Notes From Another Land

Learning as I go

For the first time in my life, I got robbed last week. Nothing major, what they stole is replaceable and the only thing it hurt was my pride.

I’ve been very lucky since living abroad for the past five years and travelling to different places. I haven’t had my passport or my wallet nicked and we haven’t been broken into (yet). These are all things I used to chalk up to renting in non-flash places, having minimal possessions and looking like regular middle/working class 20/30 somethings.

My husband tells me his flat was broken into three times while living in one of the nicest suburbs of Dublin. He was amazed when living in Canada to see someone chase after another person who had left their wallet behind. Europe is just another ball game.

Now this isn’t meant to be a ‘life lessons’ post for anyone reading, it’s a ‘put it into perspective’ post for me. London is a big city and it will swallow you whole if you’re not careful. But your own personal outlook has a lot to do with what you can get out of it.

The robbery

Two guys came over to me as I ate my lunch on a patio in a nice part of Hampstead and put a few cards in my face and over my table, asking me to buy their wares. Of course this was a distraction tactic, I got angry and told them to leave me alone. Once they left I quickly checked my bag on the chair beside me to make sure nothing was stolen. When I turned back to the table, I realised it was my mobile they had stolen out from underneath the cards they used to block my view.

Once I realised it was gone, I told the waiter I think I had been robbed and unfortunately no one else on the patio or in the café had seen it happen. They were just too fast and they were gone before I knew it!

My immediate thoughts were:

“I’m such an idiot!” [pride reaction]
“They played me for a too nice, naive fool.” [Canadian reaction]
“I don’t know anyone here, no one knows who I am.” [foreigner’s panic/country bumpkin/expat reaction]
“If I was a man, those two guys wouldn’t have tried it on me.” [feminist reaction]
“Now the only people I know here won’t be able to contact me!” [illusion of importance reaction]

Of course the most important things were, I didn’t chase them down, they didn’t hurt me and everyone who didn’t quite witness it but knew what had happened was lovely and very helpful.

The staff called the police, I filed a report, then the café gave me lunch on the house and told me stories of other petty crimes in nice areas of London.

Another lady bought me a coffee without mentioning it so the staff could take my order, almost in a ‘pay it forward’ token.

A nice girl from Belfast who was visiting her family in London leant me her phone to call my husband and told me about her phone getting stolen the last time she visited the city. I think she was angrier for me on my behalf and told me I was coping very well as I continued to eat my toasted sandwich and order an iced coffee.

These things happen and I almost knew it was coming, but I let my guard down at the wrong moment. I had deleted all of my message threads (I had tons left over from my time in Australia and Ireland) and had begun uploading all of my photos to Dropbox and deleting them from my four-year-old phone. My contract was paid for and my SIM was cheap so no major losses.

Putting it into perspective

I woke up this morning and saw an article about ‘4 Things Everyone Should Learn By 30’. Reading through them, I agreed with them all and since I am turning the big 3-0 in a few months’ time, I almost used it as a personal check up.

#1) You’re not the only one with good ideas

I feel like this becomes more apparent by the day, especially in London. There are sooo many creative people. Problems to be solved, ways to solve them. Cultures to learn about, customs to understand. The older I get, the less I know for sure. Here’s hoping I can keep meeting new people to share their ideas and work on solving problems together!

#2) Friends are worth more than money

They are indeed! As soon as I was robbed on Friday and realised I was surrounded by strangers and couldn’t contact anyone, this became very real.

I didn’t care about money or the financial value of the phone, I was worried about the photos I had taken from my travels home and with friends. I have been lucky to keep in touch with friends in Canada and Australia via Skype and old-fashioned letters since we’ve been moving around and I always make a point of catching up with them when I can.

I think when we meet people we click with or share similar ideals with, we work hard to maintain these friendships and support networks. For the most part, it doesn’t feel like work because when you get that letter in the mail, it is almost as good as sitting across from them.

We’re inviting each other into our lives and sharing our future hopes, dreams, fears and present adventures. These are moments you can’t buy and friendships that can’t materialise overnight.

#3) A little bit goes a long way

As a freelancer and remote worker, this is an important one to remember. I cannot accomplish everything in one day and sometimes as a solo worker, you feel isolated.

But since moving to London, I’ve been taking small steps to put myself out there. Going to networking events, creative talks and signing up for a few classes to stretch myself more. I feel like this summer is an opportunity to refine what I am working on, where I’m going and absorb as much as I can. So each day, I am trying to do something new and see where it takes me.

#4) Control what you can control

This is a big one for me and something I try to live by. You can only control yourself and certain things within your immediate vicinity. These things do not include people, situations or the weather.

It’s your behaviour, your outlook, your actions and reactions. The best you can do is to work within it and adjust. If you do not want to work within it, then change yourself and how you approach it. Put one foot in front of the other, keep going and move on. Needless to say, I have been singing this song to myself quite a bit in the face of each new challenge.

So that’s what I’m focusing on – being flexible to change and aware of my surroundings, being grateful for what I have and welcoming new experiences.

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On being Canadian

This year I celebrated Canada Day in London, my fifth one spent abroad living as an expat. I received a lovely postcard from a friend in Ottawa just in time! It brought back great memories of the few years I spent working in the ByWard Market, where I could stroll to Parliament Hill or the National Gallery and meet friends and family for lunch or drinks on a patio. The Rideau Canal is lovely in all weather and the downtown area is serviced by walking and cycle paths, creating a nice pedestrian-friendly core.

It truly is a beautiful spot and despite Ottawa being a relatively small city, it offers plenty to do across four seasons and I will always call it my home.

Notes From Another Land / Canada Day — Postcard of Parliament Hill, Ottawa

I was so inspired, I was going to write a blog post about things to do in Canada’s capital city.

But first, let’s admire the cute red velvet cupcake that my Irish husband bought me to celebrate the day of ‘The True North Strong and Free’! As I contently nibbled on this red and white cake, smiling merrily and thinking fondly of how wonderful my native country is, little did I know I would wake up on July 3rd to a reminder that either him or I will always be second-class citizens in Canada.

