The Challenges of Surprises

"Why are you back?" was the common question people asked after I have just surprised them.

So why am I back in Perth and how did the surprises go? Well originally I planned to move back to Perth in November, but since Sam and Carl decided to move to London and decided to become my awesome housemates then I thought why not? I'm now moving back for good at the end of February next year which isn't too far away. Since I bought a return ticket, I had to use my ticket before the year ended. I chose to come back in July for family reasons but also to avoid having to choose which of 3 weddings I had to come back for. Since the three weddings are of close friends and span from September to November, I have decided to go to none of them (which was a hard choice).

As much as I like being surprised, implementing one is another story and I swear I will not organise another one in the near future... 

So after deciding to come back for a visit months ago, I decided to set up a surprise visit without letting anyone know. Boy was it hard! I decided to ask my best mate Sam to be my imposter which he happily agreed to as part of my 'devious' plan. First action was for someone to pick me up from the airport- So my sis was the first to be chosen for the surprise. However, when I asked if she could pick up 'Sam', she refused as she had a dinner dance. Fail! So who else would be willing to pick up Sam? Amanda it was. But when 'Sam' asked her, she said it was going to be hard as she had to work that night I arrived. Fortunately, as the awesome friend she was, she decided to rush from work to pick 'Sam' up. 

With that sorted, I got Sam to get my mate Spencer to organise a surprise dinner with close friends, not knowing that it will eventually bite me back in the butt...

So the time comes when I arrive in Perth, wishfully thinking Amanda was going to be waiting for me outside arrivals. Arriving shortly after midnight, I landed and came out of the gates looking for Amanda to be surprised. As I came out, she was nowhere to be seen. I was thinking, maybe she was just parking. As I continued to wait, I started to worry and knew that I wasn't able to contact her to avoid spoiling the surprise. I ended up withholding my caller ID and pretended I was calling from London worried that 'Sam' wasn't being picked up. That resulted in me talking to her voicemail... In the end, she arrived and gave me a weird look when she realised it wasn't Sam she was picking up... 

I had to surprise over ten people and most of them were on separate occasions, so I won't discuss each of them in detail. However, one of the more memorable ones were hiding in the kitchen to surprise my dad, even though he took ages to come into the house. The hug from him was worth it though, especially when he isn't the type to hug. Another highlight was when I surprised Therese in the city. Seeing that she was sitting on a bench with her phone, I sneaked up and sat next to her. When she found out it was me, she screamed out loud, causing everyone to look over and see what the commotion was about. 

Any failed attempts? Yes! First one was when my dad decided to tell my sister when he saw her at work. Her response was, "ummm... I don't think you we're suppose to let me know...". 

The second was Spencer and Sophie. Spence contacted Sam when he supposedly arrived on Sunday. After several failed attempts, he apparently started piecing together the clues: 1) Jason has not updated his Facebook status since Friday 2) What was this 'devious' plan that Jason had mentioned on Facebook 3)Let's confirm it by saying 'welcome back' on Facebook. The last one got me; having someone ask me that, I replied by asking what he was on about. The stupid me forgot that Facebook reveals where your message was sent from...

To sum things up, the surprise was a success, minus the two failed attempts. I really enjoyed it, but this organised surprise will be the last one I will do in a while!

Life in London: Update 3

I realised I have been really lazy this year and haven't posted much. I have been so busy with work and my weekends have been occupied with exploring new places and spending time with my friends and housemates ( Sam and Carl).

So how is life in London? Never been better especially after moving closer to the city. I now live in Zone 2 rather than Zone 4, which means less time to venture out into Chinatown, minutes away from Bricklane, and there is a massive 24 hour Tescos supermarket nearby...

I've continued to get work during school time and have been working full time, hence funding for more travelling before I move back to Australia. Teaching in London continues to be stress-free; yup you heard it right, stress-free! I love supply teaching here, no planning, assessment, take home marking and reports. Although I currently have a year two class for 2 days a week, I mainly do supply teaching on the remaining days at different schools.

So far this year, I have travelled to Reykjavik, Paris, Florence and Rome. I have also booked for flights to Amsterdam, Budapest, a tour to Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Oh yeah I have also booked for flights to New York! Bet you are thinking how the heck I can afford all this travelling? Well that's why I work my butt off and travelling around Europe is much cheaper especially if you can book your flights ahead.

At the same time, I realise I only have ten more months before moving back to Australia. I now treat London as my second home and the thought of moving back home is daunting. However, moving home means being closer to my family and friends.

In the meanwhile, I'm going to continue discovering new places in London, more travelling to outer London and possibly a few more trips in August? If you want to come to London, come now before I move back to Australia next year!

To Give or Not to Give?

