I can't live without facebook

Last night after leaving the pub, I headed over to the Perth train station to meet up with my couchsurfer. It was about 11pm, and I had a bit of time before he would arrive so I grabbed a local newspaper and propped myself up on the railing. 10 minutes later, this boy walks by and says hi and asks me how my day was going. He had just missed his last bus home.

I watched him light a cigarette and inhale the fumes. He smoked like he had done it a million times, yet it looked so awkward, as if the cigarette was too big to fit between his teenage fingers. Only when we stood up did I notice he was the same height as me. He had a young face, beautiful eyes, and curly brown hair with blond streaks. He had not eaten for 2 days.

I decided to walk over and sit on the ground beside him. Michael was 15 turning 16, still in high school and had already done more drugs than I ever had. He had just come from his best friend's funeral. She hung herself because her classmates had been constantly making fun of her.

"I'm gonna get back at every single person that did this to her."
"How?"
"By beating their heads off."

I tried to find the right words to say but I honestly could not come up with a solution. Put me in his situation and I probably would've shit kicked everyone in that school.

For my creative writing class, I'm currently working on a piece that discusses the dreams that kids have and that we lose as adults. Suddenly realizing that I was sitting beside a 15-year-old, I asked,

"What are your dreams?"

He didn't even hesitate when he answered "I want to be a singer". I asked him to sing me something and he agreed. I asked him if he wanted to study music and his eyes lit up. But when I started talking about university, he looked down and said there was no way he could afford it. I told him I was pretty much living paycheck to paycheck, but I'm still able to do what I want because I wanted it so badly.

"Are you on Facebook?"
"Yeah"
"Add me on Facebook. I can't live without Facebook."

WHAT?
I could hear myself going no, please no, oh my god no.

I tried to convince him that there was a world outside of the internet, outside of Perth, that was just waiting for him to discover. He asked if he could go home with me. I said I couldn't take him, but walked him over to the police officers. We said our goodbyes and I went to catch my train.

I only spent an hour with this kid but I can't stop thinking about him. I hope he's okay.

Road Trip #2, Look Out for the Kangaroo

One night, I received this phone call from Attila and he asks me to join him on a road trip. "Where to?" I ask. And he says, "North, south, east, west... I don't care". So on Friday night at the bar, he hands me his keys and at 3am I found myself stumbling into his flat and passing out on the couch. The next morning, about 20 minutes before we had to leave, I saw, for the first time, the map of our journey. We were headed for the north.

Atte, Lucy, Me, Serena, Attila

Shortly after we hit the highway, we were in "the bush". There was nothing around us but dusty unpaved roads, big trucks, sheep, and a lot of greenery. A LOT.

Atte looking suave as ever

A couple of bros chilling

We stumbled upon some old flattened cars

The first town we arrived at was Moora. The roads were completely dead and everything was closed. We stopped by a hotel that had a cozy lounge, a pool table, a kitchen and bar. Maybe it was the fresh oven-cooked vegetarian pizza they made or the owner that kept singing and told us to "get the hell out" if we didn't like it... but there was something about the place that made it special.

The Moora Hotel, Moora

Train tracks, Moora

To be honest, there is absolutely nothing to do outside the city. It's always the good company that makes the trip worthwhile. We were constantly stopping for photo ops and it became so evident that you can have fun no matter where you're from, where you're at, and what age you are.

Mustard fields!

It was getting late and we were hoping to find accomodation in a monastery in New Norcia. However, when we got there, we found out that nobody lived in the town besides the monks who led very private lives, and the people in the hotels. The rooms were all fully booked because there was a group on a 7-day walk that had travelled the same route we had by car. We were also interested in sampling products from the infamous New Norcia Bakery, but discovered that the bakery was actually operating in the city of Perth. We came a long way for nothing.

Basketball court, New Norcia

Once again, we were back on the road. It was dusk which meant one thing - the kangaroos were waking up. In the exact words told to us by a local, "kangaroos have no road sense at all". We would be at risk of driving into one and completely destroying the car. I was assigned to scout for kangaroos, but I was too busy sleeping. Thank goodness we didn't come across any, and even managed to pull over on the side of the road and look at the stars. This was the best I could do without a tripod and it doesn't even do what we saw justice. No city lights, no city sounds. It was just us and the milky way.

The Milky Way

We arrived safely at a hostel in the town of Cervantes. While we were outside, Attila's drunk inside voice was still too loud and we got in a wee bit of trouble. After everyone had gone to bed, Atte, Attila and I wandered our ways through some bushes and plopped down on the beach to tell our life stories. The waves hit violently against the rocks but we were so relaxed.

