My Memories of Backpacking Australia
Introduction
In April 2005, I went to live and work in Australia for a year. For me, it was a big step, as I've always lacked confidence. It began after I've been on a holiday to the USA. I was on a boozy night out with my dad, and near the end of the night, I slurred something like, "I wonder if I could go and work in a Las Vegas casino?".
I investigated American working visas, and it turned out they're near impossible to obtain. Not that I was really serious about it. It was more fantasy than reality. Next, I turned my attention to Europe, telling people I'd like to go and work in Europe. I speak French and German, but realised I'm not confident enough to immerse myself in the language.
Australia was a mere afterthought. In my new job, I met some people who'd spent a year in Australia on a working visa, so I looked into it myself. Time went by, and I learnt a lot about it. I told a lot of people I would go travelling, and soon, I felt it was too late to turn back.
After finding a cheap flight, renewing my passport, finding incredibly cheap insurance, I was ready to go. Although, for the entire year, I ran a great website outlining my week-by-week activities, I also kept a diary. It was the most detailed diary I've ever kept. It detailed everything thing I did - every job I had, every desert and rainforest I expored, every backpacker I befriended.
For the first time, I will be publishing that diary, as a day-by-day account. *
