The Life of a Dreamer: 2012

Today marks the day that I have been back for the same amount of time I was traveling; 108 days. It’s amazing how time flies. It feels like it has been ages since I was in New Zealand and Australia yet it has only been 3.5 months. Upon landing in Minneapolis, it was as though I hit the ground running; always keeping busy.

But before I get to what I’ve been doing since I got back, let me fill you in on my final day of traveling, since I failed to do so upon returning. I boarded my plane in Sydney with the hopes that I would fall asleep during the flight. My body was telling me it was day time so I was only able to sleep for an hour or two on the 13.5 hour flight to Los Angeles. Upon arriving in LA, I collected my baggage and proceeded to go through customs. Due to the long line of those who held foreign passports, at that moment, I was thankful to be a US citizen. With hardly the blink of an eye, the customs officer stamped my passport and said, “welcome home.” Leaving the international terminal, I walked 10 minutes to the domestic terminal where I had to check-in. I proceeded to scan my passport in the automatic check-in machine. The machine informed me that I would need the help of an attendant to complete the process. In my weariness, I was thankful that the next 45 minutes of figuring out my flight changes was accompanied by the warm smile and cheerfulness of the kind attendant who helped me. Rather than flying to Chicago, I would be flying to San Francisco. My checked bag weighed 31lbs; 10lbs more than when I left the US. After going through airport security, I made my way to the proper gate. Word to the wise: when flying internationally or within different time zones, make sure you change your watch accordingly. When I arrived at the gate I pulled out my computer, thinking I had an hour or so until my flight left. I sat there looking at my watch and the time my computer was telling me before I kindly asked the lady next to me what time it was. I then compared this to the time on my boarding ticket. My flight was set to depart in 5 minutes and I wasn’t on the plane. “OH, CRAP!” I quickly pulled my things together and ran to the ticket counter. The woman politely scanned my boarding pass and told me to be quick. And quick I was, so quick that as I jogged down the ramp, my toothbrush fell out of my backpack. I swept it up and made my way aboard the plane, my heart racing. Being one of the last on the plane, I felt as though all eyes were on me as I made my way to my seat. I sat down and let out a big sigh. I had made it. Ironically, after boarding, they made an announcement that we would not be taking off for another hour due to the weather conditions in San Francisco. After a short layover in San Francisco, we arrived in Minneapolis shortly after 5pm. After almost 24 hours of travel with little sleep, I was disheveled and suffering from jet-lag. I had left Sydney on May 15th at 10:15am and arrived in Minneapolis just after 5pm the same day. It was officially the longest day of my life thus far. When I arrived in Minneapolis, my dear friend Katie Moe was there to pick me up. Katie, her fiancé Erick, and our friend Twigz went out to eat at Punch Pizza; the first food I had stateside. And boy was it good. It spite of being jet lagged, it was a great welcoming. Following dinner, we walked the streets of St. Paul. It was a strange feeling to be walking and conversing with people I knew after traveling for 3.5 months by myself. It would certainly take some getting used to.

Back in Minnesota with all my gear

A lovely welcome home dinner

At Como Conservatory with my sister

The next few days were spent trying to recover from jet lag. This meant sleep. Lots of it. Although much could be said of the days following my re entry of the Unites States, for your sake, as well as mine, I’m going to accelerate the happenings of my life over the past few months. I’ve been told that my whereabouts this summer have been hard to keep track of and I can see how one would think such a thing. After being home a little over a week, I made my way to Chicago to visit a friend from college for a week. I went home for a day to pack before driving to Colorado where I spent the next month with the family I nannied for. My sister and I spent a couple of days driving home, stopping at Custer State Park, Wind Cave, and the Badlands along the way. That brings us to the beginning of July. The next two weeks were spent between home, the twin cities, and the La Crosse area, preparing for my friend Katie’s wedding on July 14^th. After the wedding I had a week at home before heading to Arrowhead Bible Camp to volunteer for two weeks. The first week was spent counseling for Jr. High and the second was spent working in the kitchen. I went home for a few days but that two weeks at camp turned into three, and then four. Whether or not I was actually home for the next week is arguable. I was home for a couple of days before taking a short road trip with my sister to Devil’s Lake and Madison followed by visiting my brother, sister-in-law and nephew. And here I am, it’s the beginning of September and I’m back at camp for my fifth week. So like I said, when I arrived back from my travels I hit the ground running. I realized that over the last 8 months, the longest I have stayed somewhere was 5 weeks, and that was when I was traveling.

