The HVAR Family

hvar, originally uploaded by Mazzy2.

ROMAN HOLIDAY

Anyone that knows me knows that I am the person that relates most things back to 1940s movies... and for me, my trip to Rome can certainly be equated to one of my favourite movies, Roman Holiday with Audrey Hepburn. Indeed I have been seeing my trip through Rome through the eyes of Audrey, some highlights have been:

° The Colesseum
° The Fountain of Trevi
° Roman Forum
° The Vatican city and the surroundinh churches
° Eating gelato and pizza and REALLY good pasta dishes

and thats only just the beginning.

Rome is definately a city that a person could get lost in - there is simply too much to see and do, its incredible. The sounds, the sites, the crazy activity, the insaneness of it all - and the bold beauty.

It rivals Paris as a serious city to be reckoned with - but where Paris has grace and elegance, Rome has boldness and magnificance. The hugeness is definately what has hit me the most since I have been here...

Next stop.... VENICE!!!!!

HVAR - It only gets better and better...

So, I left Dubrovnik and headed for Split - and my HVAR island adventure in Croatia - and it was nothing short of amazing.

Just when I thought I had my peak - Budapest - then Hvar comes along - and the most wonderful memories with it.

I will be getting photos from the friends I made there but here are some highlights:

- Green Lizard Hostel Drinking and good times
- Renting a boat and driving around the HVAR islands with Geoege, Michelle, Zac, Leah (all from the USA) and Kirsten from UK. Drinking champagne and wine, swimming and beaching - it was the best time ever.
- NANO!!! I will leave it at this but there is a story ,-)
- Aussie boys: Josh, John, Cootie and Pecker
- Meeting the camera people from àThe Great Outdoors-!
- Carpe Diem!!!!!!
- Meeting Aussie VIP Fashion designers
- P.A.R.T.Y Chants
- Pizza x 100 - Croatias fave food!
- Where is the hostel? hahaha getting lost like a million times
- Personality analysis on Jacob and the boys! ENTJ girls are for YOU!

Gosh, it was so good.

Came back on the ferry with Zac and George, and now in Italy.

Took last night as a recovery and now ready to embrace new people and places again!!

My amazing Elsa

DSCN0790, originally uploaded by Mazzy2.

Meet my French Twin, Elsa....

LOVE THIS DARLING!!!!

THANK YOU

It is official - I now have a family in Croatia.

THANK YOU to Antonio, Vera, Kristina and Andrea Milat for hosting me in your home.

THANK YOU for showing me the hospitality and friendliness of Croatian people

THANK YOU for cooking me cakes and watching an Aussie film with me on TV

THANK YOU to the girls for the drawings which I will take home with me in my scrapbook.

As I said to you - THANK YOU is an understatement.

But in a weird way, staying in your home was exactly what I needed.

Croatian Hospitality

I have nothing but amazing things to say about Croatian hospitality - these people are wonderful.

Last night, when I arrived to Dubrovnik I found myself in one of those situations where everything goes wrong.

I decided I would just come to Croatia and find accomodation upon arrival...

BUT my plane was delayed - so I arrived late (at 10pm), and upon arrival I could not access my money as my card would not work on ANY machine.

Imagine...

Saturday night at 10pm in another country, by yourself with no where to stay, and only 30 euros in your pocket - to say I was worried would be an understatement.

I was downright stressed.

But a man from the airport arranged for me to get a bus and join his family home.

Gosh, so much to saz on this but have to go now... will write more later

Budapest - A home away from home

So I am right now sitting at Budapest airport, waiting to board my flight to Dubrovnik in Croatia.

It is weird, because I am pretty emotional, and do not want to leave Budapest - the city, the people, the lifestyle.

The city itself is amazing - the buildings are insanely wonderful, the beauty almost indescribeable.

The people I have met at the hostel will have a special place in my heart and we will stay in contact - Elsa from France is visiting me, as well as Abraham and Chelsea (Spanish and Canadian) in November. The French crew also promised a visit to the dam.

I have had so much fun with the people from the hostel - going out to all sorts of hot spots.

In some ways I can relate backpacking to an AIESEC conference... you meet alot of people, have some intense experiences, see each other 24-7, party hard and have many nationalities in one place.... so I guess leaving Budapest, and the Imperio Hostel - it is kind of like I am leaving a conference.

