Australia! My 22nd birthday and Couch Surfing

So I finally got to fulfil one of my biggest dreams ever. I got to go to AUSTRALIA!!!
So, so, so happy about it!
I decided to go, finally after looking randomly at flight prices for the last five years or so.. Hah! I didn't even know what I was going to do there when I bought it! I just saw some cheap flight and thought I really want to go, like now, why wait anymore?
I have the money for the flight now, the rest I can manage to save up in what was it, like three months or something..?

And I did, I bought the ticket, applied for a visa, and new credit cards just to be safe, which was the most clever thing I did as I was so stupid while travelling to actually lose two cards while I was out..I blame it on the wallet I had clumsily sewn for my exams.. I have bought a new one now so it won't happen again.. I'm clumsy.. I know!

Anyway..I did buy the ticket and finished all exams at uni by the 6th of December. My flight was leaving Kjevik airport on the 12th. I had packed and repacked my backpack several times. Knew that I didn't really have the money to buy too much clothes there so I had to bring most of it. And it's hard to pack, when you don't really know what you might do! Go rock climbing, swimming, fancy restaurants,  clubbing, couch surfing etc.

Not my cubes but you get the drift!

I found this tip somewhere about packing in so called "packing cubes" or compressing bags so you get more space and organising in your backpack. They are the best invention ever! My stuff was organised in my backpack while using them and didn't wrinkle. Awesome!


12.-14.12.2013

Travelled for a total of 34 hours approximately, and met a Norwegian guy at the airport in Amsterdam who was going the same way I was, we sat next to each other on the flight, and if it wasn't for him, I probably wouldn't have slept at all for the 11-12 hours we were on that plane! It was so painful at times!
On the next flight from South Korea I got a window seat and no one next to me for 10 hours! Slept for 6 or so, so good compared to the other flight..
I felt like I looked like a troll when I arrived at the airport in Brisbane at 6.40am local time. I was wondering what to do with all the chocolate and some caviar I had brought with me for the couch surfing hosts and my friends and their families… Turned out I didn't need to declare anything, which was great!

My friend Daniel, who I met while travelling to Split last summer with Helene, picked me up at the airport in Brisbane and drove me to his house where I met his family and got to finally take a shower, which was long longed for! I started to feel a bit funny to my stomach, but thought it was just that I hadn't really eaten anything since 4/5am. Though it turned out that I had caught some bug or something on the plane. Just to say, it wasn't very pleasant and it was quite embarrassing to be rushing to the toilet to throw up, when you just met the folks you're staying with. Though this doesn't top my most embarrassing first impression…
I didn't get to taste what looked like a really delicious Aussie BBQ, which they had planned for me, talk about feeling sorry for not wanting to waist good food!


15.-17.12.2013

Since I was feeling a bit better, Daniel took me on a short road trip to Cedar Creek not far from where he lives. We parked by the road and walked for a bit to get to a good spot to go swimming. It was really beautiful, reminded me a bit of some places in Norway in summer, but the nature was so much more exotic.

Was so wonderful to get some warm sun again!

Later that night I went to stay with my first couch surfing host, Skye and her family. She had stayed with my brother in Stavanger many years ago and looked forward to meeting me. They were very hospitable and lent me their house key and told me that I could eat and feel at home while they went for work during the day.

I spent the next days looking around in Brisbane, doing some sight seeing, going up in the wheel of Brisbane, shopping for an Aussie sim-card and chilling at South Bank, there is an artificial beach by the Brisbane river there. South Bank is overlooking one of the campuses of Queensland University of Technology (QUT), the university I really wanted to make an exchange to when I read about it last time I attended UiA three years ago. I also attended some Christmas/Santa party with Skye and her family so that her son Jaden could get a gift from Santa.

QUT campus, seen from South Bank

South Bank Parkland's river promenade

Brisbane wheel at South Bank

On the 17th of December I changed hosts. I went to live with Vanessa and her housemates at Rocklea for three nights. I had the first day where I felt I could eat anything without getting sick so it was a great day, with drinks at a South Bank restaurant and delicious homemade vegan enchiladas for dinner. The hosts, Vanessa her boyfriend at the time and her little sister Martina were so great to be with!


18.12.13 = My BIRTHDAY! Woo! 

I woke up and went out of my room to be greeted by Vanessa and Martina who greeted me with birthday wishes and a cute card. Made the start of my birthday truly great! During the day I went to the Museum and Art Gallery in Brisbane and to the Science Museum. Saw some works by Pissarro and Picasso which made me a bit starstruck again like I was in Copenhagen. I learnt that in Queensland they have a cockroach the size of a big hamster which  weighs the same as two house mice !! Would NOT like to see that beast in real life!

That night we went out for dinner and drinks with some of  Vanessas friends, Amilia and Josh at a Lebanese at West End and then we went to some clubs at Fortitude Valley, or as the locals called it "the Valley". We spent most of the night at  The Beat, a gay bar with performing drag queens and jelly wrestling. I payed for the taxi home for me and Vanessa and was surprised by how cheap it was, as we drove for quite a while, about 33 AUD which makes about 182 Norwegian kroners, which is less than what I pay to get home from a night out in Arendal, Norway. The day was so much fun! Haven't had that much fun on my birthday in years, thanks to all the great people that were with me.