So I will write about Canadian citizenship instead.

Now call me ignorant but between moving to London and getting setting up here, trying to keep tabs on the Australian, Irish and Canadian media at the same time has proved a tad difficult. So I missed the finer details of Bill C-24 until a friend and former roommate (also Canadian) who lives in Africa, shared the update and petition on Facebook.

Apparently I wasn’t the only one who missed it because when I re-shared it via Facebook and Twitter, my fellow globe-trotting Canadian friends in Australia and Germany started commenting in disbelief as well!

Now this isn’t just a tiny gripe I have with the Conservative Government or a small complaint vented via the internet and social media from an expat living it up in foreign lands. This is a big deal people. We’re talking about fundamental rights and freedoms.

You may be wondering:

“But will you or your husband really commit a crime in a foreign or domestic land?”

No, I don’t plan on it. But do we really want the Minister for Citizenship or Immigration deciding people’s fate instead of a court of law?

“What about your future – can’t you just pick one country to live in?”

Well we could, but since we’re both from two separate ones and hold two separate passports, we had been planning on getting dual citizenship at some point for our own sanity, freedom and that of any future unborn children and yet-to-be-adopted pets. Now we know that one of us will always be a second-class Canadian. Either I will be if I get an EU passport because the Canadian Government will deem that I will be able to go somewhere else to live if need be or my Irish husband will be a second-class Canadian if he applies for citizenship after living in Canada for a set period of time and he will have to be ok with the possibility of not returning to Ireland for a long period of time.

“But won’t it help you, it will speed up his application process – haven’t you seen this handy infographic?”

Well yes I have, thank you. But did you know it now takes longer to reside in Canada as a PR in order to apply for Canadian citizenship? Besides that, he won’t have a problem saying he’s committed to living in Canada, he did marry me after all. But he has immediate family and relatives in Ireland and who are we to predict the future and what we will want to do or where we will want to live, depending on circumstances?

Notes From Another Land / Irish husband and Canadian I in Lake Como, Italy — Canadian (me) and Irish husband in Lake Como, Italy

Things to be concerned about

OR if you’re like me, any other Canadian expat, someone who is married to a foreigner who had been considering dual citizenship at some point in your lives, have friends or family who have already moved to Canada and are working towards their citizenship application – well, you might be a bit pissed off.

Even if it doesn’t seem to affect you at the present moment in any way, shape or form, maybe you should have a think about your own circle of friends, relatives, colleagues, neighbours.

Do you know anyone who is an immigrant, first or second generation Canadian citizen because their family were asylum seekers, refugees or simply seeking a better life in our country before Bill C-24 was passed? I can count on both hands the number of people I am close to, friends with, related to and have worked with that would have been affected by this amendment if it happened prior to now. If anyone was granted Canadian citizenship prior to Bill C-24 going into effect, the old terms apply to them.

Of course, if you don’t commit any crimes and give the Canadian Government any reason to strip you of your Canadian citizenship, you should sleep easy. Or maybe you won’t because you’re living in a country that has allowed the Minister for Citizenship and Immigration to decide people’s future as opposed to leaving the legal and justice system to do its’ part.

But don’t just listen to me bang on about it, read these articles and think about what it means for Canada going forward:

Have we devalued Canadian citizenship? Created two separate classes of citizens? Just scroll through the #BillC24 hashtag on Twitter to see some of the posts people have shared about feeling conflicted about celebrating Canada Day.

Are these the makings of a modern democracy?

If you don’t think they are, then here is a link where you can sign the petition to repeal the citizenship changes.

I will leave you with this – it’s what I’ve been trying to do lately and I promise next post will be less political, more lovely photos and places to do nice things around London. But for now, I am thinking about what it means to be Canadian and what the future may hold.

Thank you for reading.

Notes From Another Land / Instagram

The realities of being an expat

Notes From Another Land / Expat realities

Everyone has their own take on what changes you should expect when you move abroad and they differ for everyone. After three months in our new city, I’ve decided it’s time for a round up of my thoughts on the matter. Every day I discover something new that makes me laugh or question the way I’ve always done things. It may be something as silly as trying to figure out how the postage system works here – what do you mean you can send things by first or second class? I thought it was a postage celebrity status until I realised it just meant more money = quicker delivery. No special sparkles or singing telegram on the delivery side of things! Or finding the closest thing to an Australian flat white with a good kick around the corner from our new flat, with little positive message printed on their takeaway cups. These daily gems keep me thinking life is great and we have so much to be thankful for. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbows!

Notes From Another Land / Coca Cola — Small London delights – Coca Cola served in retro glass bottles

Life in a new country has its’ setbacks and you will need to dig in your heels if you want to stay happy, healthy and create the most opportunities for yourself. Australia was a chance for me to complete my degree, learn about new industries, make new friends and build new networks. We had such a great time there that when we moved to Ireland, we suffered hiraeth (Wikipedia says it’s a noun to describe “a homesickness for a home you cannot return to, or that never was”).

Ireland was a whirlwind 15 months of time spent with family, solid work, short adventures and hibernation. I didn’t feel there was much of a change in seasons (much like Australia) but due to our lack of humidity, beaches and warm weather, and the amount of woolly jumpers I sported, it felt like I was in hiding and waiting for summer to arrive. Alas, there are still things about Ireland we wish we could pack in our suitcase and take with us (the amount of jumpers I own not being one of them) but Galway will always be a home to us that we return to.

If you’ve ever loved where you lived but decided to leave, you will know how I feel. I think of these far off destinations as a foreign affair – beautiful, enchanting and you love spending time with them but you know in your heart and your head…you can’t commit.

The week of Canada Day (July 1st people!) marks five years since I packed the bags to move from Ottawa to Brisbane and I haven’t relocated back to the true north strong and free since. Instead, I’ve been in Galway, Kildare and now London. So after living in three other English-speaking countries with very different cultures and personalities, here is a summary of a few things that may help you get through your current or future expat move.