I think tonight I will splurge and go to a Hotel in Dubrovnik - have a night to relax, get into the spirit of CROATIA - and then go to a hostel the next night. Otherwise I may end up exhausted before my holiday has even really begun

More stories soon...

Watching Platypus on Hungarian TV

So I am right now sitting in the hostel in Budapest with people from Canada, Spain, France, and America and we are watching PLATYPUS on the TV...

Talk about RANDOM!

This is the most MODNAR hostel in the world... (Modnar is random backwards by the way)... and I LOVE IT!

It is definately a weird moment watching TV in Hungarian about platypuses with a group of internationals...:-)

Today was definately an amazing day - I caught up with Anna and her partner Zsolte.

It was awesome.. and more photos will follow (Anna post them on your blog and I will copy them onto my blog since Rueben has my camera in Amsterdam).

It was so good to catch up with Anna and have some great MOL (meaning of life) conversations and also to meet her partner/see her house.... we had a whole day, but I think that we could have talked for hours and hours to come.

It is amazing.

I have only been here for a day and yet I already have so many stories... this is definately turning out to be the most amazing trip. I cannot wait to see what the rest of the trip has to offer!!

More stories to tell soon...... LOVING this free streaming internet!

Good Morning Sunshine

So there is constant free internet in the hostel - meaning I can post regular updates!

It is now the morning, and I am going to meet up with Anna today - FUN FUN FUN!

I already feel so connected to everyone in this hostel - it feels like a home I am staying in with international friends.

I have only been here one night but it could be that I stay here in Budapest for awhile longer ... no no, I will move on.

Solo travelling is SO NOT solo travelling!

Debut

So I am sitting in Budapest with Charlie and Jen - after a crazy night with people in my hostel.

I started the night entering a drinking circle with 15 internationals playing janga and I never!

It was awesome...

Then we went to this fantabulous place called 'School Hat' - and partied the night away!!

I LOVED IT!!!

I hope that I can steal some photos to post soon...

BUt this is AWESOME FUN!... It's like a really crazy aiesec welcome - TOTALLY RANDOMNESS!

I think I had 2 shots upone entry!!!

I am sitting here now with Jen from Toronto - and Charlie from Wimbledon - LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!

So it's 3.11 am and I am soooo happy already... let the holiday fun begin!

WOO HOO!!!

Debut

So I am sitting in Budapest with Charlie and Jen - after a crazy night with people in my hostel.

I started the night entering a drinking circle with 15 internationals playing janga and I never!

It was awesome...

Then we went to this fantabulous place called 'School Hat' - and partied the night away!!

I LOVED IT!!!

I hope that I can steal some photos to post soon...

BUt this is AWESOME FUN!... It's like a really crazy aiesec welcome - TOTALLY RANDOMNESS!

I think I had 2 shots upone entry!!!

I am sitting here now with Jen from Toronto - and Charlie from Wimbledon - LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT!!

So it's 3.11 am and I am soooo happy already... let the holiday fun begin!

WOO HOO!!!

Solo Holiday Sabbatical

So, due to unfortunate circumstances, Laurz can no longer come on our planned holiday adventure... which leaves me with two weeks of solo travelling time across Europe.

I must admit, I have never travelled alone, usually preferring to travel with another person or groups - but I am up for this experience.

I am looking forward to the adventures ahead - and the random internationals I will meet and befriend along the way!

It is DEFINATELY going to be an adventure...

4 countries, 2.5 weeks, 1 person... PRICELESS!

Sad

I feel really sad, and have been a bag of emotions all night.

Even writing this, I am shedding tears as I type - and have been a water excursion ever since I left our weekly Monday Amsterdam drinks.

I feel really sick of this whole lifestyle - of having close friends and then saying goodbye.

I feel like I am constantly recreating relationships - but I miss the intensity.

I was at a new trainee event the other night and stayed literally 5 minutes... I mean the people are lovely - but I just felt so disconnected.

Disconnected.

I need to meet some people who will stay longer than 6 months - I can't take THIS anymore.

Enough.

