take the initial risk to travel, even if it meant leaving the known behind?”
And every journey has a beginning, a middle, and an end, each stage weaving together to create the tapestry of our experiences.
The Middle
One of the many waterfalls I saw on my journey…
So I wrote during the middle of the trip and a lot of it was regarding traveling. A day trip here, a day trip there. A cold winter spent inside watching ‘Friends’ and a winter of making friends. It’s crazy to think that I simply lived. Looking back, there is beauty in that. The slower New Zealand days are now some of my favorite. Playing Catan till three am every morning. Drinking more than I should. Bowling, going to play board games twice a week. Reading a few books, going to boutique cinemas. Not to mention volunteering at a community garden, free restaurant, and bike repair shop.
A Few Stories:
My favorite story to tell is that when I first arrived, I was afraid to cook. Someone in the house had made fries and I thought it was impossible. I made cheese cubes, ate plain rice, and had pasta. It was a sad diet. And then I started going to Sunday markets and I decided to start cooking with potatoes. Then I tried making fries and it become my go to snack. I made them well and they were easy. I realized in that moment that sometimes you just have to try.
Or when I started going to Saturday writers meetups to get started on my book. I have one paragraph written. Regardless, it was a cool experience to try. I’ve never joined a writing group before but I’ll definitely look for the opportunity back home.
And another, where I got so drunk one night that we wandered the town. What did we find? A trolley (shopping cart), which I was promptly wheeled back home in.
“Where do you find meaning in a journey?”
Endings can be daunting, yet they remind us that nothing lasts forever.
Journey’s End
So here we are, at the end. When I arrived to New Zealand, I was but a child. As I leave, I leave with more independence and confidence in myself, which was the ultimate goal. I wasn’t satisfied back home and needed to escape. I’ve found how much I truly enjoy traveling. New Zealand is a beautiful country and to be able to live in it was a true blessing.
The Last Month
I lived and worked 11 months in Wellington, my city and one of the best cities to live out there. I started as a corporate box host. I worked for the national museum of New Zealand. I finished as a chef at a board game cafe. It was huge for someone who never really cooked in their life. So, last month I decided to travel. I explored the South Island’s West Coast. Then I visited Mount Cook, Lake Tekapo, and Milford Sound. Then from Wellington all the way to the tip of the North Island. It was crazy, messy, and all together beautiful.
What I achieved
A successful relationship – I had a relationship overseas, and it was absolutely wonderful, even if it was super brief. I used to think I’d be single for the rest of my life. Now, I have hope that past failures in love will not dictate future results.
Living less of the high life and a more practical life – When I arrived in New Zealand, I wanted the best. I aimed for the best experiences. I ate out quite a bit, I drank, and I chose an expensive hostel. In Wellington, I started to OP shop (buy secondhand) and even picked up sewing as a skill! I bought flour and learned to bake and as I chef, I learned to cook. I saved a lot of money after I figured out how to be a proper backpacker.
Found a part of my soul – As I’ve gotten older, I’ve felt very stagnant in life. Spinning wheels and going nowhere. New Zealand has been the opposite. The effort I put in, I got back ten fold. I stopped worrying about climbing the corporate ladder and let life slow down. I went on walks and just took joy in the simply pleasures, with things such as baking.
Realized giving up isn’t an option – I’d been a quitter back home in the US. I was resigned to shitty jobs and just playing video games or watching TV. Part of living for the full year was to take jumper cables to my soul and reach deep within to restore what I had thought to be lost. So I’m back to doubling down like a used to and going all in even though it’s terrifying. I live in less fear and more in hope than I did a year ago.
Adversity should be embraced – So nothing really went quite to plan, and I had to learn to be okay with that fact. I never put my foot and set boundaries back home, so here I got a nice reality check. To get what I wanted, I needed to stand up for myself and ask for what I wanted. My whole life, I thought I had done this, but I hadn’t. Now, I’m better at dealing with authority and treating myself as an equal. It feels relatively nice.
A Summary of what I learned:
I love a good adventure. My accomplishments this trip were no small feat. I had no idea what I was doing when I set out on this journey. I was leaving my known world behind for the unknown, praying it would be better. My key takeaway is that nothing is impossible and what is broken can be fixed.
And it was not a perfect journey! I had to fight my internal demons and I wasn’t sure who would win. I wanted to quit after three months but the goal was always a year. Persevere and then persevere more.
Australia
So I will mention now, that come 2025, I’ll be moving to Australia to repeat this experience all over again! I’ve been granted a visa and plan to stay three years. My time in the US will strictly be to make enough money to fund the initial move. Originally I was thinking Ireland and then Canada. Enough people were able to convince me Australia would be better and I’m glad they did!
There will be more on Australia but for now the plan to start in Melbourne. The dream is to become a barista with farm work mixed in. I’ll stay as long as I can and then see where life takes me.
The End
I wish there was more to say. The truth is a lot of the journey is hard for me to fully articulate into words. These journeys are truly best experienced firsthand. I left my hobbit hole what feels like ages ago and now I return home ready for a good rest. Will the Shire be as I left it? I have a couple days left in New Zealand and everything to be done, has been done. I have no regrets. Until the next tale.
