My Opera5 Most Important Experiences – 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009 8:31:53 AM
Well, first time I’ve written anything here in ages... At this time of year I get all reflective though, and I felt it would be meaningful to recap the experiences that dominated my life this year.
I spent around a year and a half living in Oslo, Norway. During this time I was able to get away on many, many weekends and see different parts of Europe. In this way I was able to see Ireland, Great Britain, Denmark, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Finland, Sweden and Amsterdam. These were all incredible experiences and I’ll always remember them fondly.
For the most part, these were short bursts of travel. I was traveling for a few days at a time, and then went back to work in Oslo. This was a nice setup because I was never too worn out with travel and came back to a comfortable environment relatively quickly.
In July of 2009, I had finished my contract with work and embarked on a solid month of backpacking through Europe. No more comfort – I was on trains, Ryan Air flights and buses. I mostly slept at hostels (some of them were mildly comfortable). I was walking a ridiculous amount, getting used to numerous cities’ transit systems and enjoying every minute of the adventure – comfort or not.
In this month I went through Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Denmark. I met some amazing people, had a few reunions with old friends and saw some incredible places. It was the longest trip I’ve taken where I had no time to rest, but it was worth every bit of the strain.
Above all, I came away from the experience feeling I’d grown in some way... (not just my waist!). Every place that I visited, every place I understood a little more about, every piece of history that I comprehended fully, made me stronger.
Oslo came to be home for me for a while. It was my center, my base, and I enjoyed a comfortable life there. Work was fulfilling, I had a good group of friends and I was able to travel.
When it was time for me to leave, it felt weird. It honestly surprised me because I was so excited about my upcoming month of travel plus returning to Canada. But the fact that I was leaving didn’t really sink in until I started to prepare to leave.
The last few days I was in Oslo I lived in an empty apartment, relying only on my suitcases and spent every minute I could trying to see people before I left. My days “living” in Oslo were already over. We had a going away party with all our friends from Oslo, as well as a going away dinner through work. Both of them were really enjoyable, but both left a somewhat empty feeling.
Just like when i left Hong Kong, it felt unnatural to be leaving.
I finished my month of travel through Europe and then returned to Oslo for two days where I would catch my return flight to Canada. It was great to get to see some folks once again, but it felt like borrowed time. My real goodbye happened a month earlier when I departed for the Euro Trip.
When I did leave Oslo for good, I knew that it was a great place to have lived. I had ups and downs there, but for a time it was my home.
I spent around 6 months living in Hong Kong in 2006 as part of an academic exchange. This was an amazing experience from personal growth, social and cultural awareness perspectives. When it was time to go home it didn’t feel like it, and I didn’t want to go. Traveling to the airport on my day of departure, it felt incredibly unnatural to be leaving.
When I returned to Canada I wasn’t content. I still loved my country, but I was restless. I wanted to be abroad and that consumed me. I spent another year there finishing up my degree and then left to work in Europe.
When I arrived in Europe I felt like a huge burden had been lifted and I was fully relaxed and content. Things were once again new and exciting. It ended up being an amazing experience, but my feelings towards Canada started to change as time went on. Eventually I started to miss it and realized that I was sacrificing alot of things I could be doing there to have the experience I was having in Europe. I don’t regret having made those sacrafices, but I became aware of them.
After about 10 months of living in Oslo, I went home to Canada for Christmas. It was a short visit, but an amazing thing happened – I was excited about my home again. The simplest of things there made me happy – things I had never appreciated before being away for so long. When it was time to go back to Oslo, I felt torn between the two places.
So when my contract expired in July, I was very excited about going home. I looked forward to it for a long time. It was a very good feeling to be so enthusiastic about going home, especially when I juxtaposed that with how I felt leaving Hong Kong.
Since I’ve been back, I’ve been enjoying it as much as I thought I would. Things are good here, and unlike when I came home from Hong Kong, I feel truly repatriated.
