Tradies vs Tradies

I think it's time to sum up my time in Australia now that I am about to head home for a well deserved holiday. It has been a great journey and 2013 is definitely something to remember for the rest of my life.
We're half way through to 2014 and the next 40 days will be the longest holiday I have taken in Europe. Mind that, a month in Estonia is the longest time I have spent there in the past eight years. That's definitely something to celebrate! I can take it easy and do not have to rush to make sure I get to see everyone before heading back to Sydney.
I was on the bus on my way to work last week and noticed utes passing by in the traffic. That made me think of tradies in Australia vs tradies in Estonia. Tradies around here are highly valued, well paid and considered pretty hot by women in general. Handy men and all. Instead of wearing suits for work they wear high visibility shirts and drive utes equipped with tools they need for their daily jobs. They are generally considered smart, ie highly skilled, no matter what their job is. Be it plumbers, electricians or builders. It is interesting to compare the mentality of the locals here to the mentality of Estonians when it comes to tradies. A lot of men doing the same job in Estonia are not that well perceived. Why? I suppose firstly, they are not paid as well as over here, their skills are not valued like they are valued out here. More emphasis is on the men in suits and that's considered a sign of success. But why isn't a tradie in Estonia considered successful? Is it because the job is easy to learn for anyone and is more thought of as a last resort job that anyone can do? Probably yes.
A couple of weeks ago my Chinese colleague asked me if she could ask me a very personal question. At that stage I did not know what to expect. The question really was something astonishing. Because we were members of the same gym she was wondering if it is ok to exercise during that day of month, if you know what I mean! Firstly, I said of course. There is no problem what so ever. The only reason why I wouldn't do it would be that I was not feeling well, generally. She said in China, girls are made think that exercising while having a period is not good for them, so no one does that. As if it is some sort of a disease and does not have a good effect on their health. I was genuinely stunned that girls in China (at least that part of China) are brought up thinking like that. However, I am glad I could be an eye opener for her! Hopefully, that resolves her worries for the future!
At the moment Vivid Syney Festival is on for a couple of weeks. That means, every evening from 7pm onwards the city lights up into a playful spectacle of lights and music. It is truly an amazing way to experience the beauty of the city. Of course it is not the same on photos as it is when experiencing it yourself right in Sydney harbour! I have uploaded a few crappy photos I took with my phone just to record the beautiful sights the city has to offer.

Loving Sydney

My blog has been very quite for the past few months. Not that nothing is happening in my busy work life but I haven't been motivated enough to type up a couple of paragraphs.
I can clearly remember 13th of January, my first day at work. It's been five months since I started a new job and I haven't even noticed time passing by. Just as I am starting to enjoy the craic at work I have to leave again! That's the life of a working holiday maker. Do not get attached to jobs, people, routine. My contract was supposed to finish at the end of May, so I decided not to waste time and booked flights home. I haven't been home for 18 months - it's about time! Too bad, a week later I was told they were going to extend my contract and promote me to an analyst position. Such a shame!! Don't care about the extended contract, I would have been more excited about the new role. Finally something of my preference! I guess it wasn't meant to be. Perhaps something better is on the cards for me in the future. You never know.
Until then, I will enjoy my last few weeks and take some time to think about what I have learned while being here in Australia.
Most importantly - to be happier, smile more, be more tolerant towards people and enjoy life. This is something valuable I will take with where ever I end up in along my journey. Australia has taught me to live, to live life to the fullest. Having spent most of the past year and a half in very uncertain conditions has really showed me that I will be fine, no matter what. It doesn't matter that I do not have a perfect dream job, lots of cash and that I cannot have what ever I want. I only average on six months of work a year, I don't eat monkey brains or rice for dinner, in fact I can travel the world if I put my mind to it. How awesome is that!
There are wonderful people around me and I have no doubt I can count on them when needed, baring in mind, I have only known these people less than a year.
I must praise the Irish. Had the best laugh at work today. Three Irish girls and me all slagging each other in the office. I can imagine the whole office could hear our conversation. Nevertheless, no regrets!
Looking forward to the good old pints in Dublin when I get there in July! Pencil in the dates mates, I'll be in town 1-8 July!
Enough of praise, I should really talk about what I've been up to these days. Nothing much, I've been clocking up 50-100km per day on a bike on Sundays for the past few months. Well, not quite every Sunday but some amazing scenic bike paths and the good old Harbour bridge. I will never get sick of cycling across the bridge. It really makes absorb where I am and how spectacular the views are. What else could I possibly wish for? Enjoying the views of the wolrd's most beautiful harbour. Absolutely love it. To celebrate that I will go for a good old jog in the botanic gardens near the Opera House tomorrow morning, although it is totally out of my way but it'll be worth it :)

