Lights Will Guide You Home

June 9, 20165 Comments

You guys, doesn’t it feel a million years ago that I wrote this post?

Almost two years later, I’m having déjà vu like crazy. Moving into a home has been the biggest excitement and relief. Being able to actually unpack my backpack after 6 weeks on the road was such a privilege. I blasted some Beyonce, made myself a cuppa and felt right at home almost instantaneously.

Andrew finished up his course yesterday and MOVED IN. I was starting to go a little stir crazy and had definitely had enough of my own company, so yesterday was a really good day.

A couple of you have been asking for snaps of the new crib, and I always deliver. So, without further adieu;

The spot is studio style, all in one big room. I’m assuming it used to be the basement or lower floor of this HUGE house, which the owners have converted into a small home with the addition of a kitchen and bathroom. Above is the bedroom/lounge room with a TV unit and plenty of floor space calling for more furniture.

The sheets and duvet cover provided had seen better days, but luckily Blake and Tash dragged me along to Walmart in Squamish for some necessities!

This be the rest of our place. I love that the kitchen and dining area are a little separate from the bedroom. It’s a decent size and works for us! Our communication skills could do with some work though, we’ve somehow ended up with two packets of paprika and three of cumin. Baby steps…

Scoping the Pique newspaper has turned into my favourite hobby. Reading the upcoming events has turned me onto free yoga at Lululemon, ladies nights in the park and a plant sale in the village. I picked up these babies for cheap and find that they’re helping us make this place a little happier.

The owners of this place actually live in the same house as us (we have a separate entry and hardly ever see them), and are the nicest little family. They’re looking after us really well so far, by installing a new lock on the shed (so all our bikes have a home) and letting us use this table on our front patio.

This is essentially the view from our driveway, and I’m not mad about it all. From certain angles you can see Whistler Mountain and Blackcomb, this place is insane.

I’m even getting used to filter coffee, mainly because I haven’t been paid yet and life is expensive in Whistler. Kicking back with a cup, reading blogs with Spotify on the go is making me one happy gal.

Life in Whistler ain’t so bad, especially when this is the view riding home from an awesome ladies’ night. I’ve started work too, and I promise to give you details soon. For now though, just know that I already love it and am getting goooooood feelings about this place. Hope you’re all well!

Hanbel.
x

Home Sweet Home

May 23, 2016Leave a comment

Well, this is home. I’m not mad about it at all.

Whistler is a pretty speculator place. Yes, it’s touristy, and yes, Australians flock here, but it’s for good reason. No matter where you turn, you are greeted by mountains, creeks and astonishing views.

We’ve hit the ground running here, Andrew went straight into his course from the moment we arrived (he’s training to be a mountain bike coach, for those who don’t know). I’ve been lucky enough to crash with Tash and Blake (friends from home), which has made life so much easier.

I have also been lucky enough to score a job in Whistler already, working for a company who organise holiday rentals, activities, restaurant bookings etc. for higher-end travellers. I start in a couple of weeks and am actually pumped to get back into full time work.

In the meantime, I’m taking myself on small hikes and rides, checking out the village and just hanging out with my new besties!

Being a tourist town, life is a little more pricey up here. Groceries in particular, are really making me a sad panda. Though, we have found one perk. 1.5L of red wine for $15. So we might just live off potatoes and wine from now on…

Why do I always pull this face?

The mountain bike park opened up this weekend, and the village has been flooded with riders in all shapes and sizes. We’ve enjoyed a couple of afternoons in the sunshine watching them all come down the hill. The kids who ride with no fear, flying down the trail, are so incredible to watch!

On Andrew’s day off we took the bikes out to a smaller, cross country style area. Even though my lungs got a huge shock, it felt sooooo good to be back on the bike!

Just this morning I took myself off to Lululemon’s free yoga session, and later today we’re going to hit up a Farmer’s Market down the hill. There’s always something happening or something new to discover, which is helping us all stay positive while performing the arduous task of finding somewhere to live. Whistler housing is insane, there are not enough houses to go round, and we’re struggling a little at the moment. Finger’s crossed something pops up soon!

Just gotta keep that zen 😉

Happy yoga vibes,
Hanbel.
x

One Second of a Road Trip

May 20, 20163 Comments

I’m so proud of us! We managed to keep going with our one second every day videos the whole time we were on the road (Andrew found a reminder service, SO HANDY).

As much as the photos are cool, and re-reading our blog posts is similar to having a diary, this is just another way to see the absolute highlights of every day.