Amilia, Vanessa and me

Amilia, me and Josh

19.-20.12.13

I spent the next day at the house in Rocklea, took a long walk and jog with the two dogs of my hosts, Rocky and Punk. Was really lovely to do some ordinary stuff like going for a dog walk, missed Stipe a lot at that moment. The next day Martina gave me a lift into the Central Station and I took a train to meet Daniel somewhere near Warner to go with him on a trip up the coast to Noosa.

Johanne Teresie

December in all its glory! Without snow this year... but with a great birthday!

So it’s been a while since my last post because so much has been going on. And as I said in the end last time, I had an essay to write for Hald. I managed to finish it on time for Saturday the 10^th and celebrated it by having a performance on the Christmas show at College Protestant the same evening.

The Christmas Show at College

It was so great! We performed the drama piece for the song Everything by Lifehouse, and it went really great! And I loved being on stage again. I really miss my lessons from last year now, and I’m definitely not giving up on acting. So I wonder what I'm going to do next year when I'm back in Norway...!

 I have otherwise been occupied by work at the orphanage and at Centre Socio Ménager. I have had vocabulary tests and read A Christmas Carol and afterwords sang some Christmas songs with the kids at Rainbow orphanage. The kids there are really joyful and always come running towards the car when we come and when we are leaving, it's fun to work there!

My favourite film!

For those of you who do not know it, my birthday is in December, and as I turned 20 this year it could not go by unnoticed. Or at least I didn't want it to. So last weekend was fabulous! It started great at Friday evening when we had a second movie night, with sweet and salty popcorn, makkala and lots of soda. And for once Kristian managed to make a successful and good tasting chocolate pudding! Yummy!
You see usually it's not so puddingy and more cocoaish and not stiff at all, so some things went more right than wrong this weekend!


That was not the only thing that went alright when it comes to cooking, Sara-Jeanette and I made taco for supper which we were sharing together with Sandra, Helene and Delphine. We had a wonderful evening with good talks about so many interesting things, we watched my favourite film, "The Holiday" on big screen in our little, cold, but cosy living room with good sound and a really good cake that our housekeeper made for me! It was a really brilliant evening! 


On the actual day of my 20th birthday (the 18th of December) we were going to sing with Gospel Singers at a Christmas concert for the orphans in Ngaoundéré. And I had been given the task to sing a duet together with one of the African boys to a Norwegian Christmas song. It was so much fun! And we had arranged it so that all the members in the choir had brought a little gift which was given to the small orphans who were there and listened to us "singing the Christmas time in" as we sang "En stjerne skinner i natt" - "... nå ringes julen inn." Which also is my favourite Christmas song!

Singing "En stjerne skinner i natt" with Gospel Singers

So why on earth would we sing a Norwegian Christmas song in an African choir you may be sitting there and asking your self. Well I will tell you. In this particular choir there is a tradition that consists of the members teaching each other songs in their native languages, and then performing them on the different concerts they have. This is natural as there is around 220 languages here in Cameroon! So last year the Norwegians who were here teached then "Englene" as they call the song as that is the first word in the refrain.

After the concert we were supposed to have a Christmas party with the choir, but everyone were too tired so it was postponed to the following evening instead.
We had little to do that day too so most of the morning was spent either in bed or on a sunbed by the pool together with a good book or some music in the ear. When the clock was close to turning 18 o'clock we got ready to go over to Erik Sandvik, or "Grandpère" as they call him here, where the party was being held.

"Grandpère" giving a speech at the Christmas party with G.S.

Thinking we were a bit late (18:15) we felt a bit bad, but as we turned the corner of his house and looked into his garden there wasn't a soul to be seen. Just a bunch of empty chairs and a bit annoyed choir leader frantically trying to call the members who did not show up on time.
We sat there and waited for half an hour. But still no one was there but us Norwegians and the leader. So therefore SJ and I went back to our house to warm up the pizza we were bringing to the shared meal later. When we returned it was almost eight o'clock and most of the seats were taken now, but there was still coming new arrivals for at least an hour after us. 
The members in the choir are really a good example of the "classic" "African-time phenomenon"! And the leaders point it out on every single practise we have, but still no change.
The evening went by with a lot of singing, dancing, eating and some words from the Bible too. After some time outside in the cold, we went inside and we watched the film called "Facing The Giants". A really good and inspirational Christian film. While everyone payed attention to the film some of the leaders went around and collected and handed out gifts to everyone. We had brought one gift each which was given to an other member in the choir, a really nice tradition they have each Christmas. I have no idea who got my gift or who gave me the one I got. But I was really glad when I opened mine and it had a nice ring inside which actually fitted my small fingers. So nice to see how a small gesture like this can make so many smile a bit more.


Thank you all for a really wonderful birthday weekend, and for making it a memorable one too! Now I'm ready for the Christmas spirit and joy to fill me!


Johanne Teresie