The Actual End
So, my year is at an end. I will be back home for the holidays and I’m looking for time to relax. I’m better than I was before I left but I am tired. I’m ready for a break to settle and then unsettle myself once more. Traveling in my thirties is scary but so good for me. My writing is rusty. With any luck, it will return once I get back to the states. I’ll have time to unwind. As always thanks for reading and joining me on these journeys!
When my journey began in shire…When my journey ended in the Shire…
“Is a journey sad when it’s over or can it be enjoyed for what it was?”
So go out and travel! Embrace the experiences that come your way! You don’t have to know everything; just take that first step! I encourage you to respond to any questions in the comments or ask me anything about travel! And please share your travel stories—I’d love to hear them and connect with your adventures!
If I can become a chef with no cooking experience, then truly anything is possible. Remember, the only limits you have are the ones you place on yourself. Step out of your comfort zone, and let the world surprise you!
So I’ve been in New Zealand for a couple months now! And I’m still alive! In fact things have been going quite well as I fall into routine. I’ve been attending professional meet ups, cooking, and getting ready to join a community garden as well as learn about repairing bikes.
What have I been Cooking?
When push comes to shove, I usually adapt and New Zealand has proven no different. I have been baking quite a bit, so below I’ll show off some of my creations:
Flatbread! Why, you might ask? Because it requires 3 ingredients: flour, salt, and oil (plus water). Easy, cheap and healthy. Cookies? I made 60 and it was fantastic; literally ate cookies for three days. Homemade Bread? For a first attempt, it tasted delicious and also looked fantastic. Cheese Puffs? I took my love of cheese to the next level and learned how to make snack food with it!
What have I been doing?
What a great question. I have mostly just been enjoying my time off. I worked a little bit at a stadium serving food and this last month have been attending professional meet ups. The one I found most interesting was on becoming a business analyst, so now I am trying my luck as a consultant to those who need business advice. It’s fun and exciting, and I haven’t felt this motivation since I graduated college. I’ve been doing a bit of writing here and there and just recently got back into coding. I also recently attended a toast master where I got to practice my public speaking and since those are hosted weekly, I’m going to continue to attend more. I might not have a steady job right now but I’m hopeful if I focus this month on finding work, I’ll be able to find something I’m happy with.
Finally Doing ACA
I’ve mentioned it before, but I’ve been doing a few ACA (Adult children of Alcoholics) meetings while I’ve been here. I’ve now been going twice a week and it’s been really fantastic for my mental health. Not easy but I’ve felt a lot of personal growth and really feel my mindset shifting. My problem before is I always tried to tackle everything on my end, now I have a support network where I can openly talk about just how fucked up my childhood really was. It was the missing piece in my self confidence journey and has allowed me to be more vulnerable on the whole, not just in the meetings.
It’s interesting taking this journey overseas but the distance from home really does help quite a bit. I am completely vulnerable over here and I can truly see who I am. I’m proud of how far I’ve come and know that I’m at the finish line.
Travel?
Travel? What travel? I am simply living as I’ve said a couple times before. I have done a bunch of day trips but outside of that, not much else. Since travel is hard to write about, here are some photos instead:
A visit to a lighthouse after a long day of hikingRock formations carved out from glaciers, one of the most majestic things I’ve ever seenJust a normal view around the Wellington area
As you can see, it is absolutely gorgeous here. This trip is exactly what I needed for this chapter of my life and I’ve really enjoyed just traveling around the Wellington area.
Tips and Tricks for Survival in a Foreign Country
I think the biggest recommendation I can give is to simply save up for the trip. Do proper planning and have a piggy bank from back home so you can spend happily. I’m happy that I chose a country where the US dollar is strong, so all the saving I did back home goes a lot further. By saving ahead of time, you take pressure off of “needing” a job and free up time to grow as a person. If you’re working a job just for the money, it can be tough to feel inspired by the experience. I’d also recommend breaking up your trip into markers and my favorite is to break everything up into three month increments. Ask yourself how you’re feeling and if you feel overwhelmed, know that you can always go home after 3 months. If you feel ok after 3 months, push yourself for 6 months and don’t underestimate how much you can change in a 3 month period.
What are Kiwis like?
They are nocturnal. Jokes aside, I’ve found them to be overall pleasant. I had the impression going over that they’d be some of the nicest people I’d ever meet and overall that has been true. But I also realized everyone is simply human. Living with up to 28 people (yes, you read that right) I’ve met a lot of travelers in the last couple of months. And while some cultures I quite admire, I realized that back home isn’t as horrible as I thought when I was leaving. It can always been worse. That said, there is little I have to worry about over here. Kiwis are relaxed individuals that prioritize social interactions over work. I’m hoping in the coming months, I socialize with the kiwis even more and start to really feel like I’m one of them. I have a mustache and long hair now, so I very much fit the aesthetic style of the kiwis.
A Nice Showcase of my double chin
More insight to come
The longer I am here, the more I’ll learn about myself. I am slowly regaining a long lost confidence and it feels really good. And just, yesterday, I touched Thor’s hammer! If that’s not a sign of good things to come, I don’t know what is!
To the Moon 
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