Australia: one-way ticket to the other side of the world

One of my favourite trips ever has undeniably been the six months I spent in Australia now five years ago. I look back at that time with a magical feeling in my heart – lol, I know, cheesy. But I do.

And I nearly didn’t go. I’m terrified of spiders, and in my head they’d be lurking around every corner. I’d dreamt and fantasised about Australia for ages, and one night I just had a breakdown and decided not to go. Until my mum (rightly) told me to not be ridiculous – so I went, because my mum is always right. (And no, in stark contrast to my expectations did I not get attacked by vicious spiders at all)

Off I went – with a chocolate Christmas calendar in my backpack because Christmas was going to be included in my stay.

Both before, during and after travelling to Australia you’re being bombarded with information about what not to bring into the country – mostly a whole lot of food items. When I disembarked my plane and headed for immigration I was convinced that I would be sent straight back to Denmark for having tried to smuggle in an illegal Danish chocolate calendar.

I decided my best bet was to play it honestly, and so when I approached the counter I confessed; my backpack is stuffed with chocolate! The man behind the counter gave me a skeptical look and insured me that I couldn’t bring it into the country, and just like that all my Christmas dreams vanished – a December without a Christmas calendar? I’ve probably looked awfully sad until his expression turned from serious to cheery and he said “‘course you can, love”. And from then on I loved Australia.

The trip turned out to be amazing, magical, and unforgettable. Those six months are some I’ll treasure forever. I laughed uncontrollably, I cried rivers, I met beautiful people, I met not so great people, I attempted surfing, I failed at surfing, I got drunk and fell out of a trolley, I got lost, I found my way back home, and I loved every minute of my time in Australia! ♡