Notes From Another Land / Oxford Street — DIY tourism: taking in the sights from the front of the double-decker bus

Returning to student life.

You may not be moving to a foreign country where you need to learn new language skills but if you’re from North America and you move to a British English speaking country (like I have done three times now in the past five years), you will need to adapt. From local slang to basic grammar, doing a bit of research will go a long way. You can Google just about anything these days but local sites with user generated content like Gumtree in Australia, boards.ie in Ireland and BBC’s message boards can give you an insight into the local lingo. You can also scan social media networks in your new country and keep a look out for advertising and editorial copy tag lines as a good way to learn new phrases and decipher what they actually mean!

If you are moving to a country that has recently experienced the hard effects of the Global Financial Crisis (basically anywhere in the EU) and is on the upswing or gradually getting there, the job market could be drastically different to your home country. Look into the job outlooks, salary ranges and basic qualifications required for your chosen career path so that when you register with a recruitment agency or go out to pound the pavement yourself, you can negotiate a fair wage and summarise your skills and experience as they relate to the current market.

You may need to upskill or reskill – only you can decide what you need based on your prospects. But if you’re moving to a fairly big city or don’t mind online study, the opportunities are endless with networking events, workshops, webinars, free MOOCs from around the world and more traditional courses on offer from your local colleges, universities and professional associations. Think about where you want to be five years from now and work backwards – how will you get there? What can you do in the next six months to take a step towards those goals? And how can you put it into action this week to get cracking on this exciting chapter in your new life? Whether it’s a career, language or personal development course, lifelong learning in your new home is guaranteed to give you a new perspective (and hopefully some new contacts!)

Grass is not always greener.

Everywhere has its’ quirks – what drove you nuts about your home country may not be an issue in your new one. But you can rest assured knowing something in your new country will replace that old quirk. The key is to draw on your flexibility, resilience and adaptability. If you don’t have much in the way of those three qualities, start developing them now or get ready to pack it all in within a few months or years time.

When life gives you a few hard knocks, as it does to most people regardless of their location and lifestyle, you need to be able to bounce back. If you’re prone to bouncing back only when surrounded by loved ones, within the comforts of your home environment and routines you may find you end up on struggle street pretty quick.

Notes From Another Land / Hampstead Heath — The grass is pretty green in Hampstead Heath

But don’t despair! Do you have the internet or access to a local library? Do you have a mobile phone or the ability to call someone to have a chat? If you’re travelling solo and lack a confidante, you can (and should) try to keep in touch with your loved ones at home via Skype, WhatsApp, Snapchat, snail mail or the old jingle jangle. There are tons of local groups looking for volunteers in your new community, support networks that exist for people struggling to integrate into their new home and there are always helplines you can call where a real person is waiting on the other end to help you pull through your problems. Don’t give in and don’t try to go it alone, reach out for help and you will find it.

Notes From Another Land / Homesickness — Souvenirs and notes from friends and family

A good step in preventing the grass is greener syndrome is to accept things as they come. Accept the fact you will struggle to understand how things work in your new home. Accept you will appreciate little things that locals seem to ignore or not realise how great they are. Accept that you will feel different and sometimes like an outsider. Most likely because you are! But that doesn’t mean you should compare yourself to others or try to adapt to become the same as your new neighbours. Hold onto yourself and keep your integrity, good qualities and use this time to lose any of the bad ones you may have acquired along the way. Every day is a chance to begin again (that is where the resilience comes in). If you’re similar to me, then your stubbornness and persistence may help you – lucky! While some may view those qualities as ‘can’t teach an old dog new tricks’ I choose to view them as ‘we’ll see who has the last laugh when I try those tricks again’.

Keeping it all in check.

Just be sure to balance your resilience with humility. Leave people better than you find them and try to be kind to yourself.

Open doors for others, smile at strangers (within reason if you live in London like me) and treat others with respect. All basic principles that are sometimes forgotten in the hustle and bustle of new big city life. Do you really need to run up the escalator on the tube? Or interrupt someone’s transaction at the till to place your order because you’re in a hurry? Or leave your rubbish lying around because someone will eventually pick it up? Yes, these may all be thinly veiled protests against things I’ve seen others do but they remind me to never stoop so low. I will always stand to the side for others and say ‘excuse me’ if I need to get past. I will patiently wait for the customer in front of me to finish and I will actually treat the person behind the counter like a human being instead of a customer service robot. And I will always separate my trash and recycling because that’s what those bins are for. I blame it all on Canada and growing up in the countryside – it’s ingrained in me to say hello to others and try to be kind. We all have our moments and I’m not saying I’m perfect but spend a few days commuting into the city centre of London and you’ll know what I mean. A little humble pie goes a long way, sugar.

Getting through some days (changes and all) may be easier than others but accept and expect that will happen. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to adapt straight away but put that energy into trying new things, joining new networks and going out to explore your new neighbourhood.

Notes From Another Land / Friday flowers — Be kind to yourself: start with some flowers at home!

I have alway sought out a good local cafe to have lazy weekend breakfasts, with decent coffee and newspapers. For me this reminds me of home on the farm in Canada, where I would go through a few cups of coffee while reading the local news. Find a good bakery or grocery store where you can get a few of your favourite snacks to remind you of home. Or get cooking those handed down recipes to make your own versions in your new kitchen! Whatever gives you comfort on days when you don’t feel like trying another local dish. After a while you’ll find you have established a new routine, comprised of bits of home you’ve taken with you and experiences you’ve had since leaving. Your new life will be a mish mash of tastes, hobbies and happenings but that’s the exciting bit. You get to mould your expat life into what you want it to be – whether it’s impacted by worldiness or homesickness is up to you!