My summer in pictures

Spent several evenings fishing with my family

Hanging out with my wonderful nephew Oliver

Going to Chicago to visit college friends

Garden of the gods, Colorado

Wind Cave, South Dakota


Badlands National Park, South Dakota

celebrating the marriage of Katie Moe and Erick Klein

Camp Peeps at Katie's wedding

Olive Garden night after a week at camp

Celebrating my birthday with wonderful people

Short road trip to Devil's Lake with my sister

And now what you’ve all been waiting for, the million dollar question: what am I doing next? Let’s just say, I’m asking myself the same question. I have yet to figure that out. There is a battle going on inside me. I have a strong desire to settle down and have consistency in my life YET at the same time traveling is in my blood. If you were to look at the history of my Google searches the past 3 months, the top two things you would find are job searches in Minnesota and Wisconsin and things related to travel (airfare, maps, New Zealand, Croatia, Scotland, Ireland, etc.). I have had two job offered thus far but turned both of them down. So I guess time will tell. You’ll just have to wait and see.

It’s the morning of May 15^th, the day that I leave. I’m sitting here at the airport in Sydney suffering from tiredness. I woke up at 4:30am this morning, not able to sleep. I laid there for an hour with a wandering mind, thinking about the last 3.5 months and that it would soon be coming to an end. Knowing I wouldn’t be able to sleep, I went a head and got up and finished some last minute packing before taking the train to the airport. And now I sit here, with heavy eyelids. I know when I get home I will have jet lag and will be busy catching up with friends and family so I figured I may as well blog before too much time passes. So here goes.

Wednesday morning was looking beautiful as I headed across the beach. I walked along the beach for an hour and a half before arriving in Pambula. My goal for the day: see kangaroos. Instantly upon arriving at the local campground, I saw kangaroos lounging around and eating. Although in various groups, there were probably 40 or so. I approached the closest one; it didn’t seem the least bit phased. I suppose with living in a campground, they have gotten used to humans. I got within a foot of them and could have even touched them had I wanted to. Okay, there was definitely a part of me that wanted to touch one but I was warned by a campground resident that they can be quite vicious. I wasn’t about to be disemboweled during my last week in Australia. I’m sure you want me to come back in one piece as well! Pictures were taken before I continued on my journey, walking around a peninsula to where the ocean and river met. I sat there for only a few minutes before Jenny, my roommate at the hostel arrived. She was in Merimbula to visit friends and had invited me along as she and her friend Graham saw different points of interest in the area. She met me on the beach and we then went into town where we met Graham. The rest of the afternoon was spent looking around Eden (a neighboring town), going to Boyd Tower, the Naval Pier, the old whaling station, and Nethercote Falls. As the sun goes down here, so does the temperature. It was quite cool by the time we arrived back in town. The rest of the evening was spent at the hostel. With only 4 people staying at the hostel that evening, it was quiet.

Why hello there.

Excuse me, I have an itch

Just hanging out in the local campground

Pambula Beach

Eden lookout

Boyd Tower

Part of the old whaling station

Nethercote Falls

Although cool, Thursday morning began with the sun shining. I went to the beach for a bit before heading into town. Clouds filled the afternoon sky as I did a costal walk along the ‘lake’. They call it a lake but I beg to differ. I would consider it a bay. It is salt water and the water levels vary depending on the tide. The day was rather uneventful but a good day nonetheless.

An Oyster Farm

On Friday morning, I walked into town where I made plans for the days to come. I went ahead and booked my bus to Sydney as well as my first two nights at a hostel. When I arrived at 4:30pm by bus, I didn’t want to walk aimlessly around the city looking for a hostel. Friday was not only sunny but a bit warmer as well. I walked to Short Point, a beach and lookout area; a 30 minute walk from the town center. I was enjoying the lovely afternoon, overlooking the ocean, when the unthinkable happened. There I was, lying on the grass, when along came a dog sniffing about. He sauntered over to me, sniffed my backpack, and then proceeded to pee on it. Not a lot mind you, but still! I was in awe. The owner was not in site. All I could do was clean it as best I could. Just adds a little excitement to my day I suppose. My bus was to leave at 6:30 the next morning, so I did most of my packing Friday night.