I was on my way to meet up with Sam for lunch in Chinatown. As I was in the train reading a newspaper, I suddenly heard a voice from a man. I heard him say, "Sorry to bother everyone, but I would like to ask if you could all give me some money to buy something to eat..." During this time , no one said anything and as I looked up slightly, all I could see was one person ready to give some coins to the homeless man and everyone else pretended they didn't hear anything (myself included). He was then slowly walking through the carriage and as he went closer to me I was thinking to myself whether I should give him any money. At the same time I was thinking, 'How did he afford to get on the train?', 'Did he actively try to find work?' etc.. By the time I finished pondering, he had already walked past me and even the girl next to me have given some coins to him. Was I wrong not to give money to him? What if he really needed it? If you were in a similar situation, what would you have done?

Chapter Twentythirteen

I still can't believe how fast 2012 has passed! It felt just like yesterday when I arrived in a big city called London with my suitcases, not knowing a single person and trying to start a new life here. Jumping forward, I have now been in the UK for 11 months. So what have I achieved this year? Meeting and making new friends from all over the world, travelled to over 10 cities in Europe, worked in more than 15 schools, being in and out of a relationship and the most important was finding out who I really was. I don't think that is a bad achievement for Chapter Twentytwelve?

So what are my ambitions and goals for Twenty13? Finding a new home to move in with my two mates would be a start. That would be followed with more travel plans in Europe and making more new friends and strengthening existing ones. I had always wanted to do some volunteer work which had never eventuated. However, I will place more effort this year and find an organisation that I feel passionate working with. The last thing on my mind is to start another relationship but I guess with these things, you never know what will happen right?

I have originally thought of changing my blog title to Chapter Twentythirteen, but decided not to. Chapter Twentytwelve was when I endeavoured to make a big change in my life and so I guess is a very significant reminder to me.
For those who do read my blog, I hope you can use 2013 as a year to make a change in your life, even if it is just one thing. Hey if I can do it, then there is no excuse for you not to do the same!

You Don't Miss Your Water Till The Well Runs Dry

Coming back to Australia for five weeks has to be one of the best things I have done this year (not including any European travel destinations).

Landing back in Perth, it felt like I have never left, which can both be a positive and negative thing. For a start, the familiar faces and sights are a bonus! Secondly, as everyone says, the weather in Perth has to be one of the best in the world! No over-exaggeration!

Coming back to attend two lots of weddings was the main excuse, but also as an excuse to see my family and friends. After 8 months of absence from Perth, I expect to see a complete change in everyone. In reality, this wasn't the case... I guess it is positive in a way as that means I haven't missed out too much and I can nicely slot back in my friendship groups.

I have to say that being away for 8 months have let me clear a lot in my mind. One important realisation is how much I have taken my family and friends for granted. You don't realise how important they are till they aren't around you (hence the correlation to my post title). Secondly, being away from Australia, a place I have lived in my whole life is a lot more awesome then I thought it was. You would always hear me saying to my housemates: "They only do this in Australia..." or "You would love Australia...".

Don't get me wrong, I love England and being away from home, but it has made me more appreciative of all the things I have. I am the most content I have ever been in my life and I really hope that those around me can feel that too.

So if you are reading this, pause for a sec and think about what you have. Stop that whinging and complaining and learn to appreciate all those around you. Don't take things for granted and be satisfied with what you have achieved and own. Oh I feel so wise at the moment :)

Chapter Twentytwelve- Sydney

I can't remember how many times I have visited Sydney over the years but I guess this time it is more to visit friends, rather than being a tourist. I didn't even bring my camera! I'm very lucky to have met a group of friends that I knew through Sam and it certainly is different to come to Sydney this time round without my best mate around.

Again, it feels a bit different visiting Sydney this time as I lived in a suburb (with my friend) away from the city and was given a more local view of Sydney. One of the first visits was to 'The Grounds' which is a new hip cafe located in Alexandria that was voted as Sydney's best brunch cafe. The cafe is located in an industrial area which i guess makes it even more 'exclusive'. As it was a Saturday, my friends and I expected a long wait and boy was the weight long (70 minutes to be exact)!

Another interesting place I visited was 'Sculptures by the Sea' which was along Bondi Beach. Back in Perth, there has been a similar exhibit which unfortunately I have not visited before. I really liked how the sculptures were spread along the cliffside which made you also explore and interact with the beautiful surroundings. Some examples taken on my phone:

Another highlight of my Sydney trip was catching up with a friend that I had met when I was in Turkey. As she had a car, she was able to show me places that I was unable to access by public transport such as Botany Bay, Cogee Beach and the neigbourhood she lived in. She also organised dinner at a restaurant in Bondi called Hurricane to eat the most delicious ribs I ever had! She also organised a 4 hour bike ride around the city, starting from Centennial Park and going through the local streets of Sydney. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Sydney from another perspective.

Sunset at Botany Bay

As my friends had to work during the weekday, I did my own exploration, starting with brunch each morning around the local neighbourhood of Sydnham. To be honest, I didn't really remember visiting a lot of places but I did remember going to the Fish Markets to have my Oysters!
In a way, I was trying to imagine seeing myself live in Sydney and see if this city could become my future residence...

