My Life in a Suitcase

So tonight is my last night in Australia for the next 12 months. The feeling is almost surreal at the moment. Even as I was cramming all the different objects of my life into a big suitcase the reality was still somewhere above my head. It's an odd feeling. Maybe one of the oddest nights of my entire life. I just can't believe that this is the last time I'll be sitting in this room, in this chair for the next year!

It's going to be a huge adventure, and this is the beginning of it all. I'm totally psyched, and I can't wait to just dive right into it all! Tokyo on Monday morning, and I'll be living out the dream I've been wanting for so long.

I'd never had any experience with packing beyond short one-week trips before today, and it was definitely hectic. Just getting the weight right is such a hassle. I did manage to cut my suitcase weight down to 20kg though, and my carry-on luggage is under 7kg... that is, not counting my laptop bag which alone weighs a good 7kg. My dad assures me that they won't weigh my laptop bag though, and that what I've generally heard, so hopefully that's the case! If not, my parents may end up having to pay excess fees, which would not be good at all.

Undoubtedly, this is going to be so hard. But it's all so worth it. I can't wait!

One Week

This post is about one day belated, but better late than never! This time next week I will be in Tokyo, maybe asleep (And then again, maybe not), but regardless I will be IN TOKYO! Which is an amazing thing to even think about, and to be honest the reality of the situation hasn't yet 100% sunk in. I doubt it will until I'm faced with the stresses of packing and actually getting on the plane to Sydney.

I think the hardest part about this whole experience is leaving behind friends (And of course, family). On Saturday I had a BBQ outing with my close friends to say goodbye to everyone and see them all before I left. The turnout was great, and it was really nice to see people that I hadn't been able to catch up with for ages, as well as those that I see all the time. It's the last time I'll see most of my friends until next year, so it was hard to endure. But it was great fun regardless, even though I woke up the next day with bright red arms and got a shock when I looked in the mirror. I haven't been as sunburnt as this for a long while!

The farewell shindig was so early because this week I am and will continue to be flat out busy. I have a tonne of appointments and things to remember, and I'm sure it'll be like this till the day I leave. Just one of the many perks that comes along with traveling overseas, I guess. There's so many little things to remember that it's just annoying after awhile. The effort will be worth it in the end, and my parents are great, they're probably doing the worst parts of it all haha.

As the days count down I'm progressively becoming more and more nervous. This is something I've wanted to do since I can remember, but the nerves were unexpected. I don't think I've ever felt like this before! I'm sure it'll be crazy on the morning I leave. That said, I'm definitely looking forward to the adventure. I've always wanted a break from routine and monotony in my life; I'm definitely about to get it!