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Brisbane, Australia

“Why do you go away? So that you can come back. So that you can see the place you came from with new eyes and extra colours. The people there see you differently, too. Coming back to where you started is not the same as never leaving.”
― Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky.

The guy on the plane home next to me asked me, ” how was it, your trip away?” How do you answer a question like that? Similar to the “how do you feel about coming home. There are so many mixed emotions about the year that was and the year ahead. 365 days ago we boarded a flight out of Sydney to get married and to discover the world. We didn’t really know what to expect. We were very green to the world. I’ve thought a lot about that guy’s question on that 14 hour flight home. A year ago the first thing I thought I’d be thinking was ‘that was a lot of money, what do I have to show for it?’ A year later, money hasn’t even crossed my mind. I’d spend double if we had it. A year ago I thought I would miss the superficial things like clothes, shoes and T.V. They haven’t crossed my mind once. I thought I’d miss a routine and my job. I didn’t think of any of them. Now, I’ll miss time with Dave. Spending every day together, exploring. We’ve met a lot of couples who have said they couldn’t spend every moment of every day together, for a week let alone a year. It took time at first to get used to it but as I sit here on the plane home, that is what I’ll miss the most. Travelling with my best friend, all day, every day for over a year could have been the make or break for Dave and I. I can’t express how grateful I am to have had the opportunity to travel inseparably with my mate and life companion. To work together, pick up the slack for each other when needed and grow a strong understanding of each other’s needs. This year together, the first year of our marriage has made for a solid future together.

The things we have seen and experiences we have had have been the most priceless thing we have ever bought. Sometimes, it feels like a dream. It was only yesterday when Dave and I were wandering the street of Valparaiso in Santiago, Chile and were walking down those rickety streets, weaving our way through the locals food markets, picking up on the odd word here and there. Dave looked at me and said “haven’t you come along way from the girl who was too scared to go to Bali”. On that day in Santiago it was as if we were walking through the main street of Brisbane city not even realising the enormity of the progress. It was so common to us we didn’t realise. We were becoming so blasé with our surroundings that we didn’t even take the camera out. As the year went on, we weren’t appreciating the sights or surroundings as much as we were at the beginning. For that reason, we are very ready to come home.

It’s not really surprising that we couldn’t just go straight home after arriving into Sydney, Australia. After staying just the one night at an airport hotel, we boarded the flight to Melbourne. Firstly we caught up with Dave’s mate from New Zealand, Div, then on to a weekend with our travel buddies from Vietnam. That week we spent travelling with Stephen, Shazz and Damo was quite easily a highlight of the trip. Thankfully these new friends live in Melbourne and Tassie so regular catch ups can be organised easily. For the two nights and three days we were together, thankfully nothing was planned. After a year of sightseeing we both were ready to just hang out, and that we did. With the Yarra Valley on Shazz and Damo’s door step, it started with country pubs then vineyards and breweries, to name a few. By 5pm on the second day we had already visited Chandon, De Bortelli, White Rabbit and The Shed, so were well and truly on the way to having a good evening. Appropriately selected, a Vietnamese restaurant was where we enjoyed dinner over a few ‘more’ bottles of wine, then home to a cocktail we wanted to introduce them to.The Chilean Earthquake. It had enough shake in it to keep the girls up until 1am, but the boys until 6am. Well and truly tired, fish and chips under the Victorian sun was all we could handle for the final afternoon before our last flight home to Brisbane.

The process of getting home to Brisbane took 4 flights. By the time we were on the last one of our year long adventure, we were well and truly ready to walk through the airport doors to see the loving faces of Mum, Dad and Chris. It was the perfect way to complete the circle of emotions. They held a homemade “welcome home” sign high, the bunch of flowers poked through and the faces of loved ones were beaming. It was an emotional moment and one I won’t forget.

In those first few days of being back in Australia we were very much still in traveller mode and saw Australia in that light. For example how good public transport is, whether tourists view Australians as helpful and friendly and how hugely expensive Australia is. Paying an average of $25 for a main meal at a restaurant is ridiculously high, but as is everything else in the country. I guess the high taxes give the added lifestyle benefits.

The following few days we caught up with a few close friends and met Rhian’s daughter Isla for the first time. Thankfully we had my aunty Linda over from New Zealand for the week to also welcome us home. She also guided me in the kitchen, making my ‘first’ meal. Let me repeat that: I have upheld my promise to cook when I returned, and I did! Shepherd’s Pie, and a fancy one at that with gravy, onions and other fancy stuff. I’m in the making to be a good wife.

I can’t stress how good it is to be home. We are ready for the next chapter in our lives. To get jobs, a routine and just hang out and do normal stuff. Being back represents sleeping in the same bed for more than two nights, having clothes in a cupboard not a back pack, being there for friend’s life milestones, enjoying opening a fridge for food instead of sitting in a restaurant, making a coffee and not buying one, calling family and friends on the phone without relying on decent Internet for Skype, feeling like a lady again with heaps of pretty dresses to choose from and seeing familiar and friendly faces of loved ones.

I wanted to finish this blog where it started. From Bali to a welcome home party at Mum and Dad’s house. Our family and friends are the most important things in our lives. The BBQ was easy, stress free and fun. What made it extra special is all the new kids that are running around, filling the air with happiness. That’s the great thing about friends, it doesn’t matter how long it’s been since you saw them last or what new milestones have happened – you just pick up where you left off.

We aren’t sad about returning to a normal life, as it’s just the beginning. Life has so many other milestones. This will not be the last trip, both by ourselves and with kids. I think you travel to search and you come back home to find yourself there.
The End.

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