Now I don’t mean a “real” vampire, more like what you would call a “vampire heart”. Here is a link for a HIM song by that title that really makes me think of this whole experience. When I say “vampire heart”, it refers to someone who feeds on someone else’s spirit, energy, emotions and caring.
Anyways, shortly after I returned to Canada I met one of these characters. We quickly became very close, interacting on pretty much a daily basis. At first I was having a great time, but more and more, I came to feel like I was a crutch or a placeholder.... Not to mention this individual was playing a lot of games and toying with my emotions. Eventually it was revealed that she held little regard for me, only cared about her own feelings, and despite professing hating “game playing” and lying, had little trouble doing it to others.
That experience had a profound impact on me and it took a while to get past it. I haven’t had many run ins with people so blatantly selfish and self serving before and I had trouble comprehending it. For a time it even caused me to question myself. Sometimes I still ponder it, but generally I think it’s a combination of two things: First, there are people with Vampire Hearts out there. They need to feed on your emotions. Second, if you’re too caring, or too forthright, you open yourself up to vampire attack
I think I’ve learned to spot these situations better now, and avoid them.
Returning to Canada without a job lined up turned out to be a blessing. I returned August 2, and we were just beginning a two month spell of hot and sunny weather. I was able to enjoy the beauty of British Columbia the whole time and because my main responsibility was job searching, I was able to get out and spend time with friends and family again. Twelve hours after I returned, I was on the beach with a group of friends skimboarding. Not a bad start.
So I lived like that for about 6 weeks. I’d apply for jobs, spend time with friends, and go enjoy my province.
This was also a great time for me to reflect on the last few years of my life. I hadn’t had a period of time without much going on in a good while, so it was nice to sit back and think of all the places I’d been, experiences I’d had and things I’d learned.
Part of funemployment is also learning new things – and yes, I did a bit of that. I’m now much better with html and css, and I started working on a new business plan.
It ended at just about the right time I imagine. I found a job I really enjoy, and this chapter of my life came to a close. You might subtitle this chapter as “transitioning back into Canadian life.”
The “Big” Euro Trip
I spent around a year and a half living in Oslo, Norway. During this time I was able to get away on many, many weekends and see different parts of Europe. In this way I was able to see Ireland, Great Britain, Denmark, France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Finland, Sweden and Amsterdam. These were all incredible experiences and I’ll always remember them fondly.
For the most part, these were short bursts of travel. I was traveling for a few days at a time, and then went back to work in Oslo. This was a nice setup because I was never too worn out with travel and came back to a comfortable environment relatively quickly.
In July of 2009, I had finished my contract with work and embarked on a solid month of backpacking through Europe. No more comfort – I was on trains, Ryan Air flights and buses. I mostly slept at hostels (some of them were mildly comfortable). I was walking a ridiculous amount, getting used to numerous cities’ transit systems and enjoying every minute of the adventure – comfort or not.
In this month I went through Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland and Denmark. I met some amazing people, had a few reunions with old friends and saw some incredible places. It was the longest trip I’ve taken where I had no time to rest, but it was worth every bit of the strain.
Above all, I came away from the experience feeling I’d grown in some way... (not just my waist!). Every place that I visited, every place I understood a little more about, every piece of history that I comprehended fully, made me stronger.
Ha Det Bra Oslo
Oslo came to be home for me for a while. It was my center, my base, and I enjoyed a comfortable life there. Work was fulfilling, I had a good group of friends and I was able to travel.
When it was time for me to leave, it felt weird. It honestly surprised me because I was so excited about my upcoming month of travel plus returning to Canada. But the fact that I was leaving didn’t really sink in until I started to prepare to leave.
The last few days I was in Oslo I lived in an empty apartment, relying only on my suitcases and spent every minute I could trying to see people before I left. My days “living” in Oslo were already over. We had a going away party with all our friends from Oslo, as well as a going away dinner through work. Both of them were really enjoyable, but both left a somewhat empty feeling.
