I came back from the Ashram on Monday 19th March and spent that day in Sydney before I flew to Hobart.
It was really nice to be back 'home' for a short while. I got to catch up with a women that had been at the ashram and with my friends from NQ. My meet up with Debbie from Mangrove had originally been planned as a coffee for an hour or so but turned into a five hour long chat in my beloved Starbucks on Campbell Street corner. It brilliant when you meet like minded people like that. Debbie, a fourty something Australian women who had dreams of travelling in Europe, and I had so much in common we talked for hours about everything and everything. We talked about life experiences, travelling, family, books, films, philophises and the rest.
Before i knew it it was 5pm; She had plans with a friend to go to the cinema and I had planned to meet Danielle from work. We said our goodbyes, hopefully not for the last time, and wished each other well for the future.
As I walked away from my meeting with Debbie which left me in such high spirits, I called Danielle and we arranged to both walk towards each other down George Street until we bumped into the other. It was lovely to be able to run up to her and give her a huge hug in the middle of the George Street crowds.
We sat in the Myers building and I was so hyped up with energy from chatting with Debbie for the last five hours, I talked at her like the speed of light filling her in with all the going ons from the last two weeks. Soon enough it was time to meet the others- Ardo, Irine, Midori and of course my darling Hien!
It was amazing to see them again! And we did what we did best and this was go and eat out at some of the awesome resturants Sydney had to offer. We all headed to Home, a Thai restaurant in Chinatown and got some food, which turned out to be pretty darn spicy much to Ardo's pleasure. There we all caught up on each others lives, and the antics of me and jan in the brilliant Byron Bay.
Before long it was getting late and time for me to head on back to the hostel as i had a very early flight, (yet again!) This time knowing that I wouldn't be returning to Sydney, at least for a very long time, I said my very last goodbyes to these people that had been dear friends of mine while I lived in this amazing city although I knew that one day some how I would see at least Hien and Danielle again.
The last two weeks had been awesome, work free and responsibility free. Being back on the road sure felt good and it wasn't about to change for a while at least. Onwards to Tasmania!
Friday, 13 April 2012
What do you think when I say yoga ashram?!
From Byron bay I took the train back to a place called Gosford, about an hour and a half north of Sydney where a women Shakti, met me to take me to the ashram deep in the mountains in the countryside.
When we arrived it was around 10pm, at which time the ashram was in the practice of mouna- the practice of silence that takes place every night from 8:15 until 7:30am the next morning.
The day started at 5am so I headed to my room with two girls that I met, Sophie and Remi, that Shakti had introduced me to, and went to bed ready for the next morning.
Each day had a clear rota.
5am- Wake up
5:30- Yoga class
7:00- Breakfast
8:00- Karma Yoga (Basically cleaning tasks around the ashram which is a practise of giving yourself for the benefit of everyone in the spirit of the community.)
9:00 Rostered work (Work to contribute to the Ashram running eg kitchen, grounds work and mantience, house keeping, office work etc)
11:00- Tea break (break for tea and fruit)
11:30 Rostered work
12:30 Lunch + clean up
1:30- Rostered work
2:30 Yoga Nidra (Guided mediation)
3:00 Afternoon Tea (Tea and fruit)
3:30-5:00 Rostered work
5:15 Yoga/meditation class
6:00 Dinner + clean up
7:15 Evening class or DVD
8:15-7:30 (The following day) Moana
You worked in all the rostered work times unless you had free time, and you had three and a half days off a week.
My time at the ashram taught me a lot about myself.
I need to learn to challenge my perceptions of why I feel the way I do about things in everyday life. If its regarding an event, person or situation, I need review my opinions and decide whether or not I am justified in thinking in the way I do. I should open up to other viewpoints that may exist and see if these could alter my own preception.
For example one of the yoga residents is a more of an authorian figure, with a dominating voice and strong character. When I first spoke to him I felt as though his personality was overwhelming, too controlling and that he had some kind of superiority complex which made me feel like inferior person and child-like. After overhearing a conversation he was having about his family, I learnt that he was the the second oldest in a family of ten children and was the oldest male child. This made me realise what I'd mistaken for an overbearing nature was probably just a caring nature used to being in charge and looking out for others younger than he.
Now having looked at his characteristics from another viewpoint it has opened up my mind and I can now see how my initial ideas were narrow-minded and did not allow for other possibilities.
I need to remember to apply this logic to other scenarios and I will go through life with a greater acceptance of world.
Also, having never really done a lot of meditation in the past, I found the meditation classes a relatively new practice but what I achieved in my first real class was a really strange. It was a truly unconscious state of being.
Deep within my chest I felt and could visualise a ball of light that brightened with every intake of breathe and which decreased with every release of breathe.
My body was no longer identifiable to myself; It was a void space- part of the atmosphere that surrounded me, something I could not determine to be a separate entity.
The only sensations I could feel were a gentle warmth in the very top of my head, and a mild coldness in my hands and feet and the warm ball of light in the center of my chest pulsing with each breathe.
Suddenly I became aware of an intense burning pain in my lower back just below my rib cage to the right of my spine which demanded my attention and eventually caused me to pull away from my trance and lay down.
Very strange, but very intriguing.
I found life at the ashram very easy. It was so simple just to slip into this community and live as they did.
So what is Yogic Lifestyle I hear you ask?
When people hear about the practices that go on in places like these it gets some mixed reactions. Some people believe these places are like a cult, involved in some weird going ons. Hidden away from society in some eccentric rejection of society with the sole purpose of having some higher level of being in a meditative trance.
OK, that may be in some ways true I guess. Yes they are hidden away from society but no more than people living in some of the rural villages that exist around the world.It not so much a rejection of modern society but the decision to leave material posessions behind and concentrate on themselves and a cleaner existance.
