new realizations

So I went to the Opera House and saw the Harbor bridge today.....traveling alone sucks because I don't really get pictures of myself here...You're just going to have to believe me when I say I'm here because there's no real proof....

While walking down the street I've noticed that I'm doing that which-way-you-wanna-go dance on the street with other pedestrians much more than usual. Suddenly it dawned on me that they want to walk to my right instead of my left!!! It's funny how when we walk, we want to follow the rules of the road. I guess I need to start thinking like an Aussie now.

I forgot to say yesterday, following the same lines, that everything is bacwards...the escalators (I keep wanting to go down the ups), the foscets turn the other way...I haven't noticed if toilets flush the other direction because mine in the hotel is one of those square ones that don't flow in a circlular manner.

The other agents and invited guests arrive today and we have a coctail reception this afternoon (early evening) so hopefully tomorrow I won't be breakfasting alone!

G'Day to you all...I'll write again at the end of the week.

48 hours of travel and Sydney

I realized yesterday that I am absolutely not the international person I fancy myself to be. Yes, I have friends from all over the world. Yes I live in a country other than my own. Yes I work in an office who's main purpose is the internationalization of education but never before did I notice that I'm not a well traveled person.

The travel time beftween Mexico and Sydney adds up to about 24 hours. I missed a whole day in my life, just plain dropped it in the ocean. The 14 hour flight from LAX to Sydney was quite possibly the most excrutiating experience of my life. There's nothing less glamourous (except maybe giving a stool sample) than being on a plane for 14 hours.

The funny thing is though, that once you land your mind almost forgets how awful it was. That's what giving birth must be like, I thought aloud to the Aussie next to me.

There are a few things that I've already noticed that I'd like to point out....keeping in mind that I've only been here for a day and a half.

First of all, the money is impossible to understand. The bills are so beautiful that I actually have troubles using them, so I'm trying more to use the coins. The problem with that is that the largest coin is 50 cents and it's larger than our 1 dollar coin. The silver coins are cents and the golden coins are dollars. The 2 dollar coin is smaller than the 1 dollar coin. The 20 cent coin is about as big as our 1 dollar and the smallest is 5 cents, which is smaller than our dime.

I had to pay 4.45 today and I accidentally gave a 20 cent coin in the 50 cent's stead and the woman shouted at me "FOUR FOURTY FIVE" I told her I thought I was giving her 50 and changed it.....

I keep thinking that I'm in a new state in the US....until I almost get run down by a car because I'm looking for it in the wrong direction. It's really extremely helpful that some streets have it clearly spelled out to me "LOOK LEFT/LOOK RIGHT"...without that warning, I would never do it right!

So far that's the jist of my observations. I love, love, love the accent and the slang (sloppy joe is a sweater, flat white is a cafe con leche).

Unfortunately I won't have pictures until I get back to Mexico....unless someone in the Oxnard area has one of those things for SD cards in their computer.

More to come in a week, after my agent training!!

Sometimes getting screwed over just works out....

I was kinda wanting to do a vlog for the first time ever but I discovered the the cats chewed through the camera cable and now I can't upload pictures.....which is actually more of a nightmare than it sounds because........

I'M GOING TO AUSTRALIA!!!

SO much has happened in the last month-ish that I haven't been able to write about due to my extreme tiredness but I'm going to let you in on my life right now....

I don't know if you remember, but I paid a lawyer to get me a work visa here in Mexico....turns out that lawyer isn't much of a lawyer and he contracted out someone to do the process for him (the ultimate definition of out-sourcing)....The time was really bearing down on me in the last several weeks because....

I'M GOING TO AUSTRALIA

and I still didn't have the visa....he had me call his "contact" in migration, who tried to bribe me for 4,000 MORE pesos. Things started getting suspicious and I started to slowly realize that I've never even seen my supposed dependent visa.

I paid a visit to migration and it turns out that I'm a ghost, non existent here in Mexico....and not only that but I'm working on an expired tourist visa.... o sea.....SUPER illegal!

Needless to say that guy is supposedly going to pay us the 4,000 and we're never talking to him again!

So this leaves me in a predicament....I really like my job and I don't want to leave it just because I got screwed over by a fake lawyer so...I have to leave the country in order to get another tourist visa....so......


I'M GOING TO AUSTRALIA!

It's a business trip and I'll spend about 3 weeks in Australia (Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne) before flying over to New Zealand, spending about a week in Auckland and then head over to my home town.....OXNARD!