Just like when i left Hong Kong, it felt unnatural to be leaving.
I finished my month of travel through Europe and then returned to Oslo for two days where I would catch my return flight to Canada. It was great to get to see some folks once again, but it felt like borrowed time. My real goodbye happened a month earlier when I departed for the Euro Trip.
When I did leave Oslo for good, I knew that it was a great place to have lived. I had ups and downs there, but for a time it was my home.
Repatriation
I spent around 6 months living in Hong Kong in 2006 as part of an academic exchange. This was an amazing experience from personal growth, social and cultural awareness perspectives. When it was time to go home it didn’t feel like it, and I didn’t want to go. Traveling to the airport on my day of departure, it felt incredibly unnatural to be leaving.
When I returned to Canada I wasn’t content. I still loved my country, but I was restless. I wanted to be abroad and that consumed me. I spent another year there finishing up my degree and then left to work in Europe.
When I arrived in Europe I felt like a huge burden had been lifted and I was fully relaxed and content. Things were once again new and exciting. It ended up being an amazing experience, but my feelings towards Canada started to change as time went on. Eventually I started to miss it and realized that I was sacrificing alot of things I could be doing there to have the experience I was having in Europe. I don’t regret having made those sacrafices, but I became aware of them.
After about 10 months of living in Oslo, I went home to Canada for Christmas. It was a short visit, but an amazing thing happened – I was excited about my home again. The simplest of things there made me happy – things I had never appreciated before being away for so long. When it was time to go back to Oslo, I felt torn between the two places.
So when my contract expired in July, I was very excited about going home. I looked forward to it for a long time. It was a very good feeling to be so enthusiastic about going home, especially when I juxtaposed that with how I felt leaving Hong Kong.
Since I’ve been back, I’ve been enjoying it as much as I thought I would. Things are good here, and unlike when I came home from Hong Kong, I feel truly repatriated.
Run in with a Vampire
Now I don’t mean a “real” vampire, more like what you would call a “vampire heart”. Here is a link for a HIM song by that title that really makes me think of this whole experience. When I say “vampire heart”, it refers to someone who feeds on someone else’s spirit, energy, emotions and caring.
Anyways, shortly after I returned to Canada I met one of these characters. We quickly became very close, interacting on pretty much a daily basis. At first I was having a great time, but more and more, I came to feel like I was a crutch or a placeholder.... Not to mention this individual was playing a lot of games and toying with my emotions. Eventually it was revealed that she held little regard for me, only cared about her own feelings, and despite professing hating “game playing” and lying, had little trouble doing it to others.
That experience had a profound impact on me and it took a while to get past it. I haven’t had many run ins with people so blatantly selfish and self serving before and I had trouble comprehending it. For a time it even caused me to question myself. Sometimes I still ponder it, but generally I think it’s a combination of two things: First, there are people with Vampire Hearts out there. They need to feed on your emotions. Second, if you’re too caring, or too forthright, you open yourself up to vampire attack
I think I’ve learned to spot these situations better now, and avoid them.
Funemployment
Returning to Canada without a job lined up turned out to be a blessing. I returned August 2, and we were just beginning a two month spell of hot and sunny weather. I was able to enjoy the beauty of British Columbia the whole time and because my main responsibility was job searching, I was able to get out and spend time with friends and family again. Twelve hours after I returned, I was on the beach with a group of friends skimboarding. Not a bad start.
So I lived like that for about 6 weeks. I’d apply for jobs, spend time with friends, and go enjoy my province.
This was also a great time for me to reflect on the last few years of my life. I hadn’t had a period of time without much going on in a good while, so it was nice to sit back and think of all the places I’d been, experiences I’d had and things I’d learned.
Part of funemployment is also learning new things – and yes, I did a bit of that. I’m now much better with html and css, and I started working on a new business plan.
It ended at just about the right time I imagine. I found a job I really enjoy, and this chapter of my life came to a close. You might subtitle this chapter as “transitioning back into Canadian life.”
