After I left them overseas I was certain that I would never see them again, but I was wrong. They have followed me home, and it’s been great! To hear what they have been up to since we last departed, the adventures, parties & people. All the while I’m truding through my 9-5 job trying to repay debt and save money to buy a house.

So far I have had dinner with a few people that I travelled with, it’s been both a blessing and a curse to hear about what they have been up to and I have failed to interest or impress them on what I had been up to since we parted. It has caused me to pay more attention to other travels and help them out when I see that I think they look lost, except for when I see them with portable GPS devices.

It has started me back on the track of taking photos, because it was one of the most enjoyable parts of traveling, capuring the moments that I know I want to remember. Now I try to take photos of the parts and moments of Melbourne that I love and want to remember.

The travel buddies have moved on, and we shared and laughed in one night as we had in a month. They too now love Melbourne as much as I do (I told them they would) and I hope that they will come back

I have always held a long fascination with Japan, the people, culture and history and after coming from India it was a pleasure to be somewhere so quiet, polite and ordered. Everything was clean, everything had a purpose and almost everything had a certain beauty about it that demanded attention.

The generosity and maticilous nature of the people will always remain in my memories and I’m glad that I have made my dream trip (to Japan) and was not disappointed by it.

I had an amazing time traveling overseas and wished that it wouldn’t end, but sadly commitments (don’t we all have them) drew me back home.

But I thought that it would be a waste.

I am India currently I wish that I could write more but for the most part I am busy with other things that most people do when they are traveling.

It’s a crazy country where normal everyday conventions do not apply and thus it takes time to get used to but once you scratch under the surface and you can overlook the confronting scenes you come away with something quite like nothing else.

I will in the end put up something here of what I have learned but it will be later on an in a few smaller parts.

I’m a very plan oriented person so I need a plan of action if I am going to do something, I need to know what to say, how to say it and what I will say at the end. But to organise an overseas trip in the fashion is a large amount of work even when you consider that to comply with all this I would have to book my hostels in advance and map out the places that I want to see for each city that I will visit.

Due to the number of circumstances I haven’t done this like last time, I hope that this will turn out to be a good thing because it will allow me to push my boundaries and retain a sense of calmness under stress which I don’t think that I lack but I think that I can be better at.

I am jealous of those that get to live and work overseas in the country of their choice or even studying in a different country would be enough fun. Traveling would have to be the next best thing but the one thing that I think that you miss out on is experiencing the culture, something that you can only have first hand knowledge of after drowning yourself in it for a while – not really possible when you are spending a few days in each place.

I hope that I will be able to do this every year, with only 4 weeks off a year it would be hard to plan a good long trip away, so I’m really looking forward to this one. The culture clash/shock I think will be quite big when compared to what I am used to here, and for some reason I am excited by this.

I have no illusions of being a different person at the end of this like I did last time, but I do intend on being a happier person – it’s the impending realisation that I might have to be grown up and make real decisions (health insurance, moving out, serious career direction) when I return is that is really stirring the excitement and adventure that I am expecting.

Well it’s back to the planning, which I don’t think I will get much done becuase the Melbourne International Film Festival has arrived and I intend to watch more than I did last year.

Anyway so far there are only photos from Europe

But there is also Avignon, Nice, Barcelona, Sorento, Valencia and England

I had kept a little travel journel on my journey just to record what I did and didn’t like and planned to post them here, but never got the chance so I might end up back typing them out and just back dating them.

More photos later.

It is a shame that the weather isn’t great though.

I haven’t got too much time today, and I am unable to upload any pictures, so when i get a more time for both of these I will do more.

Until then…

My Itchy Feet

Things are packed
Bag on my shoulder
Excited thoughts, rather abstract
I realise on my return I will be a global roamer

As I look out the window and see the world pass beneath my feet
The engines roar as i sit in my seat.
I am full of excitement as i try to attempt my greatest feat.
Leaving home can be oh so ever bitter sweet.

As my adventure moves ahead
I hope to see a world unknown
Of lands that time has long fled
Spain, France, a Bishop’s Throne
Soon my bank will be seeing red

But not before I have had time to scratch my itchy feet
After all this is done maybe i could be among the travel elite
There is so much to see and do, even more people to meet
Different cultures to experience, travellers moving to a common beat

England, Spain, France and Italy
Each country will have a story to tell
I will wonder wide eyed, under a magic spell
Better or worse i will have to bid farewell
I will be sad to leave, these feeling i must quell

A Canadian family with many questions
Can only lead to trouble, and many suggestions
Quebec old and new I hope to see it all
Not to mention, the great Niagara Fall
It’s the next stop that my inevitable return will forestall
I long to see the city of my youth, Montreal

My return to my world awaits
To chat about my travels with all my good mates
My twisting plot will eventually come to an end
To return home to see the sights i love and adore
But not yet, once around the world, once more

———————————————-

I hope you have a good Christmas and a great New Year
And maybe i will see you sometime next year

It was actually a really good excuse to see some people that I haven’t seen in a while, which for me is really nice.
I really like these friends, it’s just that i can never think of a good enough excuse to see them more often.
This makes it kinda hard, I know that the obvious solution is just to call them up and ask them out for a catch up, but when you think that the other side doesn’t want to for various reason it makes it a little more difficult.
Then you get to thinking that…well if they haven’t bothered to contact you in this long, even though you have made numerous attempts will they miss you if you leave without saying anything. Truth be told, no they wouldn’t…it may sound cynical but it’s true, because I’ve tried it out, purposefully.
That said it was really actually quite good to see friends again, but I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to see a few people, which again brings us back to the previous statement.

So why did I catch up with them? Mainly because I’m an a sucker and I actually like these people.
I’m never any good at relationships, I never seem to understand where I stand, and when I think I do, I am often blatantly proven wrong. Which in hindsight is rather funny, not laughable funny though.

My room is a complete wreck and will probably stay that way until i return.
I’m certain that I’m going to forget something, which is the reason that I’m here writing this message.

Well this is going to be my last message from Melbourne, tomorrow I will be on a plane and hopfully my next entry will be from overseas!

Also there are some decisions to be made about France considering the current state that it’s in.

This just means that there is precious little time left until I go.
There is still the matter of the train ticket to book, but that will have to be done after out trip details are done.
Which shouldn’t be too long anyway.