Hop. Skip. Crump.: August 2009

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Go. Be. See. Do.

“Go be that starving Artist you’re afraid to be.

Open up that journal and get poetic finally.

Volunteer.

Suck it up and travel.

You were not born here to work and pay taxes.

You were put here to be part of a vast organism to explore and create.

Stop putting it off.

The world has much more to offer than what’s on 15 televisions at TGI Fridays.

Take pictures.

Scare people.

Shake up the scene.

Be the change you want to see in the world.

You’ll thank yourself for it.”

-Jason Mraz

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Look out Weekend, here I come ...

Agenda for the weekend:

Saturday:

Drinks with a someone I have been introduced to via facebook - from Norwegian Roy in Melbourne. I am meeting a Norwegian guy called Sverre, who is a graphic designer here in Amsterdam, but he once lived and worked in Adelaide. Sverre has been really nice so far, offering me a few links about houses and rooms and film festivals, but I couldn't meet him til now because I have been in Spain. Drinks at noon, before he heads off to a concert.

There are a really nice group of english girls in the dorm I am staying in. They are about my age and there are about 5 of them, and they are really sweet. Might go out with them later tonight, they invited me last night, but I was too tired after searching for /making my way to the office that my immigration interview was going to take place. It was outside of Amsterdam, near the airport, in a place called Hoofddorp. I saw a lot of corporations in that area - Price Waterhouse Coopers, and Loreal etc etc.

Immigration were really nice, gave me my sticker in my passport, so now I can search for work, but still need to get a tax file number.

Good thing I didn't go out last night - major thunderstorm. Too much to deal with after a big day.

Sunday:

Tim O. from Adelaide got in touch with me last night... he's in New York at the moment, but he arrives in Amsterdam tomorrow. Woot Woot. Another friend to keep me company while I am here. You wouldn't believe how much it means to me that I have had a good long run of people that I know coming in and out of my life at this moment in time.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened...

Like I said in a previous post, every Spanish town has it's own festival to celebrate their patron saint. ("Festa Major" - meaning "Major Festival".) Sitges is a little seaside town, about 20 minutes drive from Barcelona, who's patron saint is Bartholomew. Technically you could travel Spain for a month and get amongst a festival nearly every day for every little town you may happen to stop at.

August 23rd is the day of annual festival. The reason that we came to Sitges is because our friends, Sarah and Georgina met two Spanish guys from Sitges about 6 years ago, when they first travelled Europe. These two little ladies lived with Miguel and Alex in Dublin and have forever been BFF.

A posse of 11 of us rented a villa for a week in the town centre, and lazed by the pool, drank a lot, and relaxed. We were all in various stages of travel - some coming from London on their way to do some backpacking, some on their way back to Sydney, some arriving in Europe to start new lives, some en route back to London from New York, some just from Sydney and London to be with us. We were a mixed bunch of friends, some of us had known each other a while, or only met once or twice, some for the first time. We left firm friends after such an awesome week. On Saturday, we bought matching dark blue tee shirts, as is the custom for friends attending the festival together that read; "Diables de Sitges " - literally, the Devils of Sitges.

Miguel and Alex and their girlfriends and friends all had tee shirts made, as they do every year. Their's said : "FM09 - Be lost" - designed around the Sitges town flag in white and red. So everybody, young and old, families, and friends, walk around the main street together in matching tee shirts - for bonding reasons and reasons of practicality. When there are thousands of people in a small street, it makes it easy to spot lost little souls. Also, some groups of friends get their names printed on the back of their tee shirts.

Alex and Miguel have a longstanding tradition with their BFFs, breakfast in the morning together before making their way to the main street of the city to watch the parade and carry on. Then, once the parade is all over, everybody goes home for a siesta, and then meets for the fireworks on the beach and more party times.

Everything about this day was amazing, there was nothing but love, joy and pride in the air; pride for city and culture, love for new friends and old friends and general togertherness, joy for being gifted with such an awesome day, and most of all - crazy fun times.

When everybody left the Villa on Wednesday, George, Tim, and Steph and I stayed, as we got one night free in the Villa. The feeling of emptiness and sadness that washed over me was something I had never felt before - I couldn't believe one incredible week had passed with such a big gang of us, and it was all over - it felt like a mega bad hangover was just setting in. So we... I mean.. I... tried to drink away the emptiness. Needless to say, that didn't quite work.

I left Sitges yesterday, and came back to Amsterdam, with hope that an experience like that wouldn't be isolated, that it would happen again some day soon, and in the meantime, soldiering on and focusing on making my own way, with a new sense of vigour and spirit.

Just arrived - eager to create some chaos, but waiting quietly to get to our Villa

Sitges, palm trees, beaches, sunshine, friends ... a recipe for bliss

Pretty much where we were all week... poolside

Casa Lola

The lifeblood of the holiday

Hanging outside the Villa

George: Feel my Chin!
Me: No! Gross!
George: Cmon Rani, I was going to pluck a splinter out of your infected foot - NOW FEEL MY CHIN!!
Me: Ewwww.... ok.... EWWWWWWW