A dozen of fresh oysters were barely enough...

I'm not really sure when I will be back in Sydney but the next time I'm back could be when I decide to move there?

My Architecture Encounter- Open House London

I've always been into architecture since I was a young kid. I remember whenever I had the opportunity I would always draw the skyscrapers that make up the Perth skyline. Being in London, I always come across interesting buildings but most do not allow public entry. So when I read in the newspaper about Open House in London, I immediately got excited! Open House in London is basically when over 700 properties over the city is open for only 1 weekend and is free for public viewing. Looking at the website, I narrowed down to 30 properties I really wanted to see. Unfortunately, I was only able to fit in 10 properties over the 2 days. Below are the ones I managed to see (not in any particular order):

55 Baker Street
This building used to be a department store but has been transformed into an office building. It has three glass in-fills between the building voids and one of them creates the dramatic entry. A shame we weren't allowed to explore more of the building apart from the lobby.

Artchive- Phillip Hughes Studio

This is a private art studio which was extended at the back of the building with a sloping glass roof. The bathroom is actually in the lounge room made from concrete and ceramic tiles to create an enclosed "cave".

City Hall
This building is home to the Mayor of London and deserves to be called a landmark in itself. As you can see in the picture, one half of the building is made up of a spiralling staircase that allowed you to see views of River Thames. I was lucky enough to go to the viewing platform (at the top of the building) which is usually only open during private events, to get a glimpse of the London skyline!

Container City
This is situated in a hidden wharf at East India which contains London's only lighthouse. The building is constructed out of ship containers to create a centre for the arts. This building was one of my favourites as it was creative and original. The wharf also had an awesome American diner that sold cheap burgers and hot dogs which I will definitely revisit!

Ed's Shed/ Sunken House
This house literally looked like a wooden cube at street level. The building is clad in a cedar rain screen and contains a vertical single window at the front of the house to create a 'minimalistic' look. My favourite area of the house was at the basement level where two large windows frame the courtyard, looking out to a beautiful tree (not sure what variety the tree is).

Hidden House
This is literally what you call a 'dream' home. This house has been featured on Grand Designs and was only completed last year. The house is made up of four levels and has it's own night club dance floor on the bottom level. It also has a 'wellness' centre that consists of a sauna and spa complete with background relaxation music. This house was innovative and inspirational in terms of what can be achieved in such a tight space. The house can only be accessed through the wall at the end of a cul-de-sac as it was built on a former neighbour's backyard. Guess what? It can be building from only 850k (pounds)... Bargain!

One Bishops Square
This building was not what I expected it to be. On the outside it looked like a normal office building, but it was the inside that really stood out. The building is a creation of Foster and Partners (if you are into buildings then you will know how awesome their designs are!). The building contains two voids, each containing a distinctive art installation. The first installation is made up of vertical flowers that move through the use of magnets and will open up when it senses sunlight. The second installation is made up of vertical 'curtains' of LED light bulbs. The main highlight of this building was the rooftop garden which has extensive views of the city skyline surrounding Liverpool Street. I can see myself working in this building...

Ravensbourne
This unique building is an art and design university situated in Greenwich. It is a next door neighbour of the O2 Arena. On the outside, it is made up of circular windows of various sizes and clad with metal 'jigsaw' pieces that fit the building perfectly. Inside, it contains interlinked floors of open and closed learning spaces. This is definitely one of the coolest university buildings I have seen!

Roca London Gallery
Unfortunately I did not make it in time to view the internal of this showroom but the outside was created using curved pieces of concrete. The showroom displays bathroom products so I guess the outside of the building was inspired by the rippling effect of water?

Village Underground

This was the first place I visited on my two day tour of Open London. I remember walking down a normal side road and upon finding the address I had to enter the actual site by walking up a set of spiralling stairs in a small courtyard. The land is actually on top of an abandoned railway viaduct. It uses recycled tube carriages to create space for artist studios. On the top carriage, if you look outside the drivers area at the front, it shows views of the surrounding street so it feels like you are 'driving' above ground. This building shows a creative and sustainable use of space.

30 St Mary Axe 
I was very disappointed I could not go into the building as there was a 5 hour wait to enter. The queue was unbelievable! The building also known as 'The Gherkin',  is a 40 storey office building in London's financial district. The building is distinctive and has a glaze dome at the top which shows a 360 degree view across the city.

For those people in Western Australia, Perth will have its first Open House event from the 1st to 3rd of November 2012. Unfortunately, I will be in Sydney during that time and I have heard the new Perth Arena will be open for public viewing!

I thoroughly enjoyed having the opportunity to explore buildings I would never have the chance to. I believe the whole event allowed the public to appreciate architecture and their surroundings.