November 14, 2014
The day I became unemployed; this was my last day at work. I had dreamt of this day for quite some time as the excitement for the trip that was growing near. My day was very surreal and bittersweet – saying goodbyes to my friends and colleagues that I’ve gotten to know over the past few years. Work is a place you spend just as much time, if not more, than at home – so naturally those you work with become like a second family. I’ll truly miss working alongside such wonderful people, some of which are friends that I know I will hold onto for life. I booked two hours off at the end of my shift, so I ended up feeling like I didn’t have enough time to properly say goodbye to everyone I wanted to. If you feel like you’re one of those people, I am truly sorry!
As is tradition in my department, a potluck was had and very generous and thoughtful gifts and farewell cards were presented to me in addition to some heartfelt speeches that left me near tears. Thanks to everybody’s generosity, I was able to purchase a practical item with the gift card I received – a roomy and sturdy Herschel backpack which has been very well used so far!
To cap the day off, I was treated to a lovely dinner at Joey’s at Yorkdale followed by a screening of Nightcrawler with my girls. The movie was disappointing but we had so much fun nonetheless and spent too much time getting carried away at a gigantic photobooth taking wacky pictures.
From this day forward, I had a week set aside before my departure in order to get things finalized and sorted, including the dreaded task of packing. Now did I use this week effectively? Not at all…in typical Kat fashion I left all the important things last minute. After all, I was too busy going doing last minute shopping, squeezing some last minute Ultimate Frisbee games, getting a haircut, picking up my engagement ring, and spending some quality time with loved ones.
The morning of the day before my flight, I managed to accomplish one hour of packing before heading out to an Ultimate Frisbee tournament (it was for those that volunteered for the league I play on and was free, so naturally I had to go). It turns out I arrived an hour too early which added to my disappointment for not packing in advance. The tournament lasted for three hours and immediately afterwards I was whisked away to meet The Entouraj (a nickname for a group of friends that consists of Raj, Mark, Paolo and Cody) for some All You Can Eat sushi. By the time I got home, it was late in the evening. At this point I decided there was no chance I would be able to pack and get some sleep, so a tough decision had to be made – I had to forgo the sleep. I was frantically packing for hours and hours, which is like cramming before a big test – there’s just too much to remember in such little time and it is definitely not recommended. It was no easy task – one that I was clearly putting off since I couldn’t wrap my head around how one would pack for a trip that lasts several months with no foreseeable end date. That being said, I did it! I finished around 4 am which is right around the time to leave for the drive to the airport, which leads me to the next chapter…
November 23rd, 2015
With no sleep, Cody and I commenced our drive to Pearson Airport. Taking heed to the custom of international flights, we aimed to be at the airport three hours before the flight – which in this case was 5 am as takeoff was slated for 8 am. The sky was still dark and Pearson was less busy as usual and eerily quiet. Cody dropped me off at Terminal 1 to park his car. While waiting, reality had finally hit me and so did the emotions. Saying goodbye was extremely difficult. This is someone I have spent almost every single day with for over 5 years. Being apart for any longer than a week is not a familiar feeling. I looked back as I walked through the U.S. entry point gate – the point of no return. This was it. I took my first few steps through a winding queue towards the security checkpoint where a customs employee was singing and cheerfully greeting passengers – way too jubilant given the time of day. This cheered me up a little bit.
YYZ -> SFO
In what seemed like no time, I was on the plane (YES! A window seat!) and had taken off on the first of three flights in two days. This one was “only” six hours. My first destination: San Francisco! I was lucky enough to have a 9 hour layover, so prior to the trip I had done some research to find pointers on how to effectively use that time. SFO is conveniently located close to the city so that makes it easy to pay a quick visit, however the airport is packed full of things to do. It has a museum, aquarium, shopping mall, mini versions of San Fran’s famous restaurants, even a mini hotel. But with my abundance of time, I seized the opportunity to be a little adventurous and check one city off my bucket list. So, as soon as I landed I dropped off my large carry-on bag and took the conveniently located BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) train and on the advice of several websites, got off at Embarcadero. Once I officially stepped foot onto San Francisco soil, the city became my playground! I started to wander. I walked to the Ferry Building and since at this point I had been up for almost 24 hours I went for a much needed hit of caffeine at Peet’s Coffee. I sat at the pier for a bit, taking in the Pacific Ocean for the first time in almost two decades. Coffee in hand, I began walking down the Embarcadero, past all the piers including the famous Pier 39, noted for it’s resident sea lions. If you couldn’t see them as you were approaching, you could definitely hear them and…smell them. They were joyous, loud and proud! And in the distance, you can see the picturesque island upon where Alcatraz sits. I continued wandering towards Fisherman’s Wharf, a highly tourist-dense area. Loads of shops, restaurants, and galleries. I began to see the iconic rusty beauty that is the Golden Gate bridge in the far distance. Knowing I possibly would never be able to come back again, I began an arduous trek in the general direction of the bridge. I walked along beaches, parks, boardwalks, roads that were lined with beautiful sea-side homes. Every time I passed a block, I could see a feature of San Francisco that it is well known for: it’s hilly streets. It looked like the streets were coming up like a tidal wave. I could not imagine what it would be like to walk/bike up one of those things. The walk was made fresh by the crisp, salty sea breeze which energized me to keep going. After about 2 hours, I was there! I couldn’t believe my eyes, the giant bridge stood before me with such grandness – it is much larger than I had imagined! People gathered around to take pictures of the beautiful sight – not only was the bridge itself glorious but the sea, the islands, the beach, it all came together for a perfect photo-op. Even a pelican stopped to admire. After soaking in the view, I felt hunger pangs so I stopped by the Warming Hut nearby for some vegetarian chili and a sandwich. That hit the spot!