Notes From Another Land / Canadian pancakes — Soul food in the form of pancakes, bacon, maple syrup and strong coffee

It’s not about what you’re capable of, it’s about what you are willing to endure. – Orrin Woodward

Five days in Northern Italy

Amy Lynch | Notes From Another Land | Lake Como Italy

I feel like I may have built up the hype for this post. It contains minimal photos of Italian fashion, food and architecture. Mainly because I spent the majority of my time eating, drinking wine, being a bridesmaid in an Australian-Italian wedding and searching for the elusive George Clooney.

I apologise in advance if you are expecting any of the following:

heaps of food shots
photos of everyone looking fabulous at the wedding
snaps of me sunbathing on George’s yacht

Unfortunately, I couldn’t deliver the Clooney goods and since it wasn’t my wedding, I will be respecting the privacy of the newlyweds (but we all did look fabulous). However, if you want to see photos from our short trip from Dublin to Milan, with a stopover in Lake Como and the Piedmont region in Northern Italy, then keep reading!

DAY 1: Dublin Airport

We stayed near the airport on Sunday night so we could get up for our 6am flight. Upon checking in, I discovered the front page of that days news featured Mr. Clooney himself, giving us advice on the secrets to a happy marriage. I think it had something to do with spending time together often…

Nevertheless, I downed my coffee, skimmed the article and noted the breaking news headline as evidence our mission (my fellow bridesmaid travelling from Ireland – the husband could have cared less about finding George…or so he says) would be successful.

Also note Kylie’s article and join me in wondering who laid out that front page with those stories in the same column? Too funny.

After arriving in Milan, we took a bus to the central train station to wait meet up with my fellow Irish bridesmaid and board a train to Como (we took different airlines, just to add to our complicated Italian logistics).

I must admit, since the three of us only had five days to fly return to Italy from Ireland and visit both Lake Como and attend the wedding, I used this Guardian article to book accommodation and squeeze in a few villages.

All in, over the five days we took:

two flights (Dublin to Milan return)
eight trains (Milan to Como, Como to Nizza via Milan > Turin > Asti, Nizza to Milan via Asti > Turin)
four buses (Milan Bergamo to Milan Centrale return, Como Station to Cadenabbia return)
three boat trips (Cadenabbia to Bellagio, Bellagio to Varenna and Varenna back to Cadenabbia)
countless car/van trips (pre-wedding, during the wedding and post-wedding)

You may be thinking, why didn’t you hire a car? I was the only one who is used to driving on the right-hand side and I can only drive automatic, which were in short supply when we looked at booking. Also – driving in Italy is fast paced and not always straight forward…so we opted for the public transit route!

A note for future travellers to Italy: the train platforms in the small towns and regional areas aren’t very accessible, so travel light or use a backpack! Luckily we needed to tone our bridesmaid biceps so we took the stairs as a mini-workout challenge. After which we rewarded ourselves with croissants.

Notes From Another Land / Cadenabbia — The popular method of travel: scooting around

We arrived in Como and then boarded a bus which took us up the winding two-lane road to the Cadenabbia, about 50 minutes away. It was not for the faint-hearted or those who get motion sickness easily. Pack your drowsy tablets and strap your luggage in – these buses overtake and stop suddenly. Also try to clear your stop with the driver before he gets going so he knows where to pull over. Once you arrive, the windy journey will be well worth it, Lake Como is lovely and there are lots of picturesque spots to check out!

Some snaps from our accommodation, the Grand Hotel Cadenabbia:

Notes From Another Land / Aperol spritz — Aperitif time

The demographic at Lake Como is definitely a bit older but it’s a lovely spot for a quiet break. Our hotel was hosting a few tour groups and we found ourselves shutting the bar down on the first night. In our defence, we didn’t finish our meal until 10pm and by the time we could have a night cap, the bar was closing down well before midnight.

I’m guessing it’s because they needed to prepare for the 7am breakfast rush! But before we were off, we managed to quiz the bartender about George Clooney. Apparently folks like us are the cause of him staying in his estate and he used to frequent the local restaurants more often before his secret hideaway was discovered. Poor guy.

DAY 2: Boat time

Otherwise known as finding George, sourcing the best gelato and trying not to sprain an ankle as we explore the quaint cobblestoned streets of Bellagio and Varenna.

Notes From Another Land / Lake Como — From a distance I resemble Amal in this hat, no?

Ok, so the photos decrease as time goes on. We became distracted by Italian silk ties and scarves, cappuccinos, he best chocolate croissants we have ever tasted, competing gelato shops (we had to judge them both) and the half litres of red wine for under a fiver. We strolled through narrow streets that still managed to be used by school buses and stopped every now and then to look out over the lake. The sun came out for a while, we soaked it all in and then caught a boat back to Cadenabbia before it started to rain on our last night in Lake Como.

I said farewell to Como (for now) and put my search for Clooney on the back burner. I had an early start the next day and a wedding rehearsal to attend. There were bridesmaid duties, more red wine and over 10 types of cheese waiting for me to sample in Nizza. Duty called.

DAY 3 & 4: Nizza

This day consisted of a bus ride, four train rides, a couple of car rides, unpacking and steaming wedding attire, a rehearsal at the church, wine and cheese at the hotel and a dinner where I ate the best gnocchi I’ve ever tasted in my life.

Since we had stocked up on croissants at Como for the different legs of our journey, I opted out of the dessert but again, I’m sure it was the best you could have tasted. I just couldn’t possibly do it after all those breaded pastries, wine, cheeses and olives.

Thank goodness it takes a while for the body to catch up with the menu, or I would have had bridesmaid trouble. Luckily I was able to sacrifice it all in the name of trying everything (except that one dessert) and resigned myself to buying a pair of stretchy jeans when we got home to London. What do they expect you to do when they put a hundred breadsticks on your table in a basket?

Luckily, the groomsmen were engineers and fascinated by the architecture and structural beams in the local buildings so I challenged them to build a breadstick mock up of the designs. This cut down on a considerable number of the breadsticks available to us: crisis averted. Then it was off to bed to rest for the big day!

