Nicole's Adventures

I had dreamed about visiting Italy for a long time, and when Joel asked that if I did go and travel somewhere on my own, it be somewhere that he hadn't been for obvious reasons right? We want to travel to new places in the future together.  I had ten days and landed in Rome on Sept 30. I did the free walking tour in Rome, however could barely hear anything the guide was saying because the group was huge and there were a ton of tourists and people constantly harassing the group and selling things. I couch surfed while in Rome, however my host was quite busy and not really able to show me much or recommend things to me. Possibly a language barrier problem, or that he is just bored of telling people where to go weekend after weekend. He usually hosts almost every weekend. I found that I could understand a decent amount of things from Spanish and Portuguese combined. I visited the Colosseum and while it was very very impressive, I just felt disconnected to it i...

I was super blessed to have the opportunity to take five weeks and travel to Portugal and Italy in September and October. Though I didn't do a great job taking notes on my trip like I have in previous travels I will try my best to remember everything! Joel and I unfortunately had to fly on separate flights because he had come from a work trip in Sydney and flew direct with Emirates, the most expensive and direct way from OZ to Europe. Though I lucked out with finding round trip flights and stopovers that weren't bad at all. I flew  Melbourne to Singapore (8 hours plus 4 hour stopover) Singapore to Istanbul  (12 hours plus 4 hour stopover) Istanbul to Porto ( 5 hours) Singapore airlines was my first stretch of flights and they absolutely lived up to their name, and the airport in Singapore does not disappoint. Wifi strong enough to make skype calls, butterfly pavilions, sunflower garden, pools, lounge chairs, lounge beds, fish ponds, the list goes on and on. I spent mos...

As I fly out of Australia tomorrow for a holiday in Portugal, Italy and one day in Singapore, I thought I would quickly reflect upon my first year in Australia. It has definitely been a challenging year in some aspects, but at the same time really rewarding. I have gained a lot of skills in a variety of things. A lot of Australians ask me the things  I like better here than in the US, so here are a few! Healthcare: They have a public healthcare system, which covers everyone. Yes they also have private health insurance but for people who cannot afford to have private health insurance, they can still be treated and not go bankrupt due to an illness or disease. Prescriptions are so cheap.. heck even saw on the news this morning that they are going to try and make a bill pass so unchanged prescription meds, and referrals to specialist would no longer be necessary if it is an ongoing condition because they analyzed that a lot of money and time was wasted due to appointments for th...

September 19th is when I entered Australia last year and it has been quite a whirlwind. I had a lot of ups and downs over the year but obviously so happy that I had the opportunity to come here on and enjoy my working holiday visa. Being in a totally new place with very few connections and very few friends made me push myself to find work, a house, and a little group of friends. Not to mention a few expeensive mishaps and a very pricey start to my job.  I would not have pushed through my time in Melbourne if it weren't for Ultimate Frisbee Friends that I have made here.  They are the best so welcoming, and now have helped me to find a wonderful wonderful man.... Sooo what is next? After returning from an incredible holiday in Hawaii with  my family, Melbourne had lots of visa stress in store for me. Joel and I started planning a while back about figuring out a way for me to stay in Melbourne one more year, if I couldn't stay, it would be a complicated year apart. We we...