House Hunting in Sydney

Big news today… my house search is over! After browsing flatmate finder, gumtree, and three different Facebook groups for 2.5 weeks, I found and got approved for a room yesterday in the Surry Hills neighborhood. It was definitely one of those “when you know, you know” situations.

I was tiring of looking at places, even though I’d only gone to see about six. Everything moves fast in Sydney, so when you see a place posted online, it’s usually available within the next few days to a week. I knew I still had time before Mike gets back from his work trip, so I was being kind of picky and waiting for one that felt right. I had seen a few that I was on the fence about—great locations or nice quality, but something was always just a bit off. I finally found two that I nudged and convinced myself into wanting—one was right near the gorgeous park pictured below, but they both ended up falling through.

Feeling a little disheartened, I took a couple days off from desperately clicking links and wrote down a list of what I really wanted/needed. I scheduled two viewings for the weekend and ended up falling for the second one. It’s a reasonable dream within my budget— lots of light, next to a big park, decent-sized furnished room with storage, and a couple of seemingly cool/fun/interesting-yet-responsible flatmates. There were even some added bonuses that I didn’t think to ask for: an indoor pool and a little gym downstairs!

I saw the little graphic below in someone’s Instagram story later on, and it resonated with me. When I found the one, there was no self-convincing or desperate reconciling. I had a feeling of certainty, and I was glad that the other places hadn’t worked out.

{via}

I’ll be moving next weekend, and I’m excited to do some settling in! I’ve been living out of one suitcase for the time so far, so I’ll be glad to remember what the heck I packed in my other bags. More photos to come soon!

Hola Antigua

There comes a point in any backpacking trip when the obligatory introductions get really worn out, and you just can't bring yourself to listen very hard to where people live and how they got here and where they were before this and where they're going next since you know it's all going to blend together anyway, and you'll probably forget everything five minutes into the conversation. It was a nice change when, at one hostel in San Juan del Sur, we agreed to skip that stuff and didn't even learn each other's names until two days into the visit. We still shared plenty of stories and joked a lot, and our time together seemed to offer a deeper and more enjoyable connection than when you're talking just to talk and your consciousness feels like a floating alien presence watching your mouth go through the motions of trying to detail how long each bus ride was or how many days you spent in which part of the country.

Guatemala has been like that, too. Once I've stopped looking up and tripping over stone streets long enough to go into a place, everyone I've talked to has felt like a familiar friend. I've noticed that here, versus in Granada, the expat community seems to be a bit younger and more in favor of befriending locals. I enjoy seeing this blend, where foreigners have come to fully participate in the culture rather than create their own separate scene. Antigua's parks and plazas make it feel European, but the colors, crafts, and markets remind of the indigenous peoples who were here long before. The air is fresh and crisp, and there's a whole bunch of beauty to breathe in.