Tales of a Phototrotter

Five hours, two magazines and a meal later, I’m giving myself time to reflect whilst waiting to board my flight here at JFK on the past two weeks I have spent in the United States.

Firstly, I can whole-heartedly now say that I hold no regrets on bucking the trend of at-home studies for two weeks during mid-semester break, and instead, opting to embark on the longest journey of my life. I left Sydney with hopes of having a great time keeping Giang company during the two weeks there and I’ve returned with that and even more than I could possibly ask for. I have had the pleasure to meet some of the most intelligent and generous friends of her - people who have welcomed me with open arms, helping me with anything and everything I possibly needed during my stay. From sneaking me into the cafeteria, to driving me to the local stores to buy basic needs, and taking me out to college events to enjoy as much of U.S. culture as possible. These are the same people who can be super wild and entertaining come party-time, yet at the same time, could provide some of the most though-provoking conversations. These are people who I can see myself getting to know better and becoming very close to, and I’ll cherish that and hope for more opportunities in the future.

Secondly, to my wonderful girlfriend - Giang - for putting up with me whilst I’ve been here - getting things organised before I arrived; taking up extra space on the bed, wardrobe and room in general; making sure I wasn’t dying of boredom; taking me out on a weekend to Bar Harbour/Acadia National Park despite swimming in school work. You are the one who makes this entire trip worthwhile even if it meant I had absolutely nothing to do on a daily basis :) and I hope that we get through this rough patch and before we know it, we’ll be able to see each other again very soon! Thank you!

Thirdly, the U.S.A. is so similar yet so different in so many different ways to Australia. The lifestyle; costs; people; cities; landscapes; food and so much more.. What a wonderfully divergent country and yet despite all of that, I can’t help but have a trepidate-d feel towards this powerhouse nation. There are so many opportunities to be made in a great country like the U.S. yet there are so many things that are backwards that makes me turn my head back towards Australia and realise what an amazingly safe and prosperous country I have grew up in. I’d grown up thinking that the U.S.A - the bigger brother - was always better and more efficient at the same things, but I can safely say now that I have no regrets towards the country of choice my parents chose to migrate to. Perhaps I’ve judged too quickly of the American people, but I’ll be back soon to make another analysis.