Sinics argue that its easy to achieve an inner calmness and acceptance in a place like that, hidden from the 'real world,' but if your your not open to the practises and willing to and are able to let go of all the bad things that haunt you then it doesn't matter how you spend in places like that, it won't have any lasting affects on you. You will simply foget everything as soon as your return to your normal routines.
The residents that live in these places aren't just a bunch of people trying to leave their previous lives behind, they are educated people who have chosen to study and adapt to the yogic life style and wish to pass their teachings on to people who want to learn.
Yoga is much more than streaches that people do in classes in leisure centres across the world, one or twice a week when people can be bothered to attend. Its many practises combined. Its a dedication to all these different practises: breathing techiques, mediataions, postures- understanding our bodies and minds and achieving a true inner peace.
One day when I was reading some of the feedback forms while working in the offices, I came across one persons form who'd gone on to write on the back about how much this place and the practices had helped her life- after what I gather were some negative experiences.
This person had focused on one of the phases I'd remembered hearing, 'Act rather than re-act,' and this struck a cord when I read her letter.
I find this a very interesting concept. Taking control allows you to measure the degree of movement in yoga, and enables you to work within the range which you are capable. This idea also works in everyday life. Instead of letting things happen to you and dealing with responding to these actions, if you are the active party you are in control of the situation and therefore able to cope better. It strengthens you mental ability and gives you greater power in the situation. A similar philosophy I also learnt in my psychology classes at college, talked of this 'control' being achieved with knowledge. If you are in possession of knowledge about an event that will happen, for example how to cope in an earthquake, then when a earthquake does happen you are mentality prepared and will suffer less stress than those who were unprepared. I wonder if knowledge is essential however in being active. Are those who are active in possession of knowledge more so than those who re-act, or can simply be active alone. Maybe its just a question of individual personality.
There will always be times, however, when a passive approach is more suitable- a time to 'surrender and accept' as the lady on the form had written.
In some quite free time I had I managed to finish the latest book I had 'The Alchemist,' by Paulo Coelho, a book with many interesting philosophies of its own.
One that I really liked was this (written in relation to love but could be also about friendship,) "If what one finds is made of pure matter, it will never spoil. And one can always come back. If what you found was only a moment of light, like the explosion of a star, you will find nothing when you return." I guess only time will tell about my friendships back in England and those I made with people from all over the world whether they are only 'moments of light' or indeed 'pure matter.'
Life at the ashram wasn't always serious though. It was a time for everyone for personal reflection but we also had some fun too.
We found a hoover that was used as a backpack, just like the ghostbusters suits, so me and a couple of the girls-Hannah and Elina- made a video acting out a ghostbusters scene. ( Which exists somewhere on Youtube I do believe!) We skipped one of the mediatation classes to film it, although everyone in the class heard us singing the theme tune and screaming at the 'ghost' so it wasn't much of a mediatation class after all, oops!
I also had a conversation with one of the girls that was just embarking on a six month residencey at Mangrove, about digging a tunnel in the back garden when I was about four or five and when my mum asked me what I was doing I said I was digging a hole to Australia. Think i'd been watching too much Neighbours! In fact I think I was probably trying to get to Ramsey Street. Little did I know at that age that it was much easier just to get a plane and that many years later I would finally get to Australia, I may even make it to Ramsey Street eventually.
I found it to be a very calming, grounding environment to be in and very much disagree with the opinions of someone I later spoke to that the people who stay there are avoiding real life. They are simply living a much more basic kind of life and focusing on themselves and living in a very much self-sufficient way.
I left that place feeling refreshed and happy. It was an awesome place. Amazing people, beautiful surroundings, gorgeous food and inspiring classes.
After that wonderful break from the real life it was now time to head back to the city and continue my journey on to Tasmania!
When we arrived it was around 10pm, at which time the ashram was in the practice of mouna- the practice of silence that takes place every night from 8:15 until 7:30am the next morning.
The day started at 5am so I headed to my room with two girls that I met, Sophie and Remi, that Shakti had introduced me to, and went to bed ready for the next morning.
Each day had a clear rota.
5am- Wake up
5:30- Yoga class
7:00- Breakfast
8:00- Karma Yoga (Basically cleaning tasks around the ashram which is a practise of giving yourself for the benefit of everyone in the spirit of the community.)
9:00 Rostered work (Work to contribute to the Ashram running eg kitchen, grounds work and mantience, house keeping, office work etc)
11:00- Tea break (break for tea and fruit)
11:30 Rostered work
12:30 Lunch + clean up
1:30- Rostered work
2:30 Yoga Nidra (Guided mediation)
3:00 Afternoon Tea (Tea and fruit)
3:30-5:00 Rostered work
5:15 Yoga/meditation class
6:00 Dinner + clean up
7:15 Evening class or DVD
8:15-7:30 (The following day) Moana
You worked in all the rostered work times unless you had free time, and you had three and a half days off a week.
My time at the ashram taught me a lot about myself.
I need to learn to challenge my perceptions of why I feel the way I do about things in everyday life. If its regarding an event, person or situation, I need review my opinions and decide whether or not I am justified in thinking in the way I do. I should open up to other viewpoints that may exist and see if these could alter my own preception.
For example one of the yoga residents is a more of an authorian figure, with a dominating voice and strong character. When I first spoke to him I felt as though his personality was overwhelming, too controlling and that he had some kind of superiority complex which made me feel like inferior person and child-like. After overhearing a conversation he was having about his family, I learnt that he was the the second oldest in a family of ten children and was the oldest male child. This made me realise what I'd mistaken for an overbearing nature was probably just a caring nature used to being in charge and looking out for others younger than he.
Now having looked at his characteristics from another viewpoint it has opened up my mind and I can now see how my initial ideas were narrow-minded and did not allow for other possibilities.
I need to remember to apply this logic to other scenarios and I will go through life with a greater acceptance of world.