Tour de Sydney

I've spent a very active weekend in Sydney. Saturday kicked off with a walk into town. It took me a couple of hours or a bit less, considering I wasn't quite rushing and taking into account my bad sense of direction! I always go in the opposite direction (while thinking I must be right..) and end up walking double the distance than initially planned. I walked into town and then took the bus back home afterwards. Didn't really have a purpose that time, so just enjoyed the lovely weather and beautiful views of Sydney Harbour. Sat down near the Opera House for half an hour and then headed back home. I could have walked back too but I was wearing thongs (flip flops for those who are not familiar with Aussie words) and didn't think it was the best footwear to have for long distances.
I was listening to 98fm, Irish radio channel. It is so weird hearing  Irish accent. I had forgotten how Irish they all sound! Living in Dublin for such a long time had made me not notice the accent any more. Now listening to the radio puts a silly grin on my face :)
Having walked into town on Saturday I figured I should continue a tradition of Sunday bike rides. I checked out the cycle paths map online the night before and agreed a course to take for today. Well, I had done the same route last Sunday but you wouldn't expect me to remember all turns, would you? Of course not and I can prove it! I took a good few wrong turns and managed to extend my bike ride by at least 5km. Ah well, good to know where not to go next time..
I planned to ride into CBD across Harbour Bridge and then cruise along the city's cycle paths towards Cook river and along all the way to Parramatta. I planned on taking the train back from Parramatta but unfortunately trackwork was being done all weekend on the Harbour Bridge, so I could only take the train back into the city. I knew that in advance but I thought I hadn't cycled back across the bridge before, so something different. I was dreading the ride back home as there were a few hills to conquer before I could relax. The worst thing to wish for after having cycled 65km already. It was not easy but it wasn't that hard either. During the last climb my knee decided to let me know that it wasn't happy with all the exercise. Luckily, I was pretty close to home and the rest of it was downhill again, thankfully.
I've decided to try and do this every Sunday, not sure if 60-70km is the distance to go for every weekend but I will definitely use the time to explore other cycle paths in the city. I will just have to plan where I'm going in advance. The best part of it all is cycling across the Harbour Bridge. I am amazed by the stunning views every single time. One side of the bridge is for pedestrians only and the other side is for cyclists only. Love the idea. In that way, there won't be tourists blocking the path and I can keep moving without distractions. There are security guards on each end of the bridge. Poor men, standing there all day. Had a chat with one of the in the morning and on my return four hours later. He remembered me, so it mustn't have been a busy day. I like the randomness of conversations with fella bikers at traffic lights. A lady was asking me where I was riding from. She thought it was really far away. if she only knew I had cycled only 1/7 of my track at that stage! In general, everybody's so nice and polite. I got asked by another cyclist who was passing by whether I was on my own. Yeah, dude! I don't have friends that would be willing to go that sort of lengths with me. Got offered directions at some point when I stopped at a junction - I must have looked like I was lost :)
I already preached on FB too that I had completed stage two of Tour de Sydney. Lets see how long I can keep up with it!

Routine is starting to kick in.

I should really say something about my boring working life here!
Forgot to mention that we went wakeboarding on a Friday arvo. I wanted to get as much hours out of my Friday at work, so I started early - 7am. It's great to start early, I get a lot more work done and there's barely anyone in the office bothering me. No emails, no phone calls, no people around me getting me distracted. I started at 7am and was finished by 12.30pm ready rock :)
The most amazing Friday I have had in ages! So much fun and such hard work getting up on the water. But once I got up, it was just a pretty damn awesome joyride. This is definitely something to repeat. There's a Cables Wake Park in Penrith, an hour drive into Sydney's West. The day was setting out to be perfect, no clouds and temperature rising to 30 degrees. We got our boards, helmets and life vests and let the fun begin. I must say, having done this before on a lake and with a boat, it was a different story doing it in a cable park where half of the work was already done for you by the moving cable. I assumed it was going to be easier to get going but to my surprise it took me about 5 attempts to finally get up on my feet. Once I got up I wondered how I wasn't able to do it immediately. It seemed so simple! To finish off my pro wakeboarding James suggested I should try a "jump start" - standing on the edge and jumping into the water while the cable pulls me forward. It was a success! I was so happy with myself that I managed to not face plant and stay on my feet. Freakin awesome :) The jump was actually much easier than trying to get up on my feet like the beginners do. Happy days!
Work wise, it's same old boring. Not much fun. Few of us went out for lunch today for the first time together. I had a sneaky beer too. Normally, everyone just does their own thing. I am not used to it at all. I just take half an hour and have my food and sometimes go for a walk in the shops nearby if the weather is nice. I try to take advantage of the warm weather while we still have it. I should take some photos of the area for memories. Maybe one day.
I've finally settled in a new home, after constantly moving around since pretty much July last year!! It will be my home until July. Hopefully, I can keep my job until then too. My work contract is for three months but I don't see a reason how they would manage without me. Not that it's about me but they will still need someone else to do the job then and there is no reason for them to hire a new person again. I am pretty sure it will last as long as I want. I am planning on a visit home mid July to mid August, so stay tuned for updates on that :) Haven't got tickets yet but the plan is to fly to Tallinn and then spend 3 weeks at home and then a week in Dublin before flying back to Sydney.
Maybe it's time to summarize my year here. I just realised it has been a whole year. Time flies! Before arriving in Australia I was a bit nervous about the far away dream land and slightly worried how the year would turn out, taking into account complete uncertainty of my future. It has been a great ride. I can't imagine all the things and great adventures I would have missed out on if I hadn't come to Australia. I have met so many wonderful people, been to amazing places, done things I thought I'd never get a chance to do. A truly rewarding experience. I don't have a permanent job or a clear direction of where I am headed and I have no idea what the future holds for me but I am the happiest I have ever been. That counts as something, doesn't it?

Blue Mountains hike photos