After a couple hours of sleep, we were off again. At Jurien Bay, we were hoping to do a bit of sandboarding but like everything else in Western Australia on a Sunday, it was closed. There were, however, people skydiving. Not just skydiving, but skydiving into the bluest ocean waters I've ever seen. I kid you not, this picture wasn't edited.

Jurien Bay

In Nambung National Park, we trekked The Pinnacles, only to find that we had been walking in circles around the same limestone structures. Everything looked exactly the same, nothing but yellow for miles.

The Pinnacles, because I'm deep and stuff.

South of Jurien Bay was Lancelin, another town for us to do nothing much. Attila did manage to find his new best friend.

Attila and pup, Lancelin

 We arrived in Perth in the evening, but not before we were pulled over by a police officer for speeding. My phone ran out of batteries twice even though Attila had 4 extra batteries. It probably exhausted itself trying to get signal. To summarize our little road trip (and pretty much Western Australia):

How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean.
- Arthur C. Clarke

Sundays are always good to me

Sundays are always good to me. They always have been. Walking through downtown, I caught traces of a city in development. On one side there were skyscrapers and construction sites, on the other there were golden one-story tall buildings surrounded by beautiful brick paths. The city takes after it's motherland, and the European aspects got me feeling like this was some sort of summer trip.

Downtown Perth

I was never a huge fan of coffee but there's nothing not to love when the barista hands you a flat white with the perfect blend of bitters and sweets, and with just the right amount of foam on top. Bocelli has been voted for having one of the best coffees in Perth and I haven't found anything else that disagrees yet. The coffee was $5, the sandwich was $14, and the cake was $8. So overpriced, almost worth it.

Flat white, and a vegetarian Turkish sandwich (eggplant, sundried tomatoes, spinanch, basil)

Cherry chocolate cake!!

I found myself walking in an area decorated with sidewalk art and a giant screen displaying short films and ended at the Art Gallery of Western Australia. It's free, except for their featured art section. It's Van Gogh and Dali right now! This was my favourite display (which they removed a couple days after :( ).

Allegory: After Courbet, by John de Andrea

This Sunday, I started by having brunch and walking the dog with my wonderful roomates. During the night Niall, Atte, and I headed over to Little Creatures in Fremantle (my fav area in Perth!). It's a brewery, restaurant, and a pub. I ordered the White Rabbit White Ale, which was light and fruity and a pumpkin oven-roasted pizza with almonds, linseed and sage oil. Their pizza makes going meat-free so delicious.

Little Creatures

White Rabbit White Ale, Little Creatures Pale Ale, White Rabbit Dark Ale

 This city has successfully made me fall in love with its beer and coffee. On days I feel extra rich, I even have both.

There's No Place Like Home

I'm usually not the type to get homesick; home is wherever I'm staying that night. But when you're new to a city, constantly moving from place to place, and trying to study at the same time, things get tough. It's been about a month and a half since I've left Vancouver and I have stayed in 9 different accomodations. I didn't always have access to a kitchen and found myself eating all three meals in the school cafeteria. This city may be diverse, but it's definitely not as open as Vancouver. For the first time in my life I became conscious of my skin colour, and every stereotype and racist remark thrown at me hurt a hundred times more. I'm sick of explaining how I learned to speak such fluent English. Shit, I didn't just get off a boat. On nights that I had to trek 30 minutes to get back to my accomodation in the dark (because buses stop running at midnight), I wondered what the hell I was doing in Perth.

But last night I moved into my final home, well, at least until the end of November. The area is magical and more importantly, a dog lives here. I've dropped my thesis project to take creative writing, visual arts, and Italian. I went for a long run across a bridge during the sunset, got lost, then made friends with someone who walked me back. I bought hibiscus tea leaves, just made a marvelous dinner, and am listening to Backstreet Boys. Things are great. Now I'll need to find a job so I can afford to be here!

Anyway, if you know me, you know that I'm in a really good place right now from the photo. Tell my daddy I'm alive please. I'm finally home.

Current Status: Vagabond

Help me stay in this beautiful city!

I'm from Vancouver, and flew to Perth planning to study and thought I had everything set for me. But things happen, and sometimes you end up homeless. The place I'm looking to rent isn't available for another two weeks. I don't expect someone to host me the entire time, but just a little bit of lovin' here and there would be amazing.

Help me stay in this city, I haven't even seen the wallabies yet!