I won’t go into detail but it was a lovely day. The church was beautiful, the food was fabulous and the speeches were great! The Italians sure do know how to do a menu and the view from the reception and villages we passed through along the way for photos were beautiful. We wish the newlyweds all the best on their next adventure in their new life together in Australia!

DAY 5: Final day winery lunch

We bid farewell to the other guests on our final day in Nizza before heading back to Milan but before we went we were treated to lunch and wine tasting at a local winery. Again, unfortunately because we spent most of the time eating and drinking, there is a lack of photos.

But I did get a few of the view!

You may not be able to see it from these, but the Alps were in plain view from the top of the winery and even though it was a beautiful sunny day you could still see the snow.

Notes From Another Land / Italian Alps — View from the winery

It was a short and action-packed trip to Italy, one we will never forget. I’m looking forward to going back to explore more of the country and its’ different regions.

Next vacation, I think we will do less travelling over a longer period of time…or maybe we will just spend more time exploring our new city and lounging around for a summer of laid back London weekends!

Top 5 tips for living out of a suitcase [in London]

Notes From Another Land / Creative Mornings London

Everyone has their own way of travelling or moving country – some do it in luxury others do it on a shoestring budget. We tend to go somewhere in between, opting to sleep in beds or on air mattresses as opposed to in 5-star hotel rooms or 16-bed hostel dorms. Every trip, big move and amazing adventure has a period of downtime and waiting until the next step. Since I’m only new to London, I won’t promise to know everything and if you find key information missing – please add it in the comments. For now, here is a list of my initial top 5 tips for living out of a suitcase (when you’re in a state of relocation limbo), the practical side to my previous reflective post about our recent move!

#1: Travel on the cheap

Go off-peak or even better, on foot, to save a few pence here and there! Peak travel times on the tube start from 6.30am to 9.29am and 4pm to 6.59pm, Monday through Friday except on public holidays. To save on travel, get an Oyster card which caps your daily fares when you reach up to £7 from any combined bus, overground rail or underground tube public transit journeys. You have to pay a £5 deposit for an Oyster card and then you’ll need to top it up using cash or card at the station. But if you are visiting the city, you can return your Oyster card to get a refund at the end of your trip, including the deposit you paid!

My favourite way to travel is on foot. London is an easy city to get around with lots of signage and the distance between tube stops isn’t really far at all. Just this weekend we took a long afternoon stroll from the Northern Borough of Camden through St. John’s Wood to Baker Street, stopping for a coffee break. Then we walked past Buckingham Palace before heading into Covent Garden via Westminister to watch the Football Club Final. Google Maps tells me that was a six-mile walk, but because there is so much to see and do along the way we hardly noticed (until the next day!)

#2: Recycle your wardrobe

This is a photo of my new walk-in closet…first time I’ve ever had one to hang my outfits in! Before we moved into our new apartment and while living out of a suitcase, I would diligently roll and re-roll or hang some of my clothes to ensure they looked nice each time I wore them. This is of course assuming you have the luxury of a laundry facility nearby, as it helps keep the wardrobe recycling fresh! My staple items include thin jumpers (sweaters), singlets (tank tops) and light tops in different designs or colours which can be layered with alternating jeans or skirts and scarves depending on the weather for a varying look. I have a couple of different length jackets to dress up or down with and I generally only have three pairs of flat shoes to choose from: a casual pair, a dressy pair and ankle boots for bad weather days.

Tip #3: Give your food some thought

Many places will have some sort of coffee and pastry or set course menu for lunch which can help you save money. There are often ‘burger nights’ and every pub will have a Sunday roast if your stomach’s aching for a bit of home cooking. I’ve been to a few places in Southbank and Covent Garden that have great lunch specials where you can get two or three courses for under £15 per person. So fill up on your lunch break and eat a lighter dinner, to stretch your budget a bit further! Time Out London often publishes easy recipes and since we were lucky enough to stay in a place with a kitchen, I could cook and bake to keep us going. I found myself buying a lot of spinach – you can use it for all three meals and even bake muffins for afternoon tea. If you do decide to walk often, you may even run into a promo worker handing out new drink or food samples, an added bonus of living in a busy city!

Tip #4: Get creative with your time

I have attended a few free events since arriving in London, the one pictured above is from the April edition of Creative Mornings. It’s a free early morning event for creatives in the city complete with coffee, croissants and chats (however on this occasion I found myself immersed in group improv games!) While this type of event might not be for everyone, there are countless lunchtime and evening talks at galleries, museums, educational institutions and start-up incubators. There are also recreational sports groups, outdoor concerts, theatre, pop up shops, food markets and depending on the time of day and which tube station you’re using, there are often buskers belting out tunes to keep you entertained. The opportunities to fill your time are endless!

Tip #5: Don’t fill ALL of your time

Notes From Another Land / Tate Britain — Patrick Heron’s Azalea Garden: May 1956 at the Tate Britain

I like to keep busy but isn’t it nice to be able to say yes to a spur of the moment event, coffee catch up or just witness something new in your city? Whether it’s walking home a different way or popping into a place you wouldn’t normally visit, London is a big, bustling place full of new adventures to be had.

Happy exploring and best of luck making the most out of your next ‘living out of a suitcase’ experience!

Stopping while you travel to reflect

Notes From Another Land / Living out of a suitcase in London

We’ve been in London for over a month now and are getting ready to move into our new apartment. Before we wheel ourselves and our belongings to our new neighbourhood and I write about my experience living out of a suitcase, I thought I’d take a moment to pause and reflect.

If you’re looking for initial insights about the city, read my post from April where I discuss travel options, friendly strangers and my overall impression a few weeks in. Right now, I’m going to wax lyrical about travel gratitude.

We are blessed with lovely friends, generous family and luckily, flexible outlooks on life. It certainly helps when relocating to a new city in a new country, to have all of those things on your side. But in case you are alone, not feeling the love of a good, solid support network or are simply struggling to adjust, these few things will take you far during your day-to-day as an expat or explorer.

