It’s been 343 days since my last post, and it’s been 343 days for a reason. This time last year I was living a mini-dream in Sweden – a holiday I decided to indulge in because, quite frankly, I was having the worst time in actual real life (professionally). It happens to us all, and it’s not the first time it had happened to me. So when I returned, I decided change needed to happen. I concentrated my energies into making that change happen and in January this year, I got myself a fably new job. The added bonus of this job? I got to travel the world.
I’ve been in this new job exactly 9 months and 9 days now and it’s taken me this long to jot down and acknowledge my many wanders. I’ve been to so many places, met so many brilliant people, (ate lots of delicious things) I had no idea what to do with all the information. So I’m going to try and break it down a little here, as a sneak preview of what’s to come on Connie Talks.
Back in April I spent a month in Australia (yes, for work), a country that had been on my hitlist since FOREVER but timings and finances never seemed to pan out. Flashback to my conversation with my new manager in January:
Manager: ‘Connie, how do you feel about staying in Australia for a month? We know it’s a big ask.’
Me: [externally] ‘Oh, I’m not sure, can I think about it? Can I take my cat?’
[internally] ‘YES OKAY WHEN NOW I CAN GO NOW CAN PEPS COME WITH ME?’
I’m not going to lie. I was bloody delighted. 2 weeks in Brisbane and 2 weeks in Melbourne was the perfect combination. I was a stone’s throw from the Great Barrier Reef (although I didn’t quite make it that far – turns out ‘a stone’s throw’ actually means ‘the distance between France and China’ in Oz) in one direction, and literally on the Great Ocean Road in the other. My work and travel itinerary became very full very quickly. The highlights included koalas (which turned out to be my other spirit animal – my first being pandas), kangaroos and nature in general. All of a sudden my geography GCSE became real. Oh, and I think I need to talk about the coffee. It is officially okay to ask for a latte out there without being spat on. But I would highly recommend getting a hot flat white – just to be on the safe side. And take a reusable cup.
Fraser Island
On my way back from Australia, I decided to pop in to see the fam (uncles, aunties, cousins, fake uncles and aunties too) in Hong Kong. Although I’ve been many, many times, this time was slightly different as I’d not been since my granddad’s funeral in 2013. My intention was to have a proper tourist holiday, sans my immediate family. Anyone who has traveled back to their Motherland with immediate family understands that the trip is never a holiday but an itinerary of obligations and family dinners. As much as I love family dinners, I wanted to see HK at my own leisure. Lamma Island was a surprise delight, even in the gazillion degree heat. I even lugged back a jar of some delicious chilli oil that I ate there – probably the most random souvenir from any of my trips.
Lamma Island. Can’t believe it only costed us a few quid to get there and back.
In the height of summer, I thought it’d be a good idea to go to Italy – again, in the gazillion degree heat (I am yet to pack away my summer wardrobe). The Holy Motherland of All Things Pasta and Art. As an art historian, I am so ashamed to say that I HAD NEVER BEEN TO ITALY before. Now I’ve been, I feel much less like an impostor. I spent a glorious week in Bologna with day trips to Parma, Modena and Florence immersing myself in traditional Italian food, culture and obvs, art history. I left the UK not knowing a word of Italian (apparently pasta shapes don’t count) and returned still not knowing a word of Italian (but have expanded pasta vocabulary significantly). I came back with cravings for lasagna which I attempted to make – the Italian way. Recipe to follow…
That time I couldn’t decide which pasta to have so I had all three.
I’m sat at my laptop now, still in a state of culture shock, having just returned from Shanghai less than 2 days ago. I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with China having had a bad experience there with the fam a few years back. However, I can honestly say Shanghai has changed my perspective; the city is international, accessible (but don’t try and pay with a credit card) and has a lot of good eats. I miss the smell of food everywhere, the Bund and the bustle, but definitely not the pollution.
Yang’s Fried Dumplings – with a side of curry noodles which I really didn’t need but was greedy so ordered anyway.
So the next few posts will be me trying to process my thoughts on these wonderful places that I’ve visited and probably all the delicious things that I ate too. Next week I travel to Chile for the first time and no doubt will return an empanada addict. Wish me luck!
Connie Talks 