Also, having never really done a lot of meditation in the past, I found the meditation classes a relatively new practice but what I achieved in my first real class was a really strange. It was a truly unconscious state of being.
Deep within my chest I felt and could visualise a ball of light that brightened with every intake of breathe and which decreased with every release of breathe.
My body was no longer identifiable to myself; It was a void space- part of the atmosphere that surrounded me, something I could not determine to be a separate entity.
The only sensations I could feel were a gentle warmth in the very top of my head, and a mild coldness in my hands and feet and the warm ball of light in the center of my chest pulsing with each breathe.
Suddenly I became aware of an intense burning pain in my lower back just below my rib cage to the right of my spine which demanded my attention and eventually caused me to pull away from my trance and lay down.
Very strange, but very intriguing.
I found life at the ashram very easy. It was so simple just to slip into this community and live as they did.
So what is Yogic Lifestyle I hear you ask?
When people hear about the practices that go on in places like these it gets some mixed reactions. Some people believe these places are like a cult, involved in some weird going ons. Hidden away from society in some eccentric rejection of society with the sole purpose of having some higher level of being in a meditative trance.
OK, that may be in some ways true I guess. Yes they are hidden away from society but no more than people living in some of the rural villages that exist around the world.It not so much a rejection of modern society but the decision to leave material posessions behind and concentrate on themselves and a cleaner existance.
Sinics argue that its easy to achieve an inner calmness and acceptance in a place like that, hidden from the 'real world,' but if your your not open to the practises and willing to and are able to let go of all the bad things that haunt you then it doesn't matter how you spend in places like that, it won't have any lasting affects on you. You will simply foget everything as soon as your return to your normal routines.
The residents that live in these places aren't just a bunch of people trying to leave their previous lives behind, they are educated people who have chosen to study and adapt to the yogic life style and wish to pass their teachings on to people who want to learn.
Yoga is much more than streaches that people do in classes in leisure centres across the world, one or twice a week when people can be bothered to attend. Its many practises combined. Its a dedication to all these different practises: breathing techiques, mediataions, postures- understanding our bodies and minds and achieving a true inner peace.
One day when I was reading some of the feedback forms while working in the offices, I came across one persons form who'd gone on to write on the back about how much this place and the practices had helped her life- after what I gather were some negative experiences.
This person had focused on one of the phases I'd remembered hearing, 'Act rather than re-act,' and this struck a cord when I read her letter.
I find this a very interesting concept. Taking control allows you to measure the degree of movement in yoga, and enables you to work within the range which you are capable. This idea also works in everyday life. Instead of letting things happen to you and dealing with responding to these actions, if you are the active party you are in control of the situation and therefore able to cope better. It strengthens you mental ability and gives you greater power in the situation. A similar philosophy I also learnt in my psychology classes at college, talked of this 'control' being achieved with knowledge. If you are in possession of knowledge about an event that will happen, for example how to cope in an earthquake, then when a earthquake does happen you are mentality prepared and will suffer less stress than those who were unprepared. I wonder if knowledge is essential however in being active. Are those who are active in possession of knowledge more so than those who re-act, or can simply be active alone. Maybe its just a question of individual personality.
There will always be times, however, when a passive approach is more suitable- a time to 'surrender and accept' as the lady on the form had written.
In some quite free time I had I managed to finish the latest book I had 'The Alchemist,' by Paulo Coelho, a book with many interesting philosophies of its own.
One that I really liked was this (written in relation to love but could be also about friendship,) "If what one finds is made of pure matter, it will never spoil. And one can always come back. If what you found was only a moment of light, like the explosion of a star, you will find nothing when you return." I guess only time will tell about my friendships back in England and those I made with people from all over the world whether they are only 'moments of light' or indeed 'pure matter.'
Life at the ashram wasn't always serious though. It was a time for everyone for personal reflection but we also had some fun too.
We found a hoover that was used as a backpack, just like the ghostbusters suits, so me and a couple of the girls-Hannah and Elina- made a video acting out a ghostbusters scene. ( Which exists somewhere on Youtube I do believe!) We skipped one of the mediatation classes to film it, although everyone in the class heard us singing the theme tune and screaming at the 'ghost' so it wasn't much of a mediatation class after all, oops!
I also had a conversation with one of the girls that was just embarking on a six month residencey at Mangrove, about digging a tunnel in the back garden when I was about four or five and when my mum asked me what I was doing I said I was digging a hole to Australia. Think i'd been watching too much Neighbours! In fact I think I was probably trying to get to Ramsey Street. Little did I know at that age that it was much easier just to get a plane and that many years later I would finally get to Australia, I may even make it to Ramsey Street eventually.
I left that place feeling refreshed and happy. It was an awesome place. Amazing people, beautiful surroundings, gorgeous food and inspiring classes.
After that wonderful break from the real life it was now time to head back to the city and continue my journey on to Tasmania!
Wednesday, 11 April 2012
Big Love For Byron
As we rolled in to Byron I woke to the sound of my Ipod playing Prince- 1999. I thought to myself, 'what an brilliant way to arrive!'
Byron is a place where people arrive with expectations, wonder what the fuss is about before the charm takes over and then fall in love with the place and never want to leave.
Through my experiences I would describe Byron as a town that’s a cross between Kuta, Bali and Newquay, England with a slice of some European weekend getaway destination. You really have the feeling your on some kind of European city-break when your there, but the vibe is so chilled out and relaxed and well aussie. Tourism doesn’t spoil it, just kind of agrees with it. If the name Surfers Paradise hadn't already been taken, Byron should've been called that.
The people who live there are undoubtable effortlessly cool. Surfers with their long ocean tangled locks bleached by the sun, stroll around barefoot with their beautiful tanned bodies.