For cute and cuddly HUY ;-)

This post is more so for the sake of keeping Mazzy, my devoted reader, happy and entertained. And then she gets all cute and cuddly and will bombard me with nothing. No messages of love, care and affection. Maybe its pay back for being the entertainment during our time Denmark and now I have to entertain?

HAHAHA I am a devoted HUY reader!!!

What do you mean - bombard you with NOTHING! I have been sms-ing you!

And I get the response... 'Who is this?'

WHAT!

Ok, well in all seriousness, although you write quite lengthly updates, I am super happy to be connected to your life and activities... I miss the Huy factor in Amsterdam...

* The random chilling with movies
* Watching reality TV shows together
* Listening to Norah goodness
* Sitting in Nyhavn drinking netto beers
* Random parties in the UNIC office
* Chats about love, life aswell as crazy randomness... I MEAN, you gave me BUTT THEORY!

So, this posting is devoted to YOU!

MISS YOU, MWAH!

Madonnalicious

mads, originally uploaded by Mazzy.

So, on Monday night - after months of waiting and preparation, a group of us in Amsterdam finally saw a legend in action… MADONNA LIVE IN CONCERT!

Dressed in a pink feather boa, and ready for a night of power – we all went into military operation mode.

We had Agent Transport, Agent Food and Drink, Agent Organizer and Agent Queue Positioning…. All key roles that worked together to make the night an amazing experience

It was AWESOME!

The pre-act was fantastic, but as soon as Madge came on stage… it was psychotic! It was a fully charged experience – and at one point, I was emotionally affected by the images on the screen – politically charged images about the world around us.

Madonna- a true legend; almost up there with U2 live… hmm, ok no not really – nothing can ever beat U2 LIVE VIP Tickets… except Freddy Mercury coming back for a QUEEN LIVE performance 

Next band? My band of the moment: KEANE!

Just around the corner...

cal, originally uploaded by Mazzy2.

Thanks to my most amazing travel agent and travel buddy, Laura Elliott - I have this calendar of our upcoming adventures...

Can't wait to type more tonight on the most mega of all mega holidays!!

Get up and Go!

I start each day listening to The Lion King CD.

Track 1-3
I am waking up

Track 4-9
I am showering and drying my hair

Track 10-12
I am getting dressed

Track 12 on repeat
I am getting pumped for the day ahead

It's the little things that make life so good!

When I was little...

I was a true performer.

I used to organise family concerts, get all the cousins in acts at family days, and MC the 'Cameron Family' shows at Nanna and Poppy's house. I would play 'make believe' for hours with my neigbour Kim, where we would go wherever our imagination took us... I loved every minute of it!

I used to love costumes, getting a microphone (whatever object I could find) and just entertaining and being entertained in the process by the wonderfulness of it all. In fact, to look even more the part, I once took my mums wedding dress, and cut it so that it would fit me (much to mums horror! Thankfully we laugh about it now!) - I thought it was the most beautiful costume in the house.

Even though, I try to bring the joy of entertaining into my life in different ways - I still fundamentally love performing on a stage. I think thats why I love training and chairing conferences... it's kind of a substitute for the real thing.

Well, yesterday I actually jumped more fully into this world that fascinates me so much. I attended the BOOM CHICAGO Improvisational Acting class for beginners... and boy did I love every moment of it.

Although walking in I was a little apprehensive; walking out I was empowered in a way that I have not been in ages. To say I felt in my element is an understatement - I felt at home in a weird way.

The actor was awesome, and we got along instantly.

These are the people I want to surround myself with more and more - people that use their imagination, that explore the wacky and the crazy; that see value in silliness.

All the activities were total madness - madness that I want to exploit more fully and bring more centre into my life. I will be joining an improv jam group on a weekly basis; and thats just the first step... let's see where this heads.

ENGAGED!!!!

Nat + Nat1, originally uploaded by Mazzy.

Congratulations to my brother who has made OFFICAL his engagement to his sweetheart girlfriend, Natalie.

These two are a great couple - and are definately on a great track starting their life together with a property being built in 2007.

APRIL 2008 is the BIG WEDDING - and I would not miss that for anything. No matter where in the world I may be located; I know where I will be in April 2008: SYDNEY AUSTRALIA!

Congrats Nath :-)