Jet lagging

Flying in over Melbourne at 7am

I've touched down on the other side of the world, and I've been here for 24 hours now.

I flew with Qantas with a stopover in Dubai, and the flight was pretty good. It was quiet, so I had a whole row to myself, which was great as it meant I could actually get some sleep! The service was awesome as well - good food and non stop snacks. I watched a few movies, but mostly tried to sleep, so it wasn't much of an ordeal.

None the less, by the time I got off at Melbourne, I was wiped out. They're pretty strict with customs and passport control there, so getting through to baggage reclaim was a bit stressful. I woke up a bit once I saw my aunt and uncle, and actually did quite well during the day, although I was probably a bit spaced out. By 4.30 I was asleep on the sofa, and by 9 I was in bed!

This morning, I got up about 5, and I checked in with everyone in the UK. Today will probably be a pretty lazy day, but I'm so excited to be here and we've got a lot planned.

Although the weather's not brilliant now, we're expecting it to brighten up quite quickly, and Gisborne is such a pretty place that it doesn't matter whether it's sunny or not!

The plan is to go into the city tomorrow, and on Monday, we're going to healesville animal sanctuary, so I'll update Everyone after that.

Stay tuned,

Em

Enter Graduates

Waiting for the ceremony to start... Mortar board and all.

So I feel as though the last two weeks have been about two days. It's like the days are tripping over themselves to get here, and I'm running out of time to get everything done. Since finishing work a week and a half ago, I've spent five days in Devon, (where admittedly, we did a lot of sitting around and watching TV), taken a trip to Cheltenham, graduated and celebrated with my friends, some of whom I won't see again for a long while.

I've started packing my suitcase for Tuesday, and I've also been trying to sell my car, so I feel as though I've been run off my feet! Even though it's been stressful, I've been glad to be keeping busy, although the odd day to relax, write or paint is always nice, especially since I'll probably be even busier very soon.

Graduation was so much fun. Although I was apprehensive about the ceremony, and really nervous, we all had a real blast and it was so great to see everyone one last time. We spent the whole evening in our favourite pub, and even though I don't drink, it was a lot of fun watching everybody get more and more unsteady on my feet. It's a shame I didn't have my camera to hand.

Shaking hands with the Vice Chancellor... or the Pro Chancellor. I didn't know him, anyway.

I was really grateful to Tom, who's putting me up in Singapore in April, for letting me stay overnight in his flat, and we went for coffee and breakfast early the morning after, despite the fact we didn't go to sleep until 2am! It was great to catch up with him too, and the next time I see him will be on the other side of the world.

I was so pleased to have my family around me, and so so proud of all my friends who graduated with me, especially my darling friend Becca, who won the creative writing award for enthusiasm and hard work.

Becca with her award.

My flight to Australia is at 10.30pm on Tuesday, flying from Heathrow, and happily there doesn't appear to be any snow on the forecast. I'm really excited to get going, and although I haven't been able to save as much money as I wanted to, thanks to the generosity of my grandparents, so long as I'm careful, I'll have plenty to keep me going. Expect my next blog from Melbourne, and I'll keep everyone updated!

Roll on Tuesday,

Em

What we do when we go to Sleep

It is rare for me to have what one might consider a 'normal' dream. Okay, so dreams are dreams, and I appreciate that they are never precisely normal. Our subconscious worries, fears and contemplations manifest themselves in strange ways, that more often than not make no sense at all to us.

I'm not a lucid dreamer, but I do believe I have some amount of control over what I dream about... To a certain extent. I wonder if this is down to my distaste for living in reality; I am a fantasy writer after all, so perhaps my subconscious takes note of this and chooses my dreams more carefully. For instance, I haven't had a nightmare for several years (not since I went to Madame Tussaud's and walked through the live museum. Never again.) 

I think this comes down to positivity. I look forward to dreaming, and I don't allow myself to worry myself to sleep. This seems to culminate in the strangest dreams, and sometimes, I manage to pluck the thread of a story out from the complex dream weave of my sleeping mind. Sometimes I dream about stories already written, sometimes about real people who I've known and loved coming back in to my life.

I don't claim to be a expert on dreams, but one thing I have learnt is that my dreams are a sign, and not always in the way you would think. I've learned to take each dream and interpret it individually. If I'm dwelling on something that has been worrying me, I may dream about that - maybe a failed Exam or a missed train. But when I wake up, I am relieved, and in many cases, I know to expect the opposite of my dream.

When my dreams take a turn for the strange... Well there's not a lot I can do about that, except the above. Turn it into a story, which is what I plan to do with last night's dream. Perhaps I will post a sample of what I write in my next blog.

Anyway, the summary of this blog I suppose is to consider taking control of your dreams, and if not, then learn from them, and don't be afraid of what a dream is trying to tell you. Remember that dreams are a part of our minds, so why shouldn't we have say in what we do when we go to sleep?

Stay tuned,

Em

Freaking out

Last year's snow... Let's hope it waits as long this year!

This weekend has been overshadowed by an article I read on Saturday, claiming that all hell is going to break loose in November. Apparently, we are set for a monster winter, due to hit us as early as November. Severe snow storms will affect public transport and cause major disruption... So I'm told.

So my plan is to leave the day before my flight and camp out at the airport. Sounds good, right? I'm afraid, because a few years ago, my brother was supposed to fly to Turkey to visit our dad in March. He never made it to the airport because of the snow, so he never got the money back for his flight. At least if my flight were cancelled, I'll get moved to another flight or get my money back, but if I don't make it to the airport, I won't get anything.

So think sunny thoughts, people. I can't miss my flight!

Argh!

In other news, just a couple of weeks left of work until it's all go. Visit to Exeter in the works, then a last stop in at Cheltenham for Grad. Where is the time going?

Em

Flying high

So I've just had news that the visa office have accepted my application and granted me my 12 month visitors visa! I'm so excited; now I can start getting prepared, without having to worry about undoing all my preparations later!

I can't wait to get going now; my fly date is just over a month away. I'll keep you all updated in the run up, but now I must get to work.

Stay tuned!

Em

Let's go surfing

I'm counting down the days until I climb aboard a big metal cylinder with wings, that by rights, should never make it off the ground. I'm flying half way across the world to Melbourne Australia, and people keep telling me to keep a journal or a blog. These things are all the rage now, so I thought why not give it a go?

Just now, I'm nervously awaiting the acceptance of my visa application. I'm sure it will all be fine, but with my flights booked and my trip planned, I can't help being a little tense. Assuming that all comes through successfully, I'll be flying out on the 12th November, for six months.

Honestly, I'm sure most people think a six month trip with no planned work, funded by savings, is a bit frivolous, especially since it will be my second visit. But the truth is, I don't honestly think I could handle coming out of full time education and going straight into employment with no prospect of new and exciting things to come. Equally, if by some miracle, I could walk straight into a job in a publishing house, traveling would become a distant fantasy. I could hardly turn around in my new job and tell them how I was off across the world for six months.

Anyway, I can't wait to get going, and with any luck, I'll keep my commitment to this shiny new blog, and update anyone who's reading on all my big adventures!

Happy surfing, travellers,

Em