Simple things to aim (and be thankful) for:

A cosy bed to sleep in: whether it’s a shared dorm in a hostel, a five-star lush king size, a friend’s floor or futon or an Airbnb, I’ve done them all. You can guess which ones are the most character building, the most luxurious, the most familiar and the most eye-opening. Maybe I’ve even put them in their respective order for you. But the main thing to remember is: you have a bed. A cushioned surface to lay your head to rest after a long day spent exploring, adjusting and evolving. So before you go to sleep in this safe and warm environment that so many others in your new city are without, thank your lucky stars. You’ll wake up rested and rejuvenated for the next day’s challenges and opportunities that lay ahead.
A hot shower: apply all of the above, to varying degrees. You will experience a trickling water pressure and changing temperature but a shower is a shower and it helps you wash all of your cares away. When you’re clean and refreshed, you’re ready to take on the world!
Fresh laundry: you can opt for the DIY tub or sink method, take a quick trip to a local laundromat, use a friend’s white goods or splurge on express dry cleaning. Whichever way you like your items laundered, I promise you’ll feel a million dollars.
A square meal: you may not have a kitchen to cook in yet but odds are you have sussed out the best local deals and places to dine. Whether you’re sharing it with loved ones, new acquaintances or enjoying your own company, savour the new tastes, sights and sounds. When you’re back at work tucking into last night’s leftovers or find yourself in the daily grind of a regular routine, those moments will feel miles away.
Friendly faces: if you are as good fortuned as we are to have friends and family in your new city, you can relate to the comfort of a smile you know, someone to listen to you or point you in the right direction. But never fear! Even if you’re moving to a new place where your network is scarce or travelling solo, you can still find people who will help you. I have had a few strangers offer to help me with my bags on the tube here and I thought I was doing a great job of ‘not wrestling’ with my 25KG on wheels! When I was turned around on a new street and trying to right myself, I would duck into a shop and ask someone for directions. I have yet to encounter someone who frowns and ignores me. People are ready and willing to help you, all you need to do is ask. So pipe up! And you will be amazed at the ways strangers will come to your rescue.

These are my opinions but I think they all apply to anyone who has ever stepped foot in a new destination. Remember to be grateful, manners and a smile will take you a long way and I promise your memories will be better for it.

Next up: my top five tips on how to live out of a suitcase (and make the most of it!) in London.

Books to inspire: written with passion and purpose

“Genius is no more than childhood recaptured at will, childhood equipped now with man’s physical means to express itself, and with the analytical mind that enables it to bring order into the sum of experience, involuntarily amassed.” – Charles Baudelaire

I came across that quote at the beginning of Vivienne Westwood’s personal memoir, on display in Waterstones Oxford Street. I didn’t buy it (yet) but made a mental note to add it to my reading list. Which had me thinking about some of the books I’ve read during my time in Canada, Australia and Ireland.

We all need to remember to read for pleasure, to ‘eat, pray, love’, reflect on life and the inner workings of the soul. It’s wonderful to escape into a flirty fiction romp or mystery adventure taking you through others’ troubles and tribulations. But if you are in fact the average of the five people you spend the most time with and you work remotely, travel solo or find yourself in a new place making new connections, you may turn to books to fill that void. If you’re from the school of thought that books can be your companions and even mentors in times of change, this post is for you.

Ever since I was little, I’ve wanted to create. Be a writer. An artist. A designer. It’s no coincidence this list is written by creative and passionate women – I’ve read many an inspiring autobiography about men succeeding in business and in life but this list contains books that have moved me. Made me laugh. Motivated me to do more and do better. Entrepreneurial autobiographies often times portray their spouse as a character who’s acted as a support, a caregiver or an influence. These women talk about the hard reality of pursuing your passion while being a primary caregiver, wife, ex-wife and/or friend, who is also trying to push the boundaries of success while aiming to create and conquer.

Often times they don’t talk about their family or love lives at all, other than the hardships and personal experiences that have brought them to where they are today. They’re not all married, single, divorced and their family status does not define their life story. Rather it is a piece of it and the books on this list focus on the pursuit of passion, the desire to do more and make a difference. Primarily, the theme of this list centres around following your ambitions, accepting opportunities as they arise and creating new ones for yourself. They also reflect on what they’ve learned to date and you can take from them what you will – get inspired, reignite your passion or learn from their mistakes. If you have aspirations to create and feel like you’re destined for bigger things, take a page out of these books!

In chronological order, my most recent inspiring reads are:

Yes Please by Amy Poehler – Positive affirmations, sassy statements, a go-getter attitude and drive to create, collaborate and perform are main topics in this book. Her passion has seen her through a series of life’s ups and downs, to come together in this cracking good read.
#GIRLBOSS by Sophia Amoruso – read about her journey from selling clothes on eBay from a hotel room to leading as CEO and Creative Director of multimillion dollar private company Nasty Gal in the boardroom. Her strong vision, determination and ability to learn on the fly is sure to motivate you to follow your passion.
The Vogue Factor by Kirstie Clements – An Aussie girl moves to big-city Sydney and works her way up the ranks at Vogue Australia, falling in love with a Frenchman along the way, with stints working in Paris and for other Condé Nast titles. If you delight in name dropping, want to work your way up in the magazine publishing industry and are curious about what goes on behind the designer labels and the world’s high fashion bible Down Under, look no further than this frank memoir.
Thrive by Ariana Huffington – She’s driven, successful, a mentor and influencer who has strong family values. As President and Editor-in-Chief of Huffington Post Media Group, she wills you to stop and listen to your body and examine your routines and their impact on your life. She asks you to nourish your body and soul to ‘thrive’ in today’s world, personally and professionally.
All In by Arlene Dickinson – This Canadian Dragon has written a memoir about what it takes to succeed when the odds are stacked against you. She writes about juggling family responsibilities as a single mother, up-skilling on the job and taking over the reigns to become CEO of one of the country’s powerhouse communications firms.
Everybody Matters by Mary Robinson – In keeping with my multicultural list, this autobiography examines the life of Ireland’s former President. Her progressive work in the Irish Senate, tenure as President and role as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights will have you asking yourself, what have I done lately to leave the world a better place? I wrote about my thoughts on this one in more detail here.
The Joys of Much Too Much by Bonnie Fuller – This is one I read before making the move to Australia for study and work, meeting my Irish husband and travelling to live and work around the world. You could say it has influenced me to keep pushing myself and taking new challenges on. It’s written by a Canadian journalist who moved to New York for love, ending up heartbroken and on the pathway to editorial success – what’s not to love? This one is all about ‘having it all’ in whatever shape or form that comes in for you. For Bonnie, it’s meant becoming the Editorial Director of American Media, marrying a fellow Canuck and having four children, while residing in New York. Her life is fast-paced and her views are strong and inspirational.

