Hey, everyone! For those that don’t know yet… surprise! I am home, sweet home – back in the United States of America. I adored my time in Australia but I am very happy to be home and to spend the next two months spending time with my loved ones.

Final Days in Sydney

After parting ways with John in Canberra, I took the Greyhound back to Sydney. I only had one full day left before flying out of Australia the next morning.

I spent the day running errands. The main mission of the day was to get my final souvenirs for family. I had been checking out a couple of souvenir shops since being in Sydney but there were two spots that had stuff I really liked – Gifts at the Quay and Gifts at The Rocks. They had these little knick knacks of Australian animals – kookaburras, koalas, kangaroos, platypus, wombats, etc. I had seen these souvenirs being sold back in Cairns and am really glad I found another place that was selling them. They seem to be carved out of wood(?). I love them and thought they’d be a perfect gift for my brothers, parents, and nephew.

After getting souvenirs, I had two other side quests for the day. One of them was to get a bubble tea, the other was to get BreadTop.

When I was in Perth, my housemate Kory and I would get bubble teas quite regularly. He would even surprise me by having a pistachio bubble tea waiting in the fridge for me when I got home late from work some nights. It felt like a necessity for my last day in Australia. Unfortunately, the place I went to didn’t have pistachio. Damn it! I got a different flavor.

My other side quest was to get BreadTop. I had been going to BreadTop since I first arrived in Australia. They have these delicious, CHEAP snacks. Almond custard croissants, vegetarian curry buns, honey cheese sticks. I decided to splurge on all three… and it was like $8. I will miss BreadTop!

I didn’t do much else that final day. I sat on a bench near a pond, watching the birds play. Corellas, crows, bin chickens flying around. I went to pack up my things at the hostel and rest for a bit.

I originally was hoping to get a final dinner with Mason but he had something come up last minute. It worked out well because while I would have liked to see him again, something was telling me I needed to be alone on my last full day in Australia. I had grand plans to treat myself to some fancy dinner but in the end, I decided to do it the way I always had – find something cheap and tasty. I went to a Thai place just across the street from my hostel. It did not disappoint! I got a milk tea, curry puffs, and a red curry. So good.

After dinner, I trekked down to the Opera House to hang out on the steps and enjoy the view of downtown Sydney. I listened to music along the way and at times, I got choked up at the idea of leaving Australia. I have truly loved it here – more than I ever could have expected.

My last task of the day was to treat myself to a package of Tim-Tams. Tim-Tams (AKA Timothy Tamathans) are perhaps my favorite Australian sweet. Pavlova is up there, too.

I stopped at a bench to eat the Tim-Tams and called up my parents. They had no idea it was my last night in Australia as I wanted to surprise them. It was business as usual. I was really looking forward to seeing them.

Before long, it was time to go to bed since I had a 10am flight the following morning.

Sydney to San Francisco

At first, everything seemed to be going smoothly. I got to the airport, boarded my flight, and off we went. I expected to cry at some point but it never happened. I suppose, what is there to be sad about? I had the most incredible time in Australia and I’m grateful for the unforgettable year I was able to have.

The first hiccup was when I was checking my bags at the airport. I was told that instead of my bags being moved by crew from my first flight to my second flight, I had to collect them from baggage claim and then re-check them myself. The problem was, I only had a little over an hour for my layover. How was I possibly going to go through customs, collect my bag from baggage claim, re-check them, go through security, and get to the gate all in one hour? I was answered with “ninety minutes is the minimum legal time for connections.” Very reassuring! I was stressing on my flight but I also knew there wasn’t much I could do. I watched some movies and napped a little bit.

Once I’d arrived at San Francisco airport, I rushed to baggage claim. Customs didn’t take very long. It was early in the morning at this point and we were maybe one of the first flights arriving. Luckily. But then, the wait… It was torture to have to wait at baggage claim, watching all of these other bags going around and around the conveyor belt, praying that mine would be next. “I’m running out of time,” I told myself. Damn it! And then… there it was. Finally.

I grabbed my bag and hurried to go check it in again. Fortunately, I didn’t have to start all over at the beginning of the airport. There was a baggage check area for connecting flights specifically. Phew! I stopped and tried to switch the SIM card on my phone now that I was in America again. It was not registering properly. Once my bag was checked, I texted my brother via Wi-Fi and asked him if he could look into it for me.

Then, the final hurdle: security. There was a girl next to me who was full on panicking. She was sweating and constantly looking at the time on her phone. She told one of the attendants that her flight was boarding, could she please jump the line? I was glad I wasn’t quite as stressed as she was.

Another line opened up and I asked if I could jump into that one. They let me. Had I not asked, I probably would have missed my flight. I hurried through security as quickly as I could, then speed-walked to my gate, not even having tied my shoelaces. I made it to the gate nine minutes before it was scheduled to close. Thank God!

I texted my friends, letting them know I made it. It would have been fine if I had to move to a later flight, but I was really hoping to make it in time so I could meet my dear friends Joey and Rob for dinner. Now, I was back on track.

Arriving in Chicago

Once I’d touched down in Chicago, my American SIM card started working again. I collected my baggage (under much less stress this time) and grabbed an Uber to my friend Elliott’s apartment. Elliott was working but buzzed me in remotely.

I took an hour long nap and then got ready to meet Joey and Rob for dinner. As I was making my way to the bus station, I bumped into my friends Rachel and Jake and was able to meet their baby James. How funny, that not even three hours after being in Chicago, I’d run into people I know.

