Monday, March 15, 2010

A few sappy ramblings about my bestie and Australia

So, in all honesty, I've never really had much of a desire to visit Australia and New Zealand...ever. I'm a Europe girl through and through and am totally ok with that. I'm far more of a city girl than a beach girl, and in my head AU and NZ were always just a giant beach. Well, fret not everyone (Ashley and husband. lol), I know better now, and am well aware of all the many splendid things that these 2 countries have to offer.

But, yet, I am still willing to admit that the biggest, most compelling and just about only reason that I want to visit AU and NZ, spend the big bucks on a plane ticket (goodbye lovely, growing savings account) and sit through a horrifically long flight is my best friend, Jamie. I miss her.

When she studied abroad a year and a half ago we weren't on the best terms. We were ready for a break from each other and we were each going down different paths in our lives. Plus, we both knew she'd only be gone for 6 months, so, really, it was no big deal. Well, she came home, we had a tearful, hug-filled greeting at the Denver airport and it was just like old times again. I've never met another person who just gets me like Jamie does. Seriously, folks, we are hetero-lifemates, through and through. Anyway, then Jamie got a job in Denver and I swear, it was like all of my dreams came true: my bestie was going to be in the same state as me again! This was especially exciting because my Baltimore bestie, Corey, lives across the country and I hated having both of my best friends so far away.

So, we lived it up as 2 single, 20 somethings for a fabulous year, but I knew from the minute Jamie set foot back on American soil that she wasn't here to stay. She wasn't finished with Australia yet, and I know my bestie: she's an adventurer who's set on making her dreams a reality. This is, by far, one of Jamie's qualities that I most respect, envy and admire. So, the day Jamie told me she'd applied for grad school back in AU I wasn't the least bit surprised. Sad, yes, but mostly happy for her.

James has been back in AU for a month now and she's loving it! I love hearing about all of her adventures and am so thankful for Facebook, email and Skype because they allow me to still be a part of my best friend's life (and she a part of mine) even though she is across the world from me. I love that she finally started a blog for all of her travel adventures (check it out here); and I love that reading about her time in AU is making me actually want to visit the country, not just the place where my best friend currently resides. Yes, visiting my bestie is still my main reason, as I said before, but at least now I have a growing appreciate for the country itself. I actually desire to experience the adventures the country has to offer.

(stolen from Jamie)

"The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart."

~Elizabeth Foley

7 comments:

  1. This literally made me cry. :/

    I missssssssss you!

    ReplyDelete
  2. YEY!! WE changed your mind!! haha. To be honest, I only went to NZ over Europe to study abroad because they speak English...and it is so far away and $$$ to get there. I figured I could be in Europe in 6 hours...but for studying abroad, it was best to go the furthest away from home. :) I assumed I would never have the money to travel back there again after college! haha. that was before I married a Kiwi! Now, that is the only place we seem to go....although we both really want to go to Europe. Andrew has never been. I went to France in HS..but I slacked on my French in college...so that was a no go for me! :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. oh. and funny. When I opened your blog to read Andrew is watching International House Hunters right now. ANd the family is moving from AU to NZ.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Awwwwww, it's so hard living away from your bestie. I SO get that!

    ReplyDelete
  5. This sounds wonderful. Unfortunately for me, I am without a best friend right now. I have my four wonderful sisters and my boyfriend, but I haven't had a best friend since my old bestie and I had a falling out back in 2008. I'm looking forward to going to college in the fall and making new friends there. :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. this is a great story... i spent a month in South Victoria when I was 16 and it was an amazing experience. It is truly a beautiful country.

    ps thank you for visiting my blog, I am so happy to have found yours.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Awww...this made me so sad. I can't imagine living apart from my bestie either; I think it would take me forever to adjust to such a situation. Beautiful quote, by the way. :)

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by!