Australia
Phew! That has been very hectic 2 weeks in my life. I just moved to Australia for my student exchange and I can tell, moving to another country is not the easiest thing to do haha! Preparing for my exchange has been 1,5 years long process and required a lot of effort and time, but I am finally here enjoying the sunshine and the companionship of my lovely boyfriend!!!
Last weeks in Finland were stressing because of all of the last minute preparations and I haven't avoided problems after arriving to Australia either, actually every singe thing that could have gotten wrong has gone wrong I think! XD Just to make a short list...
Bad plane ticket and too little luggage included.
Rent payment online got messed up and never received the land lord.
Problems with arranging transportation in Australia.
Bad service at the airport.
Money lost in money exchange.
And once I have left Finland and thought all the problems are behind, I arrive in Australia just to notice the apartment I have rented online turns out to be absolutely HORRIBLE! The "supposed to be clean and sanitized apartment " is actually filthy with dirt, dust and hairs on the floor and the whole house looks like it's about to collapse. This is just my luck... luckily I wasn't alone in that crappy situation and I had my boyfriend supporting me. Together we figured out that house was no good for living and insisted our landlord to return the money we had paid for it. Luckily we had our money back and the very next day (after sleeping one night only on the plain mattress on the bed without sheets, blankets or anything and having Uber eats as dinner since all the stores where too far away XD) we quickly left the apartment. We were lucky to find a new place to live during the same day and the new apartment seemed to be way better and cleaner! We love living in it now. It's located closer to the coastal area of Newcastle which is a very nice and beautiful area to live. The house is also clean and quiet and the housemates are very friendly. :)
These first couple of weeks in Australia have basically been only for settling in and getting used to the lifestyle here. We have done a lot of shopping for household goods and been trying to find our way to places around here. We leased bicycles from the University of Newcastle bike service and have been riding our bikes everywhere.As a committed car driver I can honestly say I probably have never been riding a bike in my whole life as much as I have been riding it here during these past couple of weeks. But it's a convenient transportation here, since they have marked bike routes all over the town and you can access all the places by bike. Also enjoying the warm weather and sunshine while biking is not that bad after all. :)
But in addition to all mandatory errands, we have had a some time to enjoy the fun Australian activities as well. Right after arriving in Australia we spent a couple of days in Sydney just exploring the city and relaxing. My boyfriend, Brett, took me to the Sydney Opera House for a circus show and it was amazing!! I loved it! I can't believe I was actually spending a night in the Opera House I've only seen in pictures before! That was a great experience.
On Valentine's day this week we went Sandboarding to Port Stephens sand dunes with Brett and a new friend of mine.That was super fun, but exhausting and... sandy! :D They arrange sandboarding tours for tourist and the trip includes transportation, instructions, the board and even some water. Very convenient! Sledding on sand was very extraordinary compared to the sledding I have done on snow before and it was a crazy feeling to slide down a sand hill while sitting on a small board. The real "fun" began when you needed to hike up the big hill in the +30 °C heat, burning sunshine, and scalding hot sand with bare feet! XD
Yesterday me and Brett also had a chance to go to the beach for the first time and even though the sun wasn't shining it was relaxing and nice. The waves were pretty strong and I was amazed to see people surfing in the water for real! I'm really looking forward to the surf fest next weekend.I bet that's going to be awesome to watch! Meanwhile I'll be getting prepared for my school (which starts on Monday, Wish me luck!) and enjoying more sunny...and hot, days here. Check more pictures on my IG account @finngirlsworld and stay tuned! My adventure is only beginning! ;)
Last weeks in Finland were stressing because of all of the last minute preparations and I haven't avoided problems after arriving to Australia either, actually every singe thing that could have gotten wrong has gone wrong I think! XD Just to make a short list...
Bad plane ticket and too little luggage included.
Rent payment online got messed up and never received the land lord.
Problems with arranging transportation in Australia.
Bad service at the airport.
Money lost in money exchange.
And once I have left Finland and thought all the problems are behind, I arrive in Australia just to notice the apartment I have rented online turns out to be absolutely HORRIBLE! The "supposed to be clean and sanitized apartment " is actually filthy with dirt, dust and hairs on the floor and the whole house looks like it's about to collapse. This is just my luck... luckily I wasn't alone in that crappy situation and I had my boyfriend supporting me. Together we figured out that house was no good for living and insisted our landlord to return the money we had paid for it. Luckily we had our money back and the very next day (after sleeping one night only on the plain mattress on the bed without sheets, blankets or anything and having Uber eats as dinner since all the stores where too far away XD) we quickly left the apartment. We were lucky to find a new place to live during the same day and the new apartment seemed to be way better and cleaner! We love living in it now. It's located closer to the coastal area of Newcastle which is a very nice and beautiful area to live. The house is also clean and quiet and the housemates are very friendly. :)
On Valentine's day this week we went Sandboarding to Port Stephens sand dunes with Brett and a new friend of mine.That was super fun, but exhausting and... sandy! :D They arrange sandboarding tours for tourist and the trip includes transportation, instructions, the board and even some water. Very convenient! Sledding on sand was very extraordinary compared to the sledding I have done on snow before and it was a crazy feeling to slide down a sand hill while sitting on a small board. The real "fun" began when you needed to hike up the big hill in the +30 °C heat, burning sunshine, and scalding hot sand with bare feet! XD
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