Having travelled nearly non-stop for around 16 months, one can get a little travel-weary. Not to mention you start to long for a few things that are pretty standard in a ‘normal’ life – routines/patterns, an income, and a space to call your own. I would find all of these in Sydney.

For routine, being a part-time employee for Kathmandu did mean that my hours would change each week, but even then my manager Karen usually kept some structure to the schedule. Namely, I’d almost always have Monday and Saturday off, I’d always work Sunday (1.8x pay that day!), and I’d average between 20-30 hours of scheduled work. I specify scheduled work here because I’d often get a call asking if I could cover another person’s shift – assuming I wasn’t doing anything, I was happy for the extra hours and money.

Mondays became my day of peace and relaxation. It just so happened that Sunday NFL games would be live here in Australia on Monday morning. Perfect way to start the day. I’d also do laundry and groceries on that day, getting prepared to start my week. Saturdays became my day with Tam. While we would usually see each other once or twice during the week as well for dinner, movies or dessert, Saturdays were often reserved for the longer outings, like hiking. Our first big hike together was the Spit to Manly walk, later we’d go to South Head and Bondi. Both had picnics along the way, one prepared previous to the hike for the Spit to Manly, the other was a Fish and Chips picnic in Bondi.

The rest of my days I worked but I also joined a gym that was just upstairs to the Kathmandu shop I worked out at.

Coming from a gym in Sarnia, which was pleasant, clean and simple…this gym was something else. Massive, modern and with all the bells and whistles one could want, this was a really neat place to spend a few hours working out in. I ended up using the indoor pool, various exercise classes and the machines a lot, but the main draw for me turned out to be Hot Yoga. Nothing like sweating profusely for 40-60 minutes to make you feel like you earned that chocolate dessert later in the day!

Then there was the fact that I once again had my own space…and my own cupboard and fridge. I’d be putting these to good use! All in all it felt good to settle in to an apartment, routine and work schedule. The first thing I bought when I moved in? A new towel (mine was 16 months old and pretty ratty). It’s all about the little things.