We got to Bryon after an all-night journey at around 6am; Unable to drop our things at the hostel until the reception open at 8, we walked along from the bus stop into the town until we came across 'Why Not' cafe and hung out there for a while and had some breakfast and a coffee. Luckily enough they said we were able to just go straight to our dorm, where we crashed out for a few hours exhausted from the journey and lack of sleep.
The weather that day was pretty rubbish but it didn't stop us and we took a walk down the Belongli Beach to Main Beach down to The Pass on the peninsular of Bryon and then headed into the town.
Anywhere you are in Byron, you’re no longer than 10 minutes walk to the nearest beach and without exaggeration these beaches are stunning. It really is a gem of a place. Even with the terrible weather the it still looked awesome.
The next day we took advantage of the two hours free bike hire our hostel offered with the intention of biking to the famous lighthouse at Cape Byron. Unfortunately with our lack of fitness and the hilly terrain, biking all the way to the lighthouse on these Harley Davidson-esque bikes which had huge wide handlebars and lacked gears was just impossible. We got as far as the bass of the lighthouse hill and locked them up before tackling the steep incline by foot. It was a nice view though and worth the effort.
After the exhausting morning we decided to take it easy and spent the afternoon enjoying the sun at Belongli beach right in front of our hostel. It was the perfect place to engage in some people watching with such a diverse range of folk. There was an old couple enjoying some swimming, a family playing with a dog and entertaining a toddler, a group of schoolgirls jumping in the waves and many dog walkers strolling along the beach with their extra friendly pooches. It was really nice to see so many different types of people enjoying the beach.
That evening the hostel tour operator, a mildly entertaining fellow who fancied himself as a bit of a comic, hosted a free wine and cheese night to promote some of the tours he offered, give out some general info on Byron and answer any questions. He used himself as the butt of many jokes and got a few laughs out the crowd. Regardless to his comic ability he was friendly and provided some helpful info; to be honest I'll always be game whenever there’s free stuff offered like most other travelers. He was a nice guy so we decided to book some surfing through him for the following day (so I guess the promo worked!) Being in Byron and not surfing is like going to north Queensland and not going to see the Great Barrier Reef; you just have to do it. After dipping my toes in the ocean in Bali I really wanted to give it another go anyways and it didn't take much convincing to get Jan involved too.
[In fact I think the convo went something like this-
Me: While we’re in Byron we should deffo do some surfing!
Jan: Yes I was thinking the same…
Me: We should totally get a lesson then
Jan: Yeah why not
Done.]
That night we also decided that the lighthouse would be a great place to watch the sunrise, so we got up at 4:30am on the Thursday morning and headed along the beach and climbed up to the lighthouse. However we completely mixed up the sunrise times and found ourselves there an hour too early, an hour that would have definitely been appreciated in bed. Unluckily the sky was pretty cloudy which obscured the view of the sunrise but even so it was still beautiful to see the sun breaking through the clouds.
The stupidly early start made us so unbelievably tired so we took a rain-check on the surfing and rescheduled for the Friday instead and just spent the day lounging around in 'Why Not' and strolling around Byron.
That night was the beginning of the film festival in Byron, which opened with a really interesting documentary named Minds in the Water. Made by a surfer from Byron, with the help of the director of the cove and some input from Sea Shepard, it was about illegal whaling practices and dolphin slaughtering. Filmed for the sake of the ever declining populations of these brilliant intelligent mammals, I found it intriguing and very educational. The more I've travelled the more aware I am becoming of various environmentally issues and its really opening up my eyes to the problems in the natural world caused by the selfishness of the human race. The lack of government action in enforcing laws set to protect the environment is astonishing as is the impact that chemicals and various farming practices are having on the natural world. It really makes you stop and think.
We ventured out afterwards into the town for a drink and ended up in a place named "Woody's.' We stayed for a couple schooners and Jan won a trip to Whitsunday Island in some posh boat worth around $500 in a raffle. Funnily enough we'd been talking a few days before about how much he wanted to go sailing at Whitsunday so it really worked out perfectly!
Every night we would make our way back from town via the beach; it made the journey a lot shorter than if we went by road but was also scenic. We made up a joke that there were sand snakes on the beach, so evertime i we walked down the beach we'd joke with each other about looking out for the sand snakes which would make the journey home a little more entaining by moving sticks and seaweed and spotting holes to feak the other other one out.
Friday was the day for surfing. We had booked a lesson with Mojo Surf and set off at 1pm to a place called Sharpes Beach. Having gone out into the waves with Rachman in Kuta I had an idea what I had to do but was certainly open to learning some more techniques and anything that would help me get up and surfing.
The guys were perfect teachers- friendly and approachable- essential when you’re trying to learn something new. The main guy took time at the beginning of the lesson to go through all the surfing basics- about rips, sandbanks, wind directions and the effects of the wind on the waves. I really appreciated the thoroughness and felt a lot more at ease going into the water afterwards knowing all these things. All the Mojosurf guys also made a kind of "Yeooooow!" sounds too, which I’ve realised later on is actually universal surfer sound which I found rather funny but is pretty cool!
After the days surfing, we were feeling too lazy to cook back at the hostel so went in search of a restaurant that we’d found on google that sounded nice. We eventually ended up in an alley way that had loads of cool restaurants and found two other places that looked real nice so it was a coin toss up between Thai green and yellow curry and trying calamari and oysters for the first time so we let the coin decide. The curry won.
Afterwards we went for a bathroom (so many bathrooms in Oz aren’t actually in the restaurant or café where you are but half a mile down the street!) and ended up in a bar just on corner near the alley way with the restaurants. It had a band playing so we stopped and had a schooner and watched the band for a while before we headed back via the beach watching out for sand snakes as we walked.
