hi,
just thought id give an up date of what im up to.
Nearly finished now, scary that ill be back in Aus in like 6 weeks. SHIT. Well ive done the ski season in canada, which was fucking awsome. awsome ppl, filth snow and just a beautiful area (banff). Then i travelled to the uk for a week with my sis, then headed to spain where i sailed with 3 others from majorca to dubrovnik in croatia (i found some ppl who needed an extra hand on their sailboat to move it, however id never sailed before in my life, and first day we set out in a 4 m swell SHIT!!). that was an amazing experience, 3 weeks on the med with dolphins everyday, good food, good company, and FREE BEER, hehe. the bad side was the four of us were on 4 hour shifts (4h on, 4h off) 24 hours a day. but then i spose you got to see the sun set and rise. so from dubrovnik i went to slovenia (awsome place called bovec where they do a lot of extreme sports in the alps), i did canyoning paragliding and white water rafting. then over to venice, florence, sienna (for il palio festival) rome, met up with my sis and went to barcelona, running of the bulls in Pamplona (ran 3 times, fuckin scary and saw a guy get gored right near me), then up into france to paris for bastille day (massive fireworks off the eiffel tower.) then over to germany prague amsterdam (enjoyed the "coffee shops") then back to the uk to work for 2 months.
(takes a deep breath). so here i am in manchester living with my sis, just about to quit my job as i leave for india next week. i spend 2 days in india, then meet up with some mates to travel round thailand, cambodia and laos for 6 weeks. then home. shit im going to be poor. ah well im rich in memories (corny but appropriate).
My advice for those out there thinking of a gap year is that its not for everyone, it can be tough when your say in prague, trying to catch a bus with a 25kg pack on your back, where no one speaks english and youve run out of money and cant find an atm. but it can be sooo good. ive met so many ppl though and experienced so many cultures. lonely planet has become my best friend and ive become quiet good at communicating to ppl through a series of hand gestures, and cartoons. other backpackers are always helpfull and friendly and recommend places and always up for a drink and a chat. ive seen some awsome stuff that i will never forget and forged friendships with ppl that will last me a lifetime.
anyway, thats my story. i cant wait to finish uni and head to south america.