I also have a ‘to-read’ list of other titles about inspirational ladies, which keeps growing:

Now what about you? Have you read any of the above or would you add to this list?

A change of scenery: Being an Expat in a new city

“If you have good thoughts they will shine out of your face like sunbeams and you will always look lovely.” – Roald Dahl

Now this is a post I started last week, as we have just landed in a new city and a new country (again)! We have moved to London and are currently in the process of relocating our life in rural Kildare to one of the biggest cities in the world.

I love the above quote and since we’ve arrived here in late March, I’ve been walking around thinking happy thoughts and generally smiling for most of the day. I feel like I’ve gone from being a country bumpkin to the big city all over again – the smallest things are amusing me.

Getting around

I was in awe of the relative ease of using public transit, most likely caused by the over communication during travel of upcoming destinations and volume of large city maps at each transit stop – there is Transport For London signage everywhere. For the first few days, I forgot I had a smartphone because I simply did not need it to navigate the tube or inner city boroughs. It just seemed so easy and intuitive. I am not the first to say I have a great sense of direction but once you know the basics, it’s easy to navigate.

Staying connected

There’s the morning Metro, London Evening Standard and Time Out London found scattered on transport seats and handed out freely at tube stations and on street corners. There is no reason to feel out of the loop with what’s happening in the city or around the world each day. Perhaps it’s because of my journalism background or the fact I started off working in free daily and weekly newspapers, but I love reading the city’s print media and finding out what events are happening around town. My daily news sources have already tripled since we’ve arrived from Ireland!

Spring has sprung

There are buds blooming and vibrant green leaves have burst out onto branches all over the city. The weather’s been hovering around 15°C and going up past 20°C some days. People are leaning on street ledges during their lunch hour for a bit of Vitamin D and lounging in parks when they can. Children are playing outdoors and the birds start chirping from 4am, with the sun rising before 6am. The days are getting longer and every day seems to promise new things to discover and adventures to be had. It’s a great time of year to move to a new place, everyone is coming out of hibernation and I’ve even seen the odd stranger smiling to themselves as they stroll past.

Exploring new neighbourhoods

We have been staying with friends in Lambeth on the South side of the city and will be moving North West to Camden in May. It’s a good 30-40 minute tube ride with two changes to get between both locations but there is so much to see and do on either side! We spent our first weekend having lunch at Camden Market, then strolled towards Kilburn, exploring Chalk Farm, Belsize Park and Hampstead along the way. I had to visit the Canadian Embassy in Trafalgar Square, so we walked home from there past Big Ben, over the bridge at Embankment and through Vauxhall on the South side. We had Easter Monday in Notting Hill, walking up towards Kensall Rise and then catching a bus back through Knightsbridge and Chelsea – sitting up front on the double decker bus is like being on the hop on, hop off tours! Another sunny Sunday was spent walking through Waterloo and Southbank en route to Covent Garden before doing the loop and coming back South again via the Tate Modern. With the weather being so mild, it’s easy to walk 5-10kms without realising it.

Friendly bunch

We’ve encountered some friendly strangers since arriving, even though I had mentally prepared myself not to make eye contact on the tube and to keep my often plastered to my face grin to myself. But it’s hard to do that sometimes when the weather is so lovely and there’s so much to see. One friendly chap in his white collar work clothes offered to help the husband and I carry our suitcases up the stairs in one of the tube stations. I’ve had to go bridesmaid dress shopping in Oxford Street and when my phone battery died, the sales staff let me charge it at their till and even snapped photos of me to send to the bride in Australia. I was getting ready for dinner one night and came outside to meet the husband playing keepy-uppy football with some kids outside. Apparently he was just hanging out there waiting for me in his suit jacket and they figured he looked like he knew how to play so they kicked him the ball. I laughed out loud when I came downstairs to see him busting out his Ronaldo moves. Add to that our catch ups with friends in the city from Australia, Ireland and England, everyone has been so welcoming since we’ve arrived.

London via Ireland

Even though we’ve moved 600km across the Irish Sea back to another big city, I have been finding the people and surrounds quite nice. Nothing can beat the hospitality found in the West of Ireland but it’s not as confronting as some might think. Maybe my trip to New York prepped me for this move or perhaps it’s thinking like Roald Dahl – either way we could all take a page out of his book when changing scenery and trying something new!

NYC in a nutshell: Packing and prepping for winter in Manhattan

Notes From Another Land / NYC in a nutshell: Things to BRING

Baby it’s cold outside. Take it from a girl who has experienced the effects of leaving summer in balmy Australia for Christmas in bitterly cold Canada, complete with a 70°C temperature difference: you’re going to want to pack a few things to save your face, hair and the rest of you from the frost!

This one is a bit girly but is practical and links to a few products and packing essentials I bring when going from a balmy, humid climate to a dry and icy one. I know what you’re thinking – when did Ireland get balmy? Temperatures hovered between 2°C and 8°C from November to February, sometimes dropping below zero at night. According to the media this was the coldest and most miserable winter to hit New York in years, complete with frostbite warnings not to go outside for long. But I booked that ticket anyway.