The next day we were in sooo much pain. I think every inch of my body ached. Even laughing hurt, and being with Jan it was impossible not to laugh. We spent a lazy day in Byron as it was not possible to do anything else. We ate Dominos pizza at a parkfor lunch and wandered round the arts market at the night after mealing at the seafood restaurant that had lost the coin toss the night before where we both tried calamari and Oysters for the first time. I do not understand why Oysters are the food of love. They look bad and smell worse. What is so romantic about that?!
Altogether I spent five days in Byron with Jan and it was absolutely fantastic. It’s true what they say, the charm does take over and you do fall in love with the place and never want to leave, however it was time for me see what a yoga ashram was all about. Maybe just maybe I would return sometime in the future once again to slip into the surfer way of life for who knows how long.
Saturday, 31 March 2012
Time to Take Chances
So from Sydney to Bryon Bay it was to be. Thirteen hours via train and bus beginning at 4pm on the Monday and arriving at 6am on the Tuesday morning. But from what I heard the journey was totally gonna be worth it.
As we drove through the night at 4am, I sat and watched as an elderly women tossed a dollar coin over and over again and wondered whether or not she was in fact making decisions in her life or whether the action had no significance whatsoever.
[I had already decided for lent that I wouldn’t give something up but instead I would change something. In the style of ‘Yes Man’ I guess you could say I decided not to say yes to everything- mainly because I didn’t have endless supplies of money and dont wanna kill myself- but to say no less often. Sounds confusing?! Yes perhaps it does but basically I want to stop being cautious..and I guess boring...and live a bit just live more. So hears to making life more exciting!]
This lead me to think about the lent agreement that I had made with myself and of the possiblity of making decisions at the toss of a coin, or even by choosing a stone to make a yes/no decision like in 'The Alchemist' which I'm currently reading. It certainly would be an interesting twist to my travels. So in the spirit in of my saying yes more pact, I say yes.. lets do it. Why not!
As I watched the elderly women I listened to Lily Allen singing 'as one door closes another one opens'; This had certainly happened to me enough. Most recently when I thought that my plans had fallen through to go to spend sometime at a yoga ashram in the mountains in NSW, Jan had asked if I wanted to join him on his trip to Byron Bay to which I said yes (of course!) only to then be contacted by the ashram inviting me to stay there so now I am doing both!
So not only did one door close and another one open, the old door opened again! I guess thats just some good karma coming my way.
Friday, 9 March 2012
So Long Sydney, Thanks For the Memories!
Things I learnt from working in the restaurant:
1. Spring onions are evil- you don’t think of them as an onion until your tears are streaming down your face.
2. Pumpkins are one of the if not the hardest vegetable to cut so cutting 13kg on a Monday morning at 8am is not my favourite thing to do!
3. Don't get lemon ginger juice in your eyes- it hurts!
4. Worrying about being 5kgs short of carrots is not a concern I wish to have in life, no normal person should care about that quantity of carrots.
5. If you try you really are capable of doing anything you turn your hand to, although I definitely haven't missed out on my calling to be a chef!
6. [On a more serious note] There are always people who can bring out the best in you, you just have to find them.
7. And finally everything belongs in C5 and C6 (but that an inside joke!)
Being a chef was fun and something different for the last two months so I can tick it off my list of things to try in life but it safe to say it wasn’t a career path I’ve missed out on!
Considering I never really felt any desire to come to Sydney and even when I came here didn't even really plan on staying (until someone changed my mind), I really have loved being here.
During my time here, I think I have altered my perception of my self. I'm a lot more resilient than I've ever given myself credit.
After a mentally exhausting and rough first half to 2011 my travels kind of unofficially became a way to find myself again through the mist of my unhappiness, and I think Sydney is the final destination for that journey. I feel happier than ever right now and have the inner contentment to continue my life in the same way. Bad choices, indecision and life events clouded my head and made it a mess. I'm not saying I now have all the answers, far from it, but I feel I'm in better stead to make the right choices and decisions for the future. What I've gained is clarity.
The owners of Nourishing Quarter are two of the most grounded, kindest and most generous people I have ever met. Tien and Lam have been a pleasure to meet, work for and know. Tien is the Vietnamese mother I never had always making sure we ate enough vitamins and proteins and Lam the disorganised eccentric uncle I wish I had, forever hatching new and exciting plans(although never actually seeing most of them through)! They both have the ability to look inside someone and see their potential. They're motives are pure and they only aim to please, and work very hard to achieve this. They saw their dreams and they went for them, and have a beautiful restaurant to show for it (even if their organisation is a little scattered to say the least!) Both Tien and Lam, looked inside me and saw whatever it was that had gotten lost. They saw things in me that I knew I had but had forgotten about or hadn’t had the confidence to show. They put their confidence in me and in turn this responsibility made me shine. They will be greatly missed.
The owners of Nourishing Quarter are two of the most grounded, kindest and most generous people I have ever met. Tien and Lam have been a pleasure to meet, work for and know. Tien is the Vietnamese mother I never had always making sure we ate enough vitamins and proteins and Lam the disorganised eccentric uncle I wish I had, forever hatching new and exciting plans(although never actually seeing most of them through)! They both have the ability to look inside someone and see their potential. They're motives are pure and they only aim to please, and work very hard to achieve this. They saw their dreams and they went for them, and have a beautiful restaurant to show for it (even if their organisation is a little scattered to say the least!) Both Tien and Lam, looked inside me and saw whatever it was that had gotten lost. They saw things in me that I knew I had but had forgotten about or hadn’t had the confidence to show. They put their confidence in me and in turn this responsibility made me shine. They will be greatly missed.
Along with Tien and Lam, I shall also a few other people from the restaurant.
Firstly Hien. A 28 year old Vietnamese girl. Beautiful on the inside and well as on the outside. Hien is a gentle, patient, caring person who is also hilarious and wacky and terrific fun to work and hang out with ^^ Her dedication is unmatched (apart from that of Tien!) to almost anyone I’ve ever known. The more I’ve gotten to know her the more I’ve discovered what a wonderful person she is. And I love it when she says the words “Chicken salt” like it’s a normal thing everyone’s heard of! Haha.
