It's time to play the waiting game

We are so close it hurts.  

We are currently on hour 19 of travel and our buts our getting kicked by our heavy eyelids. With minimal sleep on the flights and the major change over during our first flight it is currently 2 pm in Toronto, but 6 pm where we are now (Lisbon). With only a few hours of sleep, a couple of crappy air plane meals and one over prices panini we are on to our final flight of the evening. Upon arriving at our final destination, all that is left to do is more running around... I am not complaining in the slightest, I am beyond excited for this trip, however I've hit the point where my mind is excited, and my body is saying  "awe hell no."  

And to give this little voyage a cherry ontop (or in this case a tomato) following the few hours of sleep we do get tonight we will be abruptly woken up by a mountain of tomatoes being chucked at our faces.  Welcome to the tomatina everyone! It's going to be hell and it's going to hurt... But when in Spain right ? At least we'll get a Bloody Mary out of it haha. 

Be prepared for no pictures from this event... I might be bringing a go pro but by the sounds of this event it is like one giant mosh Pitt... Hey maybe I'll be able to knock one off the bucket list and crowd surf the tomato sauce ... Or just make a giant tomato slip n slide ... Either makes me super excited just thinking about it haha 

For now I bid you a dieu ... If that's even how you spell it (at this point my brain is mush) 

Keep an eye out for more updates. 

Get ready for take off

Oh my gosh!!!  110 days turned to 1 day and then 1 minute until boarding way too fast! I must have unpacked and repacked my knapsack at least 7 times...once for every day is was home.  I thought it was helping by taking at least one article of clothing out everyday until we left, but when it came time to weigh my bag at check in, mine of course was the heaviest. I'm traveling with 5 massive men... How is it that the smallest person on this trip is carrying the most baggage.  Looks like I'll be banned from shopping for a while.  

So we get to our gate say our goodbyes and then it all begins to set in... My feet will not touch Canadian soil for a whole year. How did this happen? After a stressful day running around attempting to inform OHIP that I'll be out of the country for at least a year (word of advice do this well I'm advance, and if your from Toronto go to service Ontario across from Islington station, or 777 Bay Street... Apparently they're the only people on earth who are able to accommodate this request) I came home to the strongest cocktail my dad could make, one last dinner with my family and then that was it. I was moved out and on an airplane with my entire life packed into 55L .... And a carry on. 

I can't wait to see where this trip takes me. All the amazing people I will meet, beautiful views and mouthwatering foods just sounds like a little slice of heaven. 

Keep an eye out for more posts to come. 

For now here's a quick snap of my view during take off and all the little lights that have made up our lives over the past 22 years. 

The Final Rush

It's official... we are now in the final laps of the race to leave. For the next 8 days I will be working all day everyday.. attempting to move out of my house and back to my parents and saying my final goodbyes to the people here! I remember when I first started telling people my plan at the beginning of summer and everyone kept telling me I have so much time to plan. I knew there was time but with the combination of everyones schedules we really didn't. Now there is only 20 days left!!!! GAHHH
I think the worst part of all of this will be packing... how the heck will I fit all the clothes at my house and my parents house into one small backpack that I don't even have yet! Eeeek!
Once I move home I have exactly 10 days to do all the final touches and get my butt on a plane! I can't wait but I'm also super nervous! Wish me luck and let me know if there is ANYTHING I should think about for last minute needs!

WOOO HOO! 20 days and counting

Living up my last weeks

The past couple of days I have spent my time surrounded by friends, food, booze, toys and a gorgeous view. My roommates and I went up to my cottage and spent our few days off work with loads of water sports and funny events. There was no need for tv or cellphones (besides to take pictures), we just sat and enjoyed the view. With only 6 weeks left in this beautiful country, I'm beginning to realize what I'll be leaving behind. Yes I am beyond excited to explore many other countries and adapt to their culture and all the beautiful things they offer. However, things like friends, my cottage and family are definitely things I will miss. I mean how can I go without this view in the mornings?! 

It was a wonderful couple of days and I am happy that I've been able to spend some time up at this beautiful place while I'm still in the country. I can't believe how fast this trip is approaching. I have no time to see what I need to see, pack and prepare to live out of only a backpack!  I'm definitely going to need some coaching. 

That's all for now.. Sorry for the long gap since my last post. 

Au Pair in the air

hehe my rhyming is amazing I know... but the title comes for a reason. As mentioned in my previous post I am going to be traveling around Europe with a few friends from my high school. Since I am the only one with an Italian citizenship and desire to actually live in Europe for a while, after my four months of travel I am hoping to find a job. With this in mind, I figured the best way to get my grounds, learn the language and adjust to my surroundings would be to au pair.
Unfortunately, so far it has been like a dating site that has gone wrong. I made my profile and sent many host families a message, however, many of them are looking for a minimum stay of A YEAR! Yes, I mean that would be awesome, you basically become one of the family.. but I don't know if I can commit myself to a family for a year based on ... essentially a dating profile haha
With all the basic questions answered (how many kids ..1, 2, 3, do you smoke yes/no, have you had an au pair before yes/no) it has come down to how much information you can slam into one e-mail about yourself and the family you are attempting to live with.
As of right now I have yet to find my perfect match :( unfortunately, the one host family I was really looking forward to hearing about found an au pair before I even got a chance to reply. So ... the hunt continues and hopefully I find my magical family soon... but for now all that I know is that au pair is in the air.

The objective - do not spend!

In light of the fact that I have not posted on here for a while, I thought I would start to use this blog as my public version of my travel journal. A couple months ago, a few of my friends from high school and I booked a flight to Europe! Yay!!

As soon as I saw the message "pack your bags" everything became real! I have been planning this trip since I first walked into University. Having my life planned to a T I knew that the day I graduated I wanted to book a trip to Europe, learn the Italian language and study culinary while I was there. By the time graduation day finally came, I realized that I have no idea what I want to do with my life. With everything in my mind changed, one thing stayed the same, and that was the fact that my butt was going to be in Europe no matter what! 

After booking my flight, all my money and attention was based on what I will need for Europe. Shopping became a game where the objective was to only purchase what could fit in a backpack. Of course with my addiction and the fact that I have like 15 closets.. this simple task became much more complicated. It is now May 27th and I'll be in the air as of August 25th, so from here on out it is SAVE SAVE SAVE.... we'll see how this goes. 

Reading week

My reading week just passed a couple of weeks ago and TBH, I did literally nothing but work my butt off! Even though I was working all week, I did get a couple of days during family day weekend to head up to my cottage (which I haven't been to since September!). I was so happy to finally be going back up and I was bringing my long time friend with me who I haven't seen in forever! As always the weekend was spent drinking, eating, snowboarding, lounging and watching movies.. exactly what I needed.