Where I spent the afternoon

I woke up at 5:00am Saturday morning, allowing time to eat and finish getting my stuff together before walking 20 minutes into town to catch the bus. In the process of trying to quietly leave the room, Jenny woke up and offered to give me a ride to the bus stop. I gratefully accepted; it sure beats walking on a dark cold morning with all my stuff. With only two breaks to get up and walk around, I spent the next 10 hours on a bus. The sun was shining as I arrived at Sydney Central Station. It was only a 4 minute walk to the hostel. I checked in and after getting settled in my room, I went out again. While in Sydney, I wanted to go to Hillsong Church, so that’s exactly what I did. I walked to a bus stop where free transportation was offered for the City campus. Being a branch off the main church, although still decent in size, was smaller than expected. Following the high energy service, I went back to the hostel.

On Sunday morning, I set out to see the city. After a look at the ANZAC (Australia and New Zealand Army Corps) Memorial, naturally, my first stop was the park. In the center was a fountain. The sun was shining; it was a beautiful day. There I sat for several hours watching people stroll by and listening to the tunes of street entertainers. When 2:15 rolled around I walked to where a free tour was to given at 2:30. During the tour we walked about the city, and the guide pointed out different sites, telling us the history of them along the way. On the tour was a girl I recognized. She happened to be on the same walking tour I had been on in Melbourne a week earlier. Small world. When the tour ended we continued chatting as we made our way towards Sydney Opera House. Out of curiosity, I wanted to see if there were any cheap tickets available for that night or Monday. We were walking along the back of the opera house (or maybe it was the front, depending which direction you are looking) when we asked a guy who worked there where the ticket office was. He directed us around the building but seconds later, he scanned his ID allowing us to go through the bottom floor of the Opera House unaccompanied. I definitely don’t think he was supposed to do this and we were supposed to be there. This was confirmed when we arrived on the opposite end and were asked by an official looking guy where we had come from, how we had gotten there, and about the guy who had let us in. He was kind though, pointing us upstairs. The ticket office was closed; I would have to return the next day. Nadia, the girl from the tour, and I walked together part of the way as we each went to separate accommodation. To celebrate one of my last days in Australia, I had a kangaroo burger for dinner. Melbourne and Sydney are competitive in nature, disagreeing over which city is better. After a day of walking around Sydney, in my opinion, I prefer Sydney. Maybe cities weren’t so bad after all. After my hard days in Melbourne and my relaxing days in Merimbula, I was recharged. If I to continue traveling, I think I would have been okay with that. But alas, my time was coming to an end; which brings us to my last day in Australia.

Monday arrived. My last and final day of traveling, not including the day it would take to travel home. It was a surreal feeling. I wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. But time carries on nonetheless. Because my flight was leaving Tuesday morning, I figured I would spend the night at the airport so I didn’t have to pay for a hostel for the night or getting the airport in the morning. I was informed that the airport completely closes down at night so that botched that plan. That being said, I went ahead and booked another night at the hostel before taking the free bus into the city. My first stop was the Opera House. Unfortunately because I am no longer a student, the cheapest tickets for the nights show would be $88; too much. Maybe next time. From there I went to the ferry terminal where I caught the ferry to Manly for the day. It was a 30 minute trip across the bay. During this time, I sat next to an elderly gentleman who was a local and pointed out different things along the way. When we arrived, I walked 5 minutes across a stretch of land before coming to Manly Beach. Again, a gorgeous day. The sun was shining, it was warm, and many surfers could be seen catching the waves. I sat there for quite some time, enjoying the day and reminiscing. I then walked along the beach and coast a short ways before coming to a place that overlooked another popular surf spot. At one point, I counted 40 guys in the water. I sat there contently until the sun went down and the air got cool. I walked back to Manly where I caught the ferry back to Sydney. The city lights and the view coming into Sydney at night was absolutely beautiful. I walked back to the hostel where I finished off the pasta I had left before packing my backpack for the final time; a bitter-sweet moment. My pack was stuffed to the brim, or should I say, to the zipper. That night, I lay in bed unable to sleep for over an hour, my mind racing. My journey was coming to an end. But have no fear, this blog is not yet finished.