Jan- pronounced Yan. The German dishwasher and waiter (not waitress unlike Tien would say!) at the restaurant. We spent many times laughing so hard that we cried and had tears streaming down our faces, while having random conversations about the black bananas that Tien refused to throw away because they were still good inside and what people must have thought of us when we shouted out in the kitchen not to put the babies in the dishwasher! (‘The babies’ actually being the Victorian plates the restaurant owned and not real life children!) Jan was also as good as a qualified tester as he ate so many of the Rice paper ‘Sweet Angel’ rolls!
Ardo, a 24 year old Indonesian guy from Jakarta studying at UTS. When I first came to the restaurant he was the one in charge of the running of the kitchen. He is without a doubt of the loveliest guys I’ve ever met. His positive attitude and happiness is infectious and this made every evening at the restaurant fly by like a breeze. His laughter and energy made the work go with great ease and made the life in the kitchen fun… and man can that guy dance. A particular favourite move of mine was the penguin dance, which I will never forget!
Danielle, a 21 year old Dutch girl. She came to the restaurant and was allocated the job of ‘the roller.’ Basically being the one who made the Vietnamese rice paper rolls. I had invited her one day to join me on a lazy day in the park on a sunny day and after having a conversation about her looking for a room and she moved into my flat about a week later. Danielle’s kindness shines from her heart like a warm aura. (I sound like some earth loving, tree hugging hippy but I am in Byron bay now as Jan points out “so that is fine!”) Easily one of my best friends I’ve made travelling. We shared Chatime, Yogaberry, Cold Rock, Pancake and Paddy Market moments.
Hasan ‘I would rather cry in a BMW than cry on a bicycle’ Sayad. If the song ‘Money, money, money!’ was written for anyone, it was Hasan. A lovely person; I have spent countless hours talking to him at work about everything and anything. His intrigue in my desire to travel fascinated me, as did learning about his drives and life. This boy has dollar signs in his eyes and has his heart set on being a big shot business man in Dubai. I wish him all the luck in the world, and one day I hope I’ll be able to visit him there in his mansion.
Quirky, lovable Sandeep. When she first came to work at NQ she was a quite, shy person but quickly opened up like a flower to reveal the beautiful personality she had within. Jolly and bashful, Sandeep was a pleasure to work with and I enjoyed our naughty moments eating biscuits she sneaked into the kitchen in her apron!
And finally Hengki ‘the wokkie’ as Lam would call him. Starting at the restaurant a few weeks after me, he also studied at UTS. My walking home buddy, my friend and my ice cream companion- me and Hengki spent a lot of time talking about the comparisons between Indonesian culture and the Australian life. Hengki has a big heart and I wish him all the best and one day I wish to be able to visit him in his home city where he will have the business that he dreams of owning, which is also Jakarta in Indonesia.
For my final weekend in the big city, we celebrated Mardi Gras. We watched the most fabulous parade (even if we didn’t spot Kylie in the dancers!) and spent the night dancing in Midnight Shift, a gay club filled with topless men, which had erotic male dancers, singing all the words to Cher and Kylie. I swear I should have been born as a gay man! I felt just like Carrie from Sex and the City with my flower in my hair and my neon jewellery.
It was a brilliant way to say goodbye to Sydney.
I have so many good memories. It was definitely my time to leave, but oh I will I miss it!
Monday, 20 February 2012
2011: In Pictures
2011 was a year of good times.
I spent the first half of the year with all my friends for various events.
It started with me so unsure still what the year would hold for me, but we said goodbye to Claire as she'd decided to go work in France for the summer season.
In April we celebrated the royal wedding and the whole country went royal crazy for at least 24 hrs.
I continued to stay in touch with all my friends all over the country and visted Cat and the rest of CCAKE in MK and Manchester.
Visited a few places closer to home, like the Yorkshire Sculpture Park with Fran.
We even managed to squeeze in a trip to visit Anna in London on the May bank holiday weekend!
Soon enough it was time for me to leave Leeds and England and head on my travels again,this time to SE Asia!
I did a lot of crazy stuff.
Got taught how to pole dance by a group of drunk Thai women..
Ate noodles at the top of mountains...
...danced in the street...
...and make friends from all over the world :)
I then went to Laos, via a slow boat.
I ate some amazing foods...
...saw stunning scenery...
...took crazy exercise classes...
...and saw some breathe taking sunsets.
Then it was back to Thailand for a few weeks to see the best friend...
...drink more Chang...
...and do some rock climbing!
It was then time to part ways and I did a whistle stop tour of Kuala Lumpur and saw the Batu Caves...
..and saw some of the city before I headed to Bali!
Bali was beautiful.
I tried my hand at surfing.
And visited some awesome places.
And made some great friendships :)
Then in October I made the decision that rather than go home I would go to Australia!
And I ended up in Mount Isa! A mining town far away from civilisation I spent the next couple of months working there.
I then headed to Noosa for a few days for my birthday and met a German guy called Felix. Xmas things were everywhere but somehow I really didn't feel chrismassy at all. Maybe its because santa had a surf board :)
I then met Daisy, a friend of my mum's and spent xmas with her, her friends, her brother and his girlfriend. My first xmas on a beach!
And I ended the year in Sydney!
2011 took me half way around the world... who knows where 2012 will lead to :)
Thursday, 2 February 2012
Life in Sydney is SWEET
[Apologies to begin with as this was written to be pre- 'Sydney: An Introspective' but was completed afterwards.]
New Years day began with a text from Tim ( my roommate from Mt Isa) received at 6:30am reading something along the lines of "Wake up!!! hahah just got in. Off to party today in crows nest, be there X"
Well that was easy, barely had I opened my eyes and I had plans for the day.