So, here we have it: LA to Vancouver, our holiday before we begin living at a holiday destination 😉 #sorrynotsorry

Canada Eh

May 18, 2016May 18, 20167 Comments

You have reached your final destination.

Cannot begin to tell you how incredible that sentence is. Not that we were travelling for that long, but it does make a big difference when you finally arrive in the country you plan on living in.

We hit Van City on Thursday, and headed to Kitslano to crash at our friend Carla’s spot. Kits is a suuuuuper cute area to stay in, right on the “beach” (I use this term loosely), nice little strip of shops and cafes, and only a 5km walk into Downtown.

The main purpose for hitting up Vancouver was to get the admin side of life sorted, which we smashed out in half a day! We got our Social Insurance Number plus great deals on a sim card and bank account (Virgin Mobile and CIBC if you’re wondering). The banking system is so backwards here, they still use cheques, have only just begun using internet banking and most of the bank will charge you for internet transactions.

Once we finished the boring things, we took advantage of the sunshine and hit up Stanley Park. After the longest wait for an average burger (there are always downsides to travel), we grabbed some bikes and road the seawall.

The ride was so flat and the bikes were amazing to ride, 14km went by so quickly.

This cool kid.

The sunshine continued through Saturday, and with Carla not working we had a buddy! With a car!
After an amazing brunch (following from Perth traditions) at The Oakwood, Carla drove us all out to Lynn Canyon to walk around the falls and NATURE.

Doing this little walk has gotten me so excited for living in Whistler, hiking and riding every day!

Rewarding ourselves with ice cream, naturally…

Our little group headed into Gastown in the evening, for drinks and dinner. I managed the dinner portion before taking myself home with a mother flippin’ cold. NOT HAPPY.
Gastown is very cute though, old school-style gaslamps on the streets, cool little restaurants and bars down alley-ways. I hope the others enjoyed it to it’s fullest!

We took Sunday a little easier (easy like a Sunday morning, some would say) due to my stupid sickness. Not wanting to waste the whole day though, we did a quick visit to Granville Island for chicken noodle soup and pot pies.

The markets are gorgeous, full of fresh fruit and vegetables. We, however, were drawn to a different kind of dessert;

We had to try a maple donut in Canada 😉

After this I basically retreated to the couch for the rest of the day, but we did manage to watch Eurovision and laugh uncontrollably at the outrageousness. This made me feel a little better 🙂

Hi Canada! I like you, I think we’ll stay.

Hanbel.
x

Observations of the USA

May 15, 20162 Comments

After 16 days through the states, I’m pretty much an expert now. Ha! No, I don’t think I could ever be, but the experience of driving the coast has opened my eyes to some ridiculous, funny, stupid and different observations of this country.

McDonald’s is legitimately everywhere. We’d be driving through a small town (comparable to Yallingup for example) and there will be a McDonalds, Taco Bell and Starbucks on offer. If not more!
Car pool lanes. These are bloody genius! If you have two or more passengers, you can drive in the furtherest left hand lane, which is always quieter.
All the food and beverages are sweeter or are cinnamon flavoured. Soy milk is sweeter, tonic water is sweeter, chewing gum tastes like cinnamon. It’s ridiculous.
Most people we met were super friendly, but always think they’re right. They want you to have the best trip, so you need to cancel that hotel you have in Pismo beach immediately and book in at Morro Bay.
The catch phrase is “SO good”.
– That donut was SO good
– Her hair looks SO good
– That bar is SO good
Speaking of bars, every single one has at least one TV showing any game of sport. Even the classy bars will have it on, and then you hit Buffalo Wild Wings where they show at least 10 different types of games on 50 screens around the restaurant.
Pick up trucks are no joke. To me they resemble monster trucks, and scare the life out of me on the road.
Customer service is insane! As the staff work off tips they always go above and beyond to make sure you have the best experience. So, even though at times you know they’re faking it, it’s a nice change to the grumpy hipsters back home.
Having said that, tipping SUCKS. American companies need to sort their shiz out, pay their staff the correct wage so that the customer doesn’t have to.
On top of that, please just include the taxes in the price tag of any item. I don’t want to have my $5 note ready, to have someone tell me “Oh, that’ll be $6.20 thank you”.

Rant over. This country, like all others has positives and negatives. I loved the trip, and wouldn’t have done it any differently at all. I just find these little differences fascinating, and thought you might too!

Big American love,
Hanbel.
x

The World of Hanbel

Working on Living that Dream

Category: Travels