Is there something about living in a city that decreases its beauty? Is there a positive correlation between how much you love a city and how many hours flying it takes you to get there? Is there a minimum amount of borders to be crossed to forget about the stresses of your life?
Fuck no.
Every city has it's own good and bad parts. Melbourne for example has amazing restaurants and bars with cuisines and brews from around the world. It has one of the best stadiums in the world hosting the best sporting events. On the downside, Melbourne can experience erratic weather and seems to have an obsession with tacky reality TV about cooking, singing and renovations.
No matter where you live, it has more to offer than any one person can take advantage of, so try to take advantage of as much as you possibly can. Go out on a weeknight, get coffee somewhere you normally wouldn't, go and support your city's team in a sport you normally wouldn't care for. Little things like these can make your hometown much more appealing and exciting.
If nothing else, at least it will colour in that grey time before you can finally get to go back to Berlin or New York.
Wednesday 28 May 2014
Sunday 18 May 2014
Zac's Infinite Travel Wisdom
It is now under six weeks until I depart for Barcelona, and the excitement is gradually building. Any time I think about the trip I can't help but compare it to this point before I left for Buenos Aires in Argentina. Many things are different this time and has resulted in the excitement and other emotions differing dramatically.
Major travel experience: With one extended trip under my belt, my confidence in my ability to successfully travel more has increased drastically, and travel is addictive, the more you have the more you want.
Solo versus with friends: In hindsight, I definitely threw myself in the deep end. Choosing to travel for three months by myself as my first real experience may have seemed ambitious, but I think I am better for it. I did things and met people that I may not have had I traveled the three months with a friend. This time around I am looking forward to having a companion. All in all, our travel schedule this time around will suit having a mate to enjoy it with.
Now with some (very sketchy) language skills: When I arrived in Argentina, it was difficult to even make myself say 'gracias' just because it sounded weird. At the end of the three months I could speak in very basic sentences and conversations. With even the smallest amount of language, my experiences in the countries towards the end of the trip were greatly enriched. Learning some Spanish was also one of the primary reasons for wanting to travel to Spain next, the language is simple and beautiful, and is definitely something I want to pursue into the future.
Closer to home... kinda: In kilometers, maybe not, in flight time, not really. I am closer to home in the sense that I have points of contact in Spain and more so in England.
Budget: After Christopher Pyne's announcement on Tuesday about cuts to students... No. Not that budget. All of the other points have been reasons making this travel easier than South America, but one thing that is not as comfortable this time around is my personal financial situation. Heading off to South America in December I knew that I had enough money to live quite luxuriously for three months. I could eat the thickest steak on the best menus in Buenos Aires. I could drink caipirinhas on Copacabana beach until my heart was content and my eyesight was blurry, mostly because that only took two drinks. This time around my budget will be somewhat tighter, but as long as Rhomas has anything to do with it, there will be no cost cutting when at the front of the bar.
Running of the Bulls: Unlike the other points this one is purely because I am shitting my pants.
Major travel experience: With one extended trip under my belt, my confidence in my ability to successfully travel more has increased drastically, and travel is addictive, the more you have the more you want.
Solo versus with friends: In hindsight, I definitely threw myself in the deep end. Choosing to travel for three months by myself as my first real experience may have seemed ambitious, but I think I am better for it. I did things and met people that I may not have had I traveled the three months with a friend. This time around I am looking forward to having a companion. All in all, our travel schedule this time around will suit having a mate to enjoy it with.
Now with some (very sketchy) language skills: When I arrived in Argentina, it was difficult to even make myself say 'gracias' just because it sounded weird. At the end of the three months I could speak in very basic sentences and conversations. With even the smallest amount of language, my experiences in the countries towards the end of the trip were greatly enriched. Learning some Spanish was also one of the primary reasons for wanting to travel to Spain next, the language is simple and beautiful, and is definitely something I want to pursue into the future.
Closer to home... kinda: In kilometers, maybe not, in flight time, not really. I am closer to home in the sense that I have points of contact in Spain and more so in England.
Budget: After Christopher Pyne's announcement on Tuesday about cuts to students... No. Not that budget. All of the other points have been reasons making this travel easier than South America, but one thing that is not as comfortable this time around is my personal financial situation. Heading off to South America in December I knew that I had enough money to live quite luxuriously for three months. I could eat the thickest steak on the best menus in Buenos Aires. I could drink caipirinhas on Copacabana beach until my heart was content and my eyesight was blurry, mostly because that only took two drinks. This time around my budget will be somewhat tighter, but as long as Rhomas has anything to do with it, there will be no cost cutting when at the front of the bar.
Running of the Bulls: Unlike the other points this one is purely because I am shitting my pants.
Thursday 15 May 2014
Mas Espanol para Zac!
In a previous post on this page, I spoke about the inevitable planning of future travel while the current travel is far from over. A plan that was briefly mentioned in passing to a few friends while I was bussing around Argentina, has turned into a reality. With some minor and some major tweaks, a five week express trip around the Iberian Peninsula with best mate Rhomas has ascended from nothing more than a suggestion that was shaped by the love of a new language and with the help of some South American lager.
Due to the length of the trip, it will be slightly more jam-packed than the cruising style of travel I employed in South America. Also travelling with a mate has given the trip more structure, and probably a little more stupidity.
Main event on the July calendar for Rhomas and me is a leisurely jog through the main streets of Pamplona on the second morning of the San Fermin festival. To spice things up a little, there will be six bulls chasing us.
Many other activities have been arranged, all the while with the endeavour to taste as many different brews and sangrias as we think is necessary to get a proper feel for the culture. And to further broaden our own lagery horizons, a quick stop in the UK we thought was essential.
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