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I was nominated by my boss to write a piece for the office newsletter about my global gallivanting…
I work with a phenomenal team, really. The amount of work they churn out in a short period is truly astonishing. They love a good morning tea and appreciate tolerate my bad jokes. But I’m pretty sure they’re losing patience with me. I’ve discovered, accidentally, how to mildly annoy my work mates.
Turns out I just need to travel, and count some days.
In March, I hit Yangon, Myanmar. Having visited a few years ago while the country was still under the rule of its military dictator, I loved seeing how much the country had changed with its new found freedom. The people were so beautiful, and now so talkative. Great discussions about politics, religion and the Burmese economy raged around me in eateries and restaurants. I trawled through markets and museums, visited temples, palaces and mosques, and ate more barbequed seafood than I’d care to admit.
When I returned to work, I started The Countdown. How many working days until I was off on my next adventure? I thought it was great! A motivating factor for Mondays and my university studies. My work mates weren’t as thrilled, and declared they would be living vicariously through me. No worries, I can take one for the team!
After a while, I announced it was zero working days until my next holiday, and flew to the Torres Strait to camp on Cape York with my family. It was fantastic. I spent the week four wheel driving and bush walking, amongst other things like roasting marshmallows, fishing and checking the under the dunny seat for frogs and/or spiders. My family and I climbed the headland and stood on the very pointy northern bit of Queensland, which was kind of surreal and emotional. It was a trip my parents had planned for a long time.
But then, it was back to work. Only 15 working days on The Countdown this time and I was off to Queenstown. To be honest, this probably wasn’t very fair and my incessant chattering about the New Zealand adventure hardly did me any favours. This is what happens when you make friends with people who have a penchant for destination weddings.
New Zealand was perfect! Amazing! Breath-taking! Queenstown, in case you were curious, is a great place to eat and bar-hop. Craft beer fans, look no further! The wedding was glorious, and I managed to ski for the first time ever without breaking any limbs or causing any calamitous collisions on the beginners run. Hashtag winning. I cruised Milford Sound in absolute blazing sunshine, and spotted penguins, dolphins and fur seals. It could not have been any better (except maybe minus the blizzard that closed the ski fields for a day).
So now I’m back, and my wonderful work mates have moved my desk to its new location in the Magistrates Court. They’re training me in my new role and have been nothing but supportive. I told you, they’re amazing!
… but in case anyone is curious, its 21 working days until I jet off to Bangkok!