I checked my phone and the time was around 4 pm. I started to get nervous as I was supposed to be back at the airport to catch my 7:45 pm flight. Due to my limited resources (read: no internet or map) I had no idea where I was in relation to a BART station. I asked a local walking his dog and he pointed out that I was quite a ways away and that I would be pressed for time getting back. My only route back would be to take 2 free shuttle buses – none of which I knew where the stops were as they weren’t marked. The man I spoke to recommended a call a cab via Uber and that would take around an hour and a half with the heavy traffic the city usually sees. I tried activating my data, paying no mind to the extra charges I would incur but being outside the limited WIND mobile network, I had absolutely no service…damn. Then, my savior! Lucky for me, I saw a shuttle whiz by, so I ran to it and hopped on! I had a conversation with the extremely nice and helpful bus driver who graciously offered to help me get back to the airport on time even though he was going to be on break. He quickly drove me to the stop where the next shuttle bus was to pick me up from. Then, heart-breakingly, the other shuttle drove past us. The next one was only scheduled in 30 minutes! Eek! The driver then did the unexpected and called the bus driver ahead of us and asked him to stop and wait for me. Ever so thankful, I ran off towards the idling bus. The ride provided a nice glimpse of the city centre. In record time, I was back on the BART and on my way to take the longest flight of my life – over 13 hours to Auckland, New Zealand. I was amused and knew it was a good sign that the airplane had a giant ad for The Hobbit printed on it.
SFO -> AKL
This flight was quite a haul. At least this time I had someone to talk to! To the left of me in the aisle seat was Ben, a 20-something from Auckland. He was coming back from a conference in San Francisco. He’s a young professional in the Venture Capital line of business. Being a Kiwi and having tons of flight experience, he forewarned me about the safety video that was about to come on. Much to my delight, it was star-studded, Middle Earth themed, and quite cute and clever. See it below.
With that aside, I had a long flight to endure. The on-board entertainment provided by Air New Zealand was thorough and fantastic. A wide selection of music, TV shows, movies, games, flight itinerary, meal schedule & menu, ordering options, etc. You could be distracted for months! I had a hard time deciding my choice of entertainment. I must have looked over the movie section several times before deciding on a movie I’ve heard a lot of good buzz about: Boyhood. An original film idea – about a boy growing up in a broken family – it was filmed over the course of 12 years and you can watch the main character Mason and his sister age right before your eyes. The movie was really well done, touching, and well worth the watch. Ben’s choice was very appropriately Lord Of The Rings (he almost watched the entire trilogy). In between movies, TV shows, and bland vegetarian airline food, I made the futile attempt to get some rest. I don’t know if it’s the constant turbulence, the lack of legroom, or the aircraft noises, but I can never sleep on flights. Thus continues my streak of being awake.
Towards the end of the flight, I was growing tired and needed a pick me up so I perused the movie section for a light comedy. I landed on Wish I Was Here, a Zack Braff film. It’s about a man in his mid-Thirties trying to find his life’s purpose and by facing tough times head-on he learns a lot about himself. It was a very fitting movie, and coincidentally ended just before we landed in Auckland. And finally, the hard part was over. All I had left was a short layover and a 3 1/2 hour flight to my final destination: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia!
AKL -> MEL
Kia Ora (Hello), New Zealand! I didn’t have enough time to leave the airport so I perused through all the shops. I could tell right away that New Zealand takes pride in it’s natural resources. Tons of honey, sheep products (lanolin, wool, shearling), and native artwork was for sale. This is where I finally felt like I was far away. This part of the world truly felt different. The airport was bright, colourful, and buzzing with early morning flights coming in. While waiting to board for the flight to Melbourne, the NZ Border Protection services agents came by with their dog who took a sniff at everyone. It was my first time seeing this in person! I was kind of hoping someone would get busted, but alas, this did not happen.
After flying a combined 19 hours, the flight to Melbourne went by in the blink of an eye. Or should I say, bleary eye. I still hadn’t any proper sleep. Lots of coffee, yes. The weight of the journey was dawning on me, and the lack of sleep didn’t help. It was becoming a little overwhelming. This is where I truly felt that I was alone. It was just me, like a little fish in a big pond. Or rather a Little Kat in a Big Pond…
Little Kat Big Pond 