I posted  this on Couchsurfing. Within hours, I had 5 replies.

Ever wake up, late for class, knowing that you're homeless? Then fall off your longboard on your way to school and come home to find that your tomatoes, olives, and tomato paste have all gone bad? At the same time, you find out that you can no longer do your honours thesis, which was the main reason for moving away in the first place. All on a Monday. I actually had a good cry, thinking that no one in the city wanted me there. I could've said this was the worst day ever, but I'm just grateful for all the good people in the world. For the next two weeks I'll be crashing at the homes of strangers with my 70L backpack. I won't even mention how many days I've worn the same pair of socks. The important thing to note is that although I'm stressed as fuck, I'm alive and happy. There's nothing more important than being happy.

Oh and I made pizza for dinner. There's nothing more important than being happy and having pizza.

Travelling to Margaret River with Four Strange Men

When Murray and I first met, we discovered that we both wanted to go to Margaret River, looked around the bar, grabbed a couple of guys and said "Let's do it". To be honest, I had my doubts. Four dudes meant four people that weren't going to plan, wake up on time, and show up sober. And that's exactly what happened.

But by some miracle, we got to Budget, rented a car, loaded the trunk, and was on our way to our destination by 11am. Who the fuck were these people? I had about 30 hours to find out.

Murray (Scotland), Meng Hui (Singapore), ME (Canada), Atilla (Hungary), Atte (Finland)

Our first pit stop was at Miami Bakehouse. Apparently meat pies are somewhat of national dish in Australia. This little kiosk was situated in the middle of nowhere, but thank goodness it was because we were hungry!

Classic Steak meat pie @ Miami Bakehouse

After we checked into our motel, Dunsborough Inn, we made our way to Centennial Park by the water. The waters were shallow and seemed to stretch on forever. It was so beautiful we decided to take some band cover photos. Finally a foot in the Indian Ocean!

3 guys, 1 girl, and a midget

 Since we already covered meat pies and beaches, we had to complete our Australian adventure with "barbies" on the beach. Although we didn't get to go on the wine tours (which is what Margaret River is famous for), I did manage to finish a whole bottle of Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc by myself. Good enough for me.

Free barbies by the beach!

I woke up with vague memories of rolling around in the grass, harassing strangers, never-have-i-ever and skinny dipping, and there was sand all over my bed. We stopped by Evviva for breakfast and it was ridiculously expensive but I had been craving eggs benedict for a little while now... so goodbye $22.50

The most expensive eggs benedict I've ever had @ Evviva

Perth locals usually make their way down to Margaret River for some nice waves. We were keen on seeing some big waves, so we drove to Yallingup Beach and some other beach. This was the first time I've ever seen waves like this! Can't wait to actually ride them.

We went on a obligatory cave tour at Ngili Cave. It was meh. 

 And finally, tired and ready to go home, we headed north back to Perth. It was such a good weekend and an unforgettable experience. Thanks, guys. Bros for life.

(More than) Once in a Lifetime

Last night I went to my very first Couchsurfing event at Frisk in the city.

The bar was small and cozy, with outdoor seating and friendly staff. In Australia you can always expect good pale ale. Their Tanqueray Malacca Gin & Tonic with a slice of grapefruit was even better. But the best part was definitely the people that I met. 

The next morning, Murray (some Scottish guy I met last night) and I went on an adventure. First stop, Hilarys Boat Harbour!

I said I'd eat a meat burger but I'm an honest sucker for veggie patties. Especially when it's paired with avocado and beetroot. 

Garden Goodness @ Grill'd 

 Melon gelato @ Bellissimo Gelato

We took a pit stop at his place and grabbed an ice-cold beer for the road. Yum.

"It's a bit, hairy beer, but still approachable, like a yak."

 We decided to head to Yanchep National Park... but not before he convinced me to steal a lemon from his brother's yard. Look at the size of that thing!!

So I didn't get the chance to hug the koala. But it's #1 on the bucket list and it's gotta be done. Next time!

Koala @Yanchep National Park

There's something about Australia's waters that just takes my breath away each time.

Yanchep National Park

Murray mentioned something about once-in-a-lifetime experience, and how if it's that good, we shouldn't just do it once. This guy obviously isn't as poor as I am. But he's getting at something there.

Me and Murray the Engineer

It's only been a week and a half and I've already been exhausted. Tomorrow we have a sort of spontaneous roadtrip planned. Me and 4 guys in one car. Shotty. Hopefully it's a go, and hopefully I come back in once piece. Goodnight, world. Catch ya later.