G'day!
Since it is just over a month before we are in Australia, we are brushing up on our Australian slang. Since I (Kirsten) have had this plan in the works for over 4 years, it always felt too far away to actually be real. However, as years have turned from months into days, our plan to move to Australia for a year is quickly becoming very real.
Lot's of planning has gone into this move and it is finally completed. One of the most important steps was getting our Visas, which let me tell you, was not fun. Jordan had absolutely no problem getting his as he applied online and got an e-mail confirmation 8 hours later stating he had his Visa. My experience, however, is slightly different. After seeing how easy it was to get Jordan's Visa, I figured mine would be a cake-walk since I was already enrolled as a future student at the University of Wollongong. Boy, was I ever wrong. After 6 failed attempts on completing an online application, I got fed up and called the Ottawa office to ask what the issue was. The gentlemen so kindly replied that "sometimes the system just doesn't want to do it". I was told to complete a paper application and send it in to the head office. In order to complete a paper application, I had to get 4 'passport-sized' photographs, a letter from my work stating that I have worked for such a period of time and also fill out a 28-page document. The biggest issue I had was the passport-sized photos since when I went into Wal-mart and asked for these to be done, she said she needed very specific specifications in order to take these. However, these specifications were nowhere to be found on any VISA site whatsoever.
My frustrations with this application point were at a bursting point when I decided one last time to try an online applications and...it worked! I was so relieved when I finally got confirmation that I had my Visa.
So, here we are now, Christmas is almost here and our flights have been booked. Thanks to the hard work of my momma, we are flying out to Hawaii on December 29th for 5 days on our way to Australia. As encouraged by our parents, if we are flying all this way, we need to spend sometime in Hawaii for sure! I have been to Hawaii before (Oahu, more specifically) with my basketball team in grade 12 but have never been to Maui. We are both really looking forward to going to Maui as this will be a solid 4 days of pure relaxation and, of course, lots of exploring. Once we arrive in Australia on January 4th, the frantic hunt for a fully-furnished apartment is on as I start school on January 16th- so Maui really will be a time with no worries.
We have decided to write this blog to keep everyone at home updated on our lives while we are away. While there is Skype and Facebook, there is something about a blog that allows us to share our experiences more fully. We hope that you will follow this blog and comment on any blogs or pictures we post.
Love to you all,
Kirsten & Jordan