Have you ever travelled somewhere 70°C colder?

You see, over Christmas 2013 the husband and I decided it would be a good idea to leave subtropical Brisbane for a stopover in Ontario before heading across the Atlantic to make our next home in Ireland. We went from a humid 30-35°C summer to temperatures of -43°C (at the worst) in Ottawa and Toronto. We had a great time catching up with family and friends, seeing snow again and having our first Christmas in one of our home countries since we met each other, complete with turkey and Secret Santa!

It was a wonderful experience but let me tell you, it was no winter wonderland. The husband had no winter gear so we went on a shopping trip to solve that problem but he was still frozen most of the time. He also couldn’t comprehend how the cars in the ditch ended up there or why anyone would drive anywhere. Poor Irish soul. I experienced multiple skin and hair dramas due to the sudden lack of moisture in the air and couldn’t understand how my genetics had failed me. I was born in Canada and had only missed four winters! How could my skin forget how to stay hydrated and my toes forget how to stay warm!?

Protect your face and hair from the elements

The picture above has some of the products I brought with me and purchased in New York. They are not product endorsements or advertisements but they are ones that I’ve been using and find do the trick for dry and cold winter climates. Get thee to a chemist, pharmacy, department store, Mecca Cosmetica or Sephora depending on your location!

They are from top to bottom, left to right:

Clarins Daily Energizer travel kit to start the day and step off the plane refreshed
Trilogy Rosehip Oil for extra moisture before applying my normal moisturiser and SPF and for extra hydration at night time
Lancôme Énergie de Vie is a great night cream if you find the air dry in your hotel, it helps you wake up with restored skin and any ruddiness from the day before is gone!
One of the Aussie ladies brought me a tube of my much loved Lucas Papaw Ointment – this all-natural Queensland product helps heal cuts and scrapes and acts as a great lip balm
I bought a travel-sized kit from The Drybar after my Manhattan blow dry experience to keep the memories going in Canada with their cute cocktail shampoo and conditioner and have been using my cute mini brush ever since
Cetaphil is my favourite moisturiser regardless of the season – the one pictured is SPF 15 but I use their High Tolerance and Shea Butter ones for face and body when I need extra hydration
The Drybar’s Detox Dry Shampoo was THE BEST I have ever used and sadly when it emptied I went back to my loyal and trusty batiste brand (note to self: must find Drybar here)
I’ve never tried caviar but I did go for this Alterna Caviar Hair Spray – great for a refresh and taming flyaways due to static

And always, always, always remember that even if it’s freezing outside, you need to wear an SPF!

Taking winter on again: things to pack

I knew what I was in for and I wanted to make sure I had my beauty products and woolly layers at the ready. I also went on shopping duty for the Aussies since they were doing a similar trip to my 2013 debacle: swapping summer Down Under for winter on the East Coast. I stocked up on fuzzy socks, tights and cosy accessories. I squeezed tubes of my ultra-hydrating moisturisers into travel sized alternatives. I put back ups in my carry on in case my luggage didn’t make it from Dublin. And I brought my secret weapon: two pairs of hand-knitted wool socks from Newfoundland that I picked up during my October trip to St. John’s to see my sister. The kind of socks you see farmers wearing in winter that are now somewhat stylish again when paired with skinny jeans and the right boot. Once I had those babies on, frostbite was getting nowhere near my toes!

Notes From Another Land / NYC in a nutshell: Newfoundland Socks — Newfoundland Socks

A few places I would recommend visiting if you’re travelling in winter:

Primark in the UK (or Penneys as it’s known in Ireland) for leggings/tights, socks and winter accessories
H&M for leggings/tights, socks, winter accessories and some warm layers and fuzzy jumpers
River Island for all of the above

All have loads of stylish accessories for those on a budget and let’s face it – your money is best saved for cocktails, shopping and Broadway shows in New York.

If you’re having a shoe dilemma and can’t decide which stilettos or heels to pack, get a grip. If it’s snowing or sleeting wherever you’re going you will need boots. Heels are fine for short distances or if you plan on hailing a cab to get from Point A to Point B but if you’re walking a lot and braving the snow – these will not keep the cold air or wet slush out.

Budget conscious shoppers can go for all of the above stores but if you want something that will last a bit longer, go to a good shoe or department store straight off the plane or order in advance online. Most countries that don’t experience harsh winters have sky high prices and the materials just aren’t the same (suede isn’t snow’s friend). Also – don’t underestimate the value of a good shoe protector spray. When it’s that cold, the sidewalks and roads get icy so the city council constantly salts the pavement to prevent accidents. It is great for safety but bad for leather, so spray before you head outdoors if you want to avoid staining!

I brought a pair of black heeled ankle boots for nights out and wore a pair of brown leather Rieker’s as my go-to casual shoe for the 10 days in Manhattan. They were layered with a normal pair of socks and my Newfie ones of course.

Notes From Another Land / NYC in a nutshell: Rieker Boots — Rieker Boots

If the weather is especially poor, you will need a pair of proper warm and ideally waterproof boots. The shorter the heel, the better for walking. When I found the sleet and slush to be too much, I bought a pair of Sorel’s since I knew what I was in for in Canada. To give you a better idea: it didn’t go above -10°C while I was there and was the coldest February in 115 years.

Notes From Another Land / NYC in a nutshell: Sorel Black Boot — Sorel Boots

The leggings or tights can be worn with your dresses or skirts but I also keep them as a back up to wear under jeans. True Canadians all have at least one pair of long johns (cotton and cosy for extra warmth) as your denim will freeze as soon as you step out the door. Not a pleasant feeling against bare legs. I also find if you are wearing a loose, flowing top made of any kind of silk, chiffon or soft and light fabric, even if you layer a jumper or cardigan over the top, you will freeze. So I tend to wear a tank top/singlet under those and tuck it into my pants – until you feel the cold on your torso, you won’t understand what I mean.

That should do for protecting you from the various elements. What are your go-to products and packing staples for winter trips?