AwkwardInk

So I returned to London on Sunday morning. Walking home dragging my suitcase behind me I looked up at the grey sky and questioned the sanity of my decision to come back. The flight was just as long as expected, but I slept quite a bit and actually felt almost rested when I landed. And my arrival was prefectly timed to enjoy the next episodes of Shipwrecked and The OC.
It was hard to say goodbye to my family again. But going home reminded me that everything is pretty much as I left it, and hopefully it will remain so until I return. But it was great to see them, and I was reassured immensely when the dogs recognised me despite the year and a bit that has passed.


I had a great two weeks, although the jetlag on the trip over, never really wore off. I only had a handful of nights where I slept right the way through. And one of those nights was the result of swimming 2km instead of one because it has been so long since I've been swimming that I no longer knew what a 50 meter pool looks like. I do have to admit in my defense that I had driven the three hours to Canberra in the morning after a sleepless night. I got to catch up with Jane whilst in Canberra and I couldn't help but be stunned by the luxury of space in her house and backyard, after becoming used to the lack of it on this side of the world.
I also tried the newest Canberra fad of Frozen Custard. It's not an experience that I would care to repeat, but I wonder what it says about Canberra that Frozen Custard is so big there.
Armed with the knowledge that my UK 4 year ancestry visa was all sorted, I was able to return to Sydney and enjoy the excellent weather catching up with friends and family. I was able to appreciate so many things that I had previously taken for granted. Such as going for drinks after work and being able to sit in a cool bar with dear friends watching the sun set over the harbour. Pure magic. And the all you can eat mussels for $AUS18 at Bungalow8 was special too.
I also seemed to embark on a number of things that I've never done before. Ventured to places that I've never seen, even though I've lived in and around Sydney for most of my life. I met up with Ebba, who was in the tail end of her round the world trip from Sweden, and we walked the 7km from Bondi to Coogee. We did stop in a quaint cafe in Bronte for a breif rest over a fresh juice, and continued onto Max Brenner after the conclusion of our walk to treat ourselves to a heap of sweet goodies smothered in melted chocolate. Initially we did have somee problems navigating the local bus network to get back to Bondi, but we helped by a most helpful british backpacker. How lucky of us.




I also ventured via public transport to Waringah of all places. I met up with Claire and I got to enjoy the luxury of a mall once more, and partake in some delicious fresh yoghurt.
Over the weekend I was lucky enough to go down the south coast with the family to hang out in the holiday house. I got to work on my tan walking along Hyam's Beach and was able to relax completely with no more demands made upon my time than having to make sandwiches for lunch. Very noice.
The family gave me a very tasty send off with a farewell seafood lunch at Zippos in Cronulla. We ordered up big and spent over an hour feasting on all sorts of tasty seafood morsels. Calamari, balmain bugs, king prawns, scampi, mussels, pippis, crab and oysters. It was delicious. And made even better by the white chocolate mouse dessert that followed. Luckily I was able to go jogging in the afternoon to assuage the guilt of it all.
The two weeks were jam packed full of familiar faces and places. But being away has made me appreciate everything and everyone so much more. It was great to go home and realise this, and now I can get on with things here and look forward to the next trip home.

So I have been enjoying the comforts of home for the last week and a half. It has been fantastic coming home. But also kinda surreal. Everything is the same, but different in varying degrees. Two weeks isn't quite long enough. And my strategy to stave off jetlag, has not paid off at all. I seem to just be unfortunate enough to suffer from being particularly prone to the effects of travelling through multiple time zones. It really sucks. I've had about two full nights sleep since being home. And the thought of returning to the UK is making me quite anxious. The only thing worse than being jetlagged on holiday is being jetlagged at work. I can't wait!