July started out busy at work, since I was still juggling my two jobs at the same time. To be honest I was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed and tired, not only because there was so much work but also because I wasn't really enjoying living alone in Melbourne.
I tried my best to enjoy myself among all the work. In the beginning of the month I spent a lovely Saturday exploring Fitzroy with Mari, whom I met through Oliver's friend last month. It is such a nice neighbourhood with lots to see and definitely deserved a day or two for exploring. We spent the day popping into different kinds of shops and pubs and later in the evening enjoyed a couple of drinks at different roof top bars.
Mari antique shopping in Fitzroy
Bimbo's roof top bar in Fitzroy
Some pub with good live music
The next week we got some really bad news from Finland. One of our two pet rabbits had died overnight. Oliver's brother's family was taking care of them while we were away and the whole family was quite shaken up by the sudden death of Viivi. I got a call from them at work and had to leave the office, because I couldn't handle being around people. It was such a hard thing to accept that our lovely bunny wouldn't be there when we got back home.
RIP Viivi
Feeling down and homesick after the recent events might have sparked my decision of quitting my job in Melbourne and moving to Adelaide. To be honest I had been playing with the idea for a while already, but I felt like I shouldn't quit yet since I had been working in Melbourne for such a short time. I had a really lovely team and I really enjoyed my work. On the other hand my lease in the flat I was staying in was ending in the beginning of August, so I would have had to find a new place to live in on my own. In the end I felt like living in Melbourne without a support network and finding yet another new apartment was all too much for me. Luckily my supervisors at work were really understanding when I told them that I would be leaving in the beginning of August to be with Oliver.
I spent my second long weekend in Adelaide in mid-July having a really nice and laid-back time. Amongst eating out, going for walks, brunch and to the movies, we moved Oliver's stuff to a new house where I would be moving into in a couple of weeks as well. The new house was located in Pooraka, a neighbourhood close to Ollie's work but a bit far from the CBD. It was a really quiet area with not much to do but on the other hand it was cheap and Oliver could walk/bicycle to work in no time. A plus for me was that there were two dogs living in the house as well :)
Sushi boat!
Night cap in a cool bar
Mawson Lakes, where Oliver works at
By the creek
Oliver's new favorite hobby
Did you know drinking beer is allowed in the movies in Oz?
Two satisfied brunch eaters
Our new house in Adelaide
Our room
Time flew by that weekend and I soon found myself sitting in the airplane heading back to Victoria again. Suddenly it was my last month in Melbourne! Because I knew time was running out I got out of the house a bit more to see the city and do stuff I had been meaning to do for a while now. Me and Katherine went to the Queen Victoria Market, where a Winter Market was held on Wednesdays. I also went for after work drinks with Mari to the CBD one evening. I also went to the movies on my own (the first time ever for me!) to see a Norwegian film that was playing as a part of the Scandinavian Film Festival in South Yarra.
The city skyline
The Queen Victoria Market
My dinner: Sri Lankan food
There can never be too much cheese
Delicacies at Queen Victoria Market
At after work drinks with Mari
Strangely we also had frequent visitors in our flat in July, as the cockatoos had became very friendly and popped over quit often to say hello.
On the last weekend of July me and Katherine made a day trip to Philip island, where a colony of Little Penguins resides on. Little Penguins are true to their name the smallest penguin species but the colony on Philip island is the largestLittle Penguins on the Southern Hemisphere. Every evening a 'Penguin Parade' happens where people can see the penguins swimming in from the sea to socialize with their buddies on land. This happens right after sunset and the noise that the penguins keep is pretty unique! A boardwalk has been built to the beach where the penguins reside therefore the visitors get up close with them as they are walking right under them. All in all the island was absolutely beautiful and we had a very satisfactory day enjoying the sun, the wildlife and surprisingly enough a Danish lunch on the island.
Danish lunch in Cowes on Philip island
A jump of joy!
These geese were everywhere
Spot Rosanna!
We also spotted some wallabies
On the Penguin Parade boardwalk before the penguins came
At the Penguin parade waiting for the sun to go down
Oliver
Work was quite uneventful in July and left me with a lot of spare time, which I spent at the gym and also planning our future travels. I had joined a functional training gym in May when I moved to Adelaide, which was very close to my home. I had never done functional training before and started to enjoy a lot.
I ended up booking two volunteer programs through Oceans to Earth- organisation. We chose to participate in the Turtle Rehabilitation and Marine Conservation programs, which both take place on the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Cairns. My mate Aaron had been to the Turtle Rehabilitation centre and enjoyed his time a lot. In addition Rosanna had dreamed of volunteering with turtles ever since her sister worked with them during her travels in Ecuador. We both fancied the idea of giving back to the reef since it was one of the most important attractions for us in Oz.
In the middle of the month Rosanna came to visit me in Adelaide (as she already mentioned above). On two weekends I went to the Scandinavian Film Festival and saw two pretty good films from Norway and Sweden. A complementary drink was even given in the Swedish film since it was the closing night (Finnish people always get excited about free drinks!).
No comments:
Post a Comment