I accidentally had gone to the wrong bus stop and ended up hustling to the red line to make it to dinner in time for our reservations. It was destined to be – the red line was my main mode of transport when I lived in Chicago.

I walked into RPM Italian and was met with huge hugs from Joey and Rob. I was shaking, it was so good to see them again. We were walked to our table, where we spent the next few hours catching up. Rob treated us to an incredible meal. Breadsticks with a cheese dip, arancini, meatballs, vodka rigatoni, and more. And the desserts were amazing! At one point, Joey remarked, “it’s like you never left.” My mom always says – “With some friends, you can go years without seeing one another. But when you get back together, it’s like picking up exactly where you left off.” True.

After dinner, they drove me back to Elliott’s apartment. I ended up crashing – my body had not yet adjusted to being on American time zone again. I was asleep by the time Elliott got home but in the morning I was greeted by one of his classic hugs.

Elliott took me for breakfast in the morning to Ann Sather’s. I wanted a cinnamon bun and I also wanted to rub it in my Australian friend Liam’s face that cinnamon rolls (not SCROLLS) were meant to be eaten warm. I sent Liam a video. After breakfast, the two of us had some errands to run. I was looking for a new pair of shorts, he had to stop at Mariano’s to get ingredients for dinner. I got myself a new belly button ring too lol.

Elliott and I went to the lake for a while. It was a beautiful day and was great to be reunited with Lake Michigan. In the evening, Elliott made buffalo cauliflower tacos, veggie samosas, and for dessert…. Hazel Cake, which is this delicious cake that his mom makes him for his birthday every year. Such a damn good cake!

I also looped in my brother Mike for the the Big Event the following day – surprising my parents and my nephew with my return.

Surprising Family in Michigan

My parents and nephew didn’t yet know I was back in America. My nephew wanted to be surprised… but my mom doesn’t love surprises. Still – this was the only time in my life I could really do something like this: surprise my parents with my return.

My brother Mike and I coordinated timing wise. I would arrive in Michigan a few minutes before him and we would meet up at the dog park near my parents’ house. Elliott and I ended up being a few minutes early so we hung out at the playground, swinging on the swings. I had a few heavy exhales prior to reuniting with my family. “Nervous?” Elliott asked. Yes. “I’m nervous for you!”

As my brother was turning into the parking lot, he beeped his car horn, signaling to me to head to the dog park. I walked over stealthily, watching my brother and his son entering the dog park. I was sneaky enough that Dillan didn’t notice me until I was actually within the gates of the dog park. And then “…Uncle Steve?” He ran over to me and flung his arms around me. He must have given me ten hugs in two minutes. I hugged Mike, too. He told me how good it was to see me and boy was it good to see them.

The next step of the plan was to surprise Mom and Dad. They have had a VERY busy summer… but I just had to surprise them. Mike, Dillan, and I planned to have Dillan show up first. I would lag behind a little bit and then walk up last once Dillan and Mike were inside.

Elliott and I hid behind the garage shed. I asked Elliott to watch – to see when we were good to walk up. I was very excited to see my parents again – it was quite an overpowering feeling.

Then, it was time. My pace was quick and before long, I was at the door. My mom was walking past the door and looked over and spotted me. She started screaming and I started laughing, walking in. She gave me a huge hug and then my dad joined too.

“What happened to three day’s notice?!” They thought they would be picking me up from the airport. I never lied, though! (Fun note: the next door neighbor came to make sure no one was getting murdered after hearing my mom’s scream.)

And just like that, we were reunited. I hadn’t yet seen their new home since they moved while I was away. Dillan gave me the grand tour. We all hung out on the patio for a while. We had an early dinner together – my mom made salad and her best batch of spaghetti to date. Shortly after, Mike and Elliott drove back home.

The next few days, I had Dillan glued to my hip. We had a lot of lost time to make up for.

We played badminton, went swimming at the beach where we played “fighting” games with sticks and magic powers. We had pillow fights and played video games. The entire time Dillan was there, he never left my side haha.

And now, it’s just my mom, dad, and me. Once Dillan left, we finally had an opportunity to spend time together. It has been so nice to just hang out with them – walk Gizmo, eat delicious home-cooked meals together, watch TV shows. Simply the best!

Miscellaneous

It seemed like there were a number of things working against me during the transition from Australia to Chicago.

Lots of random issues the first couple days in the states. From the baggage claim madness to my SIM card to Elliott’s laptop acting up when I tried to type up my Canberra blog to my transit card not working… lots of hiccups. They seem to have subsided now. Fingers crossed haha.

My laptop is now officially decommissioned. She did good by me and lasted me basically until Canberra. RIP!! My parents have graciously ordered me an HP as an early birthday/Xmas present. Thank you, Mom and Dad!

Art of the Week

One last thing on my final day in Australia… I didn’t feel up to exploring anything new, so I spent a lot of my afternoon drawing a “final” Australian drawing. Me, surrounded by all the wildlife I’ve seen here – based off pictures I took of that wildlife. It felt like a good way to wrap up my day.

Reflections

I will be in Michigan until Saturday, where I’ll briefly go to the city before going to the suburbs with Rob and Joey. I’ll spend some time with them and then go hang out with my brother Dan and my sister-in-law Maisie.  I’m really looking forward to seeing them, too!

Other than that, there will be a lot of back and forth between the suburbs, Chicago, and Michigan. I am here until October 16th before flying to New Zealand where I was granted another work and holiday visa.

One day soon, I am going to do a “Best of” for Australia – reflections on my time there, my favorite moments, favorite wildlife sightings, etc. Coming soon!

That’s all for now.  Happy to be home!

Until next time – sending you all my love xx