Oh the joys of traveling. After spending the morning bawling my eyes out and saying goodbye to friends I have met, Alexis and I boarded our 13 hour flight from Sydney to San Francisco... and it surprisingly went very smoothly!
Then our luck ran out. Once we got through customs and security in San Francisco, we found out our flight to Chicago that afternoon was going to be super delayed, which ultimately meant we would miss our connecting flight out to Syracuse. How lucky are we? Don't worry, it gets better.. emotionally and physically fatigued, Alexis and I made our way over to customer service to try and find a new flight to take home from Chicago. Turns out our only option was to take a red eye at 10PM that night to Charlotte, NC and then take a flight from there out to Syracuse. At that time it was 2PM and we would be stuck in that terminal for 8 more hours. EIGHT HOURS OF TORTURE. We both managed to nap for a bit before being awoken by a man yelling on the phone to his wife about a divorce, like really, yell about that stuff in private, not next to two girls who were going on no sleep after flying across the world. People these days.
The good thing is, once we boarded our flight to NC we both slept the entire flight, and found a Starbucks as we left the plane. Score! I hate to be negative but this trip home has been so frustrating. It was hard enough saying goodbye to friends (and the Opera house which by the way I cried and cried over when we passed it on the way to the airport), but then to deal with all this travel nonsense was just way too much. I'm going to be so thrilled when I finally get to be home and not in an airport.
It still hasn't really hit me though that I have left Australia. Of course I know I'm in the US now but I still feel like we're just traveling back to Sydney, that tomorrow I'll be back in the village with the same people I've lived with for the past 4 1/2 months. This study abroad trip has come to mean more to me than I ever thought it would and has definitely changed me for the better. I've had some amazing opportunities while living in Sydney and I'm going to miss all of it very much .. getting to swim among the fish in the Great Barrier Reef, sailing, heading to tropical destinations, petting Kangaroos and Koalas.. even being able to pass the Opera House and travel over the Sydney Harbour Bridge every day, I miss it so much already.
I am grateful for the support from my parents, family, and friends back home. Especially my parents for helping me out when money was tight.. and their love of course (haha)! I am also grateful for being able to work as an intern with an international hospitality company. Though I was there for a short time, I learned so much from the amazingly talented people there and it's really helped me figure out what kind of work I want to do after graduating next year. And finally, I am eternally grateful for the friends I have made while being abroad. We were our own little family and I will hold the memories we had together very close to my heart forever. Love you girls!
If you were to ask me a few years ago about going to Australia, I probably would have talked about going as if it were some unattainable dream. Coming here and living and breathing the life and culture of this beautiful city has really given me even more drive to pursue my dreams and inspire other people to do the same. I can't even tell you how great this experience was and it really saddens me that it's really over. Sydney was and will always be a part of me. When I think of "home" I feel that I now will always think of Sydney (as well as Buffalo!). Yes I spent a lot of money, ended up in the hospital, and struggled with the insane grading system but I had the time of my life and got to do things I never imagined I would ever do, and I feel like that alone is worth more than any good grades can give me or money can buy. I have grown professionally, intellectually, and emotionally and truly believe that I can do anything I set my heart to. This time in Sydney will always have a special place in my heart and will continue to influence my goals and dreams for the future.
I have no idea when I'll be back in Australia again but I know I have to go back at some point in my life. It's not goodbye, it's "see ya later."
Further proof of Walt's words "all our dreams can come true if the have the courage to pursue them"
I love you, Sydney.
xoxo
