Friday, November 25, 2011

Aussie Land


Sofi at the Fremantle harbour
Dear Lulu,

I feel like I start every letter to you apologizing for how long it has taken me to write.  Well, again I am saying sorry for taking so long.  I have been busy settling into life here in Australia.  It has been a mix of emotions and a little hard work and a lot of patience, but I am finally snug and happy in my new house with a good job and a lot of great new friends.  Let me start from the beginning though, it has been over a month since I last wrote you and a lot has happened.

Well last you heard I was saying sorrowful farewells to my New Zealand crew and boarding a plane for Sydney.  It was a hard goodbye but seeing Sofi again at the Sydney airport cheered me up instantly.  It was so nice to see her again.  We were both traveling much heavier this time around, since we were both anticipating staying and working in a city.  However,  after our first few days in Sydney with all our extra clothes and shoes we were longing for our lighter and simpler backpacking ways.  Oh well, I am going to be bringing most of the extra clothes I brought back when I come for Christmas.  Sydney was fun.  It was a nice city with some cool little neighborhoods, but you know how I feel about cities...just another large bunching of buildings, shops, and eateries.  I did enjoy the eateries though!  Sofi and I spent most of our time there wandering around the city and cooking together and researching where we wanted to live for the next 6 months of our lives.  When we finally decided on Perth our researching then shifted to trying to find a job and a place to live.
Sofi at the Sydney Opera House

Well, to make a long story short, we couldn't really accomplish too much until we got to Perth.   We managed to couch surf for the first couple of days and find a house to rent within two days of arriving!  It is in a great location just outside of Fremantle(our favorite part of Perth) has a great outside patio and grill, a nice size kitchen (big plus!) and Sofi and I have our own rooms!  It was pretty perfect for us and our other flatmate is really nice as well.  We were moved in within our first week of arriving!  Now we just needed to find a job.  We both had pretty set ideas of what we wanted to do for work.  I was determined to stay out of retail, while Sofi was determined to get into retail.  We both were against a restaurant job, but when our other options fell through and we were both feeling a bit defeated, our flatmate got us a trail at his friend's beach front restaurant.  We both went having huge reservations about the place but after the first day we were both happy and knew we had found where we were suppose to be.  It is really laid back while still being fast paced so the days go by fast.  Plus everyone that works there is really nice. 
The Crew behind the bar at Salt

So Salt on the Beach has become our second home.  We seem to always be there.  If we aren't working then we are hanging out at the beach just in front of the restaurant or we are there teaching yoga in the mornings and if we aren't there then we are probably hanging out with people from work.  I guess you could say we like it there.  I can't believe Sofi and I are teaching yoga for the staff there.  It started out as a joke but the owner of the restaurant caught wind of the idea and got excited about it.  He made fliers and posted them on the employee boards in the restaurant.  So Sofi and I each teach a class once a week.  It is great getting the experience teaching.  I am learning a lot and gaining confidence as a teacher.  Our little classes have started growing too.  Last class I think there were around 10 people and each time new people join.  Even the owners are coming.  Crazy... who would have thought.
Fremantle Market

Walking through the streets of fremantle

Walking along the coast in Fremantle

Lots and lots of beer to taste in Margaret River!!

Apart from work we have done a little exploring around the city and love hanging around in Fremantle and going to the weekend markets.  Fremantle is the perfect blend of hippy meets surfer beach bum with a cool artsy flair.  Sofi and I fell in love with it the second we stepped off the train.  We have also gone on a mini road trip down to the wine region of Margaret River.  We had a day of tasting!  We tried everything from cheeses to olive oils to wine and beer!  It was a great day driving and tasting through amazingly beautiful countryside.  I think one of my highlights though was getting to see kangaroo on the side of the road just hanging out and eating.  One of my first authentic aussie experiences... or one of my first stereotypical and cliche aussie moments... whichever, I still thought it was really cool.

Well, that is all for now.  I have a little more than a week left before I head to Mexico to see you and Jeannette and Natalie!  Hope all is well and I can't wait to see you!

Love,
Kiki
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