A train and a bus later, I met Tim and a friend of his he'd met in France in Crows Nest in North Sydney late that afternoon, where a friend of a friend was having a party (loose connections I know but when travelling you really just have to go out on a limb!) Turns out it was more of a small gathering than an actual party, but there was a bbq, alcohol and it was still pretty good fun. We ended up all getting rather drunk and playing some board games which sounds sad but actually was really funny and really showed up one of the girls when she was trying to explain some of the rules and declared that Alabama was a country.
I had decided that the 2nd was my 'doing day.' The definition of such a day is when you set aside a day when you do all the things are that you need to do and that such day was today. And the thing to be done? Find a job.
Although as Edwin and Charlotte were also leaving that day I had to delay the start of my 'doing' as I went and met Edwin one last time for a coffee in no other than Starbucks of course on Campbell Street which had become our hang out place. Charlotte was notably absent, apparently packing her things but hadn't neglected to give me her quality literature, a book entitled 'Santa Baby' which I was pretty certain I would not be reading but was grateful for the pile of British gossip mags she'd also passed on.
And over a Chai Latte and a Caramel Frappacino we said our farewells.
Then as I promised myself set about completely the days first and last task of the day- applying for jobs.
Hopelessly bored of job hunting, having applied for a million restaurants, cafes and offices and a few red-herrings ( a record label and a few production companies and an ad on Gumtree as well), I text Felix as we'd planned to meet up later that afternoon to see if he was free yet and thankfully he was.
As he was staying with the Australians guys, literally ten minutes down the road, we met up within half an hour and when and hung out in one of the many parks around Glebe. We must have spent hours there which passed like minutes, then decided to head somewhere to get something to eat. I had seen a restaurant named 'Bling Bling Dumpling' which had caught my eye a few times- firstly because of its damn right weird name and secondly because I had a particular soft spot for dumplings ever since I'd been introduced to them by my friend Yashita in Delhi.
Bling Bling Dumpling certainly lives up to its name. In fact I think there's far more bling in that place than theres ever been dumplings. Felix, never having tried dumplings before (as well as pies which I made him try in Noosa which I found ridiculious seens though i'm pretty sure I lived on them my whole first year at uni- well that and chicken and roast potatoes), apparently seemed to enjoy it- well at least was polite enough not to let on if he didn't.
While I was with Felix I received a few replies to my advert on Gumtree although all of which offering much less than favourable positons where I would be paid for my 'intimate company' and 'a full body massage with hand release.' As tempting as it sounded, I wasn't that desperate, even if they were proposing 150 dollars an hour. I found it funny, but Felix not so much.
I even got one response that didn't have any jobs offers for me but just wanted to send me a message to tell me that he thought I was gorgous and good luck in my job hunt. Thanks for the compliment, but that didn't really help me... at all.
We then went back to the guys house where we watched Fear and Loathing, before Felix walked me back to my hostel.
It was a really nice day. Being with him was just so easy. Being on the otherside of the world, you never expect that you might meet someone like that, but here he was.
Within a week I'd been offered a job working at Nourishing Quarter, a kind of Vietnamese fuison restaurant of sort. Serving traditional vietnamese dishes but some with a more nourishing twist using South American grains. I went for an interview for a waitress postition and came away with a job as a kitchen hand who they also wanted to help with the paperwork they were compiling to organising the running of the business.
To start with the hours I worked were long. Far too long in fact, leaving with barely enough time to eat and sleep outside of work and so the first opportunity I got me and a Scottish girl from my dorm headed to Coogee Beach. It was smaller than Bondi and supposed to be much less touristy and it really was beautiful.
After living in the hostel for almost three weeks in Glebe, I finally found the time to look into something more permanent for the the time I had left in Sydney. And what I found, was a gorgeous flat on Darling Habour- with access to a gym, swimming pool and sauna all for the same price as I'd been paying for the hostel.
So now I had found an amazing apartment, a job that I enjoyed (with evolved into me working as more as a chef now!), been offered to work at the record label I'd applied to as well as at a media production company and was dating a the most loveliest German guy. Life in Sydney was sweet.
My free time I spent between various beaches, art galleries and the continuous events and festivals that seemed to be happening in Sydney.
Time passed so quickly although I felt like I had been in Sydney months. I had been so busy the whole time I had been in Sydney. If I wasn't working, I was with Felix and if I wasn't with Felix, I was with friends at the beach or events, if i wasn't I doing that then I was at art galleries, the I-Max, coffee shops... I made every moment count; I felt like I was living three lives.
Eventually time came for Felix to leave Sydney. He hadn't found a job so decided to take his planned flight to New Zealand.
I'm not going to lie, I wished he wasn't going but when he told me he was going I had already guessed before the words came out. I guess that made it easier to hear. That's not to say that I wasn't happy for him though. I knew him going was enivitable and we'd always said that we were travelling separately and we had to do whatever each of us needed to do. I was happy for him, I knew he'd have an awesome time and I had enjoyed every moment with him and I was so happy just to have met him. Saying goodbye was hard but in some way the most easiest thing in the world.
There's a saying in German: In life you meet everyone twice. I was secretely hoping that the whole meeting in Australia was only the first time.
Even before Felix left I had begun having feelings about leaving Sydney, although of course it was a factor in thinking about moving on. After all I hate being left behind and almost everyone I'd met had moved on now.
As much as I had loved living in Sydney I wanted a change. I wanted something new, something different... and so now was a time to make a plan. I set myself a deadline and decided that I would stay in Sydney until the end of February, so I could earn some money and take advantage of working with Kym at the record label which I loved so much and then it was time to leave.
My first stop: a yoga ashram, then who knows.
New Years day began with a text from Tim ( my roommate from Mt Isa) received at 6:30am reading something along the lines of "Wake up!!! hahah just got in. Off to party today in crows nest, be there X"
Well that was easy, barely had I opened my eyes and I had plans for the day.
A train and a bus later, I met Tim and a friend of his he'd met in France in Crows Nest in North Sydney late that afternoon, where a friend of a friend was having a party (loose connections I know but when travelling you really just have to go out on a limb!) Turns out it was more of a small gathering than an actual party, but there was a bbq, alcohol and it was still pretty good fun. We ended up all getting rather drunk and playing some board games which sounds sad but actually was really funny and really showed up one of the girls when she was trying to explain some of the rules and declared that Alabama was a country.
I had decided that the 2nd was my 'doing day.' The definition of such a day is when you set aside a day when you do all the things are that you need to do and that such day was today. And the thing to be done? Find a job.
Although as Edwin and Charlotte were also leaving that day I had to delay the start of my 'doing' as I went and met Edwin one last time for a coffee in no other than Starbucks of course on Campbell Street which had become our hang out place. Charlotte was notably absent, apparently packing her things but hadn't neglected to give me her quality literature, a book entitled 'Santa Baby' which I was pretty certain I would not be reading but was grateful for the pile of British gossip mags she'd also passed on.
And over a Chai Latte and a Caramel Frappacino we said our farewells.
Then as I promised myself set about completely the days first and last task of the day- applying for jobs.
Hopelessly bored of job hunting, having applied for a million restaurants, cafes and offices and a few red-herrings ( a record label and a few production companies and an ad on Gumtree as well), I text Felix as we'd planned to meet up later that afternoon to see if he was free yet and thankfully he was.
As he was staying with the Australians guys, literally ten minutes down the road, we met up within half an hour and when and hung out in one of the many parks around Glebe. We must have spent hours there which passed like minutes, then decided to head somewhere to get something to eat. I had seen a restaurant named 'Bling Bling Dumpling' which had caught my eye a few times- firstly because of its damn right weird name and secondly because I had a particular soft spot for dumplings ever since I'd been introduced to them by my friend Yashita in Delhi.
Bling Bling Dumpling certainly lives up to its name. In fact I think there's far more bling in that place than theres ever been dumplings. Felix, never having tried dumplings before (as well as pies which I made him try in Noosa which I found ridiculious seens though i'm pretty sure I lived on them my whole first year at uni- well that and chicken and roast potatoes), apparently seemed to enjoy it- well at least was polite enough not to let on if he didn't.
While I was with Felix I received a few replies to my advert on Gumtree although all of which offering much less than favourable positons where I would be paid for my 'intimate company' and 'a full body massage with hand release.' As tempting as it sounded, I wasn't that desperate, even if they were proposing 150 dollars an hour. I found it funny, but Felix not so much.
I even got one response that didn't have any jobs offers for me but just wanted to send me a message to tell me that he thought I was gorgous and good luck in my job hunt. Thanks for the compliment, but that didn't really help me... at all.
We then went back to the guys house where we watched Fear and Loathing, before Felix walked me back to my hostel.
It was a really nice day. Being with him was just so easy. Being on the otherside of the world, you never expect that you might meet someone like that, but here he was.
Within a week I'd been offered a job working at Nourishing Quarter, a kind of Vietnamese fuison restaurant of sort. Serving traditional vietnamese dishes but some with a more nourishing twist using South American grains. I went for an interview for a waitress postition and came away with a job as a kitchen hand who they also wanted to help with the paperwork they were compiling to organising the running of the business.
To start with the hours I worked were long. Far too long in fact, leaving with barely enough time to eat and sleep outside of work and so the first opportunity I got me and a Scottish girl from my dorm headed to Coogee Beach. It was smaller than Bondi and supposed to be much less touristy and it really was beautiful.
After living in the hostel for almost three weeks in Glebe, I finally found the time to look into something more permanent for the the time I had left in Sydney. And what I found, was a gorgeous flat on Darling Habour- with access to a gym, swimming pool and sauna all for the same price as I'd been paying for the hostel.
So now I had found an amazing apartment, a job that I enjoyed (with evolved into me working as more as a chef now!), been offered to work at the record label I'd applied to as well as at a media production company and was dating a the most loveliest German guy. Life in Sydney was sweet.
My free time I spent between various beaches, art galleries and the continuous events and festivals that seemed to be happening in Sydney.
Time passed so quickly although I felt like I had been in Sydney months. I had been so busy the whole time I had been in Sydney. If I wasn't working, I was with Felix and if I wasn't with Felix, I was with friends at the beach or events, if i wasn't I doing that then I was at art galleries, the I-Max, coffee shops... I made every moment count; I felt like I was living three lives.
Eventually time came for Felix to leave Sydney. He hadn't found a job so decided to take his planned flight to New Zealand.
I'm not going to lie, I wished he wasn't going but when he told me he was going I had already guessed before the words came out. I guess that made it easier to hear. That's not to say that I wasn't happy for him though. I knew him going was enivitable and we'd always said that we were travelling separately and we had to do whatever each of us needed to do. I was happy for him, I knew he'd have an awesome time and I had enjoyed every moment with him and I was so happy just to have met him. Saying goodbye was hard but in some way the most easiest thing in the world.
There's a saying in German: In life you meet everyone twice. I was secretely hoping that the whole meeting in Australia was only the first time.
Even before Felix left I had begun having feelings about leaving Sydney, although of course it was a factor in thinking about moving on. After all I hate being left behind and almost everyone I'd met had moved on now.
As much as I had loved living in Sydney I wanted a change. I wanted something new, something different... and so now was a time to make a plan. I set myself a deadline and decided that I would stay in Sydney until the end of February, so I could earn some money and take advantage of working with Kym at the record label which I loved so much and then it was time to leave.
My first stop